New Chamber Director Has Strong Background In Leadership, Business Growth

The new executive director of the Mills County Chamber of Commerce brings a wide array of experiences and expertise to the position.

Along with a strong background in sales, Gitzy Loder’s resume includes experience in human development, leadership coaching, business growth, team building and goal achievement. She’s lived and worked in several communities, from the East Coast to the West Coast, during her lifetime and is a first-generation Chilean-American. For the past six years, she and her sister had their own leadership and team development company. In that capacity, Loder worked with business owners, C-suite executives and teams worldwide with the objective of “driving organizational excellence.”

“We’ve been going into corporations, Fortune 500, different industries, just helping people think differently to get results,” she said. “Peak performance, mindset, those kinds of things.”

No matter where she’s lived, Loder has been active in her community – volunteering, serving on civic boards and being involved with the local chambers of commerce.

“I have a lot of chamber experience and knowledge,” she said. “I felt Kearney’s (Neb,) chamber was instrumental in me growing – connecting with people. It’s really your ability to connect with people and make them feel special. Make them feel like you care.”

Loder said she understands the important role the chamber can play in helping and supporting local businesses and “fostering community growth.”

Loder considers “relationship building” as one of her primary strengths and is looking forward to meeting business owners in the community. She is an advocate for collaborative partnerships, empowerment and continuous growth.

“One of my goals here is to really help create a culture of excellence,” she said. “I want every business owner to know that they’re a leader in the community and empower them. I feel there’s a difference between empowering and enabling with people.

“I want to facilitate more lunch and learns – bring in people to help with that and kind of round out that concept of leadership. My goal in the first few weeks is just to get some one-on-one meetings to know people.”

Loder said the role a chamber of commerce plays in a community can evolve, but the bottom line is that the organization is there to support local businesses.

“I think at the core of it is advocating for local businesses and the people that are making a livelihood in this community,” she said. “Having been a business owner for six years, I know it can be hard. As a business owner, I don’t want them to feel like they have to do it all alone.”

Although Loder has yet to meet most of the business owners in the community, she is familiar with Mills County. She lived in the county for three years until being displaced by flooding in 2019. At that time, she moved to Bellevue (Neb.),where she resided until returning to the Glenwood area in 2023.

When she isn’t working, Loder said she enjoys spending quality time with her two children and exploring the outdoors. She’s an avid reader of non-fiction and personal development books and is constantly seeking ways to grow both personally and professionally.

In announcing Loder’s hiring last week, Stephanie Bowden, president of the Mills County Chamber Of Commerce Board Of Directors, expressed her confidence that the momentum the chamber experienced under former director Jennie Davis’ leadership will continue.

“Mills County Chamber of Commerce has managed to do the almost impossible task of filling Jennie’s shoes,” she said. “We have accomplished so much here and we have a way to maintain that momentum with the hiring of our new executive director, Gitzy Loder.”

Loder had the opportunity to work with Davis for one week to learn some of the daily ins and outs of the office. Davis’ last day on the job was Friday. In addition to Davis, the chamber office also lost longtime administrative assistant Tana Saddler who retired last week.