Chamber Connection by Butch Burney 8.21.25

We are looking forward to a fantastic 56th Annual Hopkins County Stew Contest, with title sponsor Alliance Bank, on Oct. 25, and it’s time for stew cooks to start registering.

Registration for last year’s cooks has been sent, and new and returning cooks can also register online at HopkinsChamber.org.

We are keeping the registration fee the same as in past years at $100 per stew site, with the sponsor asked to provide $150 to each cooking team for ingredients.

If you have been a Stew Cook in the past, we look forward to seeing you again and tasting your delicious stew. If you have won the contest in the past, you are eligible to enter the Super Stew competition.

Each returning stew team will have the option of keeping their 2024 site. These sites will be reserved until Friday, September 26, and then on Monday, September 29, the “unclaimed” stew sites will be open to “new cooks” and to returning cooks who would like a new site location. After Sept. 26, all sites will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. As in 2024, we will have sites open on both the north and the south side of Connally Street, where we will have a serving tent and market vendors.

We will have a Stewcomers Meeting for first-year cooks and those interested in cooking at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 26, at the Chamber office. This is a good time to get information about what it takes to be one of our stew cooks!

Stew Tickets

Thanks to our generous sponsors, we are able to keep tickets prices for the Stew Contest on Oct. 25 the same as the last several years — $8 for adults and teenagers, and free for all children 12 years and under!

Tickets will go on sale next week at the Chamber office, all of our local lending institutions, and online at HopkinsChamber.org.

Signature Solar is providing the Kids Eat Free sponsorship, so thanks to them for being such a great community partner.

Sunrise Social

Come join other professionals during a Sunrise Social breakfast provided by Holiday Inn Express, 1521 Industrial Drive, from 8:30-100 on Monday, Aug. 25. The event, hosted by Jasmine Lemons of Coldwell Banker Watson Company, is free and open to the public.

Drop your business card in the fishbowl for a chance to win prizes. Start your morning with fresh coffee, friendly faces, and powerful connections. Networking has never been this bright!

Coffee and Conversation

Join us for our main networking monthly event when Gary’s Termite and Pest Control hosts our Coffee and Conversation on Thursday, Sept. 4, at the Chamber office, 110 Main Street.

You don’t have to be a Chamber member to attend. It is free to everyone, and a prime time to make friends and contacts.

Please make plans to attend to enjoy some cocktails, snacks and great conversation.