Mid-Maine Chamber names 2021 chair, board

Mid-Maine Chamber names 2021 chair, board
WATERVILLE — Kimberly Nadeau Lindlof, president and CEO of Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce, has announced that the organization’s governing board of directors will have a new board chairperson and five new board members for the coming year.
Brandi Meisner will be board chair, assuming the role from Joy McKenna, as her term on the board is complete. Other changes in the slate of officers of the board include Heather MacKenzie Thorne, who will become first vice chair and Michelle Joler-Labbe, who will serve as second vice chair. Bruce Harrington continues as treasurer and Gary Levesque as director-at-large for the board.

Meisner is a resident of Skowhegan and community banker for Skowhegan Savings Bank, after spending 15 years in the insurance industry. She is on the executive boards of the Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce and Main Street Skowhegan. She also chairs several subcommittees of both organizations. She helps to operate family businesses: Maine Cedar Hot Tubs and the Skowhegan Wooden Rule Company.
New board members are Melik Peter Khoury, Ken Walsh, Linanne Gaunce, Larissa Larrabee and Mark Bradford. Bill Layton also returns for a second term on the board.
Layton is a resident of Waterville and director of the Office of Grants and Sponsored Programs for Colby College. He is a board member director for the Waterville Public Library. He will be in his second term on the board for the Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce, where he serves on the Public Policy Committee.
Khoury is the president and CEO of Unity College. Under his leadership Unity College has launched The Enterprise Model, which offers traditional and adult students educational opportunities through UC: Distance Education; UC: Hybrid Learning; and UC: Sustainable Ventures. In the process, Khoury has begun to break down the traditional barriers associated with higher education – making it more affordable, accessible, flexible and relevant for students locally and around the world.
Walsh is chief executive officer for the Boys & Girls Clubs and YMCA at the Alfond Youth & Community Center, a position he has held for 29 years. Through Walsh’s leadership, the Alfond Youth & Community Center has expanded programs to serve multiple constituents, including work with area after-school care and food/nutrition programs. He is on the YMCA and BGCA State Alliance, Main eSports Legends, and is an assistant baseball coach at Colby College, as well as a planned giving and legacy gifts advisor. He has served on multiple boards including KVCAP, Good Will-Hinckley, Snow Pond Advisory Board.
Gaunce has managed special events and donations for ten years for Central Maine Motors Auto Group, a family-owned auto dealership based in Waterville. She is president of the Waterville High School Boosters Association for the golf, baseball, tennis and cross-country teams. She was co-president of the Waterville Senior High School Project Graduation Committee for 2020, helping to plan a unique graduation ceremony in light of the pandemic. She has been a member of the Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce Annual Awards and Super Raffle Committees.