Fort Walton Beach Chamber Exec Director Profile - John Keith - Climate Business Magazine of Florida's Great Northwest

Profile: John Keith, Exec Director of
Fort Walton Beach Chamber of Commerce
by
Scott T. Jackson,
Published in Climate Magazine July - August 2001
Vol 12, Issue 4
(Index of Other Articles)

Deep-sea fishing is more than a passion for John Keith, it is a metaphor for the plunge he takes into his community and his new role as the Executive Director of the Fort Walton Beach Chamber of Commerce. The water had always attracted John and his family but it was his deep commitment to serving the community that eventually landed he and his family here on the Emerald Coast. A self-described "civic-aholic", he is ambitiously embarking on a campaign to bring a sense of true community to the Fort Walton Beach area.

His professional lineage began in with a degree in finance from Florida State University and a degree from the School of Banking of the South at Louisiana State University. Hence a 30-year career in commercial lending and banking put John into the extensive business network of the community. It was his employer at the time, SouthTrust Bank, which brought him from Jackson County to Okaloosa. The bank was opening a new market area and had tapped John and his sales skills to lead the way. Later John became the Vice President - Commercial Loans for SunTrust Bank of Northwest Florida, handling loans of $500,000 and greater for the Okaloosa County market.

As if the banking business wasn’t enough to keep him occupied John had immersed himself into the community at a level that would have exhausted the time, patience and energy of the heartiest of us – Krewe of Bowlegs Honor Guard, Co-Chairman of the EDC Corporate Olympics (I can testify to his tenacity having witnessed his demonstration of the obstacle course outfitted in fireman’s garb on a hot Saturday afternoon), Friends of Scouting, United Way Board Member, EDC Financial Task Force, Rotary Youth Exchange Committee and Charter Board member of the Fort Walton Beach Mainstreet program to name only a few.

"John was the cornerstone of our Corporate Olympics last year," says Larry Sassano, Executive Director of the Okaloosa County Economic Development Council. "We have had a relationship from day one. John will do whatever it takes to get the job done. I still count on him."

It was a unique set of circumstances that eventually led to his becoming the chamber’s director. As the President of the Fort Walton Chamber John had realized that his sense of community was a force that the banking business would not satisfy anymore. He had been a chamber president before in Jackson County and knew how things worked so it wasn’t new territory for him. But with the imminent retirement of long-time director, Rodger Peters, John heard the call of opportunity and landed the position after a

comprehensive search process singled him out as the person who best exemplified the spirit and vision of the community.

"We did a national search and had the three finalists, including John, go through three days of interviews with board members, chamber members and the chamber staff," says University of West Florida’s Dr. Dianne Barlar, chair of the search committee. "He was up against candidates with up an average of 18 years chamber experience and with larger chambers. He definitely earned the position."

Citing the three main reasons people join chambers - networking, business services, and political voice – John’s main objective is to bolster all three by improving the communications with members. "We have 24 committees with separate mission statements", John states, "communications is the number one task." "We recently formed a partnership with the advertising agency of O’Connor & Ricks to add a more professional spin to our message."

One key committee he emphasizes is the Transportation Committee. "Transportation can kill the golden goose – tourism, so we work hard with volunteers on transportation issues. One of John’s projects that he is most proud of is the Main Street program he worked on with Susan Myers.

John says his philosophy of community involvement has been influenced recently by a new book Bowling Alone by Robert Putnam. Using the example of bowling and how league play has declined, the author relates how we have become increasingly disconnected from family, friends, neighbors, and our democratic structures-- and how we may reconnect. Drawing on comprehensive evidence and interviews over the last quarter century the author states that we sign fewer petitions, belong to fewer organizations that meet, know our neighbors less, meet with friends less frequently, and even socialize with our families less often.

John quickly notes the positive aspects of getting back into the community and cites evidence in the book that reconnecting with our systems brings positive rewards and a general sense of well-being, financially and emotionally. "Perhaps it is a sense of guilt in that I feel so blessed in my life and want others to feel the same," he shares.

The connection with community is John’s message and he is ready to share it. You won’t find John "fishing alone" on his boat "Salty Seminole", there will be others sharing in the common spirit. It is too good for just one person to enjoy and John’s truest enjoyment is making others feel as good as he does.