A throng on well-wishers and friends assembled at the Camden Chamber of Commerce Monday for a retirement party for Beth Osteen, executive director of Camden Area Chamber of Commerce.
On Feb. 3, Greg Nettles, Camden Area Chamber of Commerce Board president, received a letter of resignation from Osteen. The letter said her last day of work would be Tuesday, Feb. 28 -- today --, as she felt it was time for new ideas and experience at the Chamber.
"It has has been a pleasure to work for the Chamber of Commerce for over 20 years and during that time I have met and worked alongside many great people," Osteen wrote in the letter. "I truly appreciate the opportunity to serve the Camden area and wish only great things for the board and members of the Chamber."
On Monday, Nettles reflected on Osteen's two decades serving Camden.
"Beth has the Chamber and the community of Camden at heart. She goes in, above 100%, to make this thing happen, and a lot of times there are things that we don't see that she does behind the scenes. It's kind of like the guys that are behind the camera. They never see them. She's one of those people," he said. "She believes and going after making it happen and what she's done for the Chamber of over 20 years -- it's going to be hard to fill. But we're going to be looking for someone. Who knows? The person may be already here in Camden."
Ouachita County Judge Robert McAdoo said that while he's sad to see Osteen go, he knows she'll still be available when he calls.
"It's a day that's kind of sad, but we're also really happy for Beth and the job that she's done with our Chamber of Commerce, and we want to wish her all the best in her retirement. We always know she's just a phone call away when we need her, and that's that's a big plus, because she is well versed in chamber and the activities and the daily responsibilities of the director," he said. "But we're happy for her, that she gets the opportunity to retire. Once again, it's after a job that she's done really. really well for so many years. We're just elated for her. Maybe with the footprints she's put in place, set the future for the Chamber of Commerce Camden, because we know she's been a big contributing factor."
Osteen thanked the assembled crowd and said one of the biggest benefits the job provided was giving her time to focus on her family.
She said, "When I first started here many, many moons ago, my kids were very small and one of the things that intrigued me about this job -- Now, I was told up front there's no benefits, but your benefit is that if your kids or your family needs you, you go. That's the most important thing."
She went on to talk about her years of service.
"It's been a pleasure to work for the Chamber of Commerce for over two decades -- met a lot of very interesting people, been involved in some very interesting projects. Some have come to fruition. some have not, but that's the name of the game," she said. "But more than anything, it's working with with people, especially local folks that really care about this community and want to see the best for it. So I'm just -- this is blowing me away, these folks that have come out today. So, thank you."