Milford Area Chamber of Commerce Names New President

The Board of Directors of the Milford Area Chamber of Commerce (MACC) announced that they have successfully completed their search for a new President and CEO and that Siobhan M. Bohnson of West Boylston has accepted the position. Ms. Bohnson will start on Jan. 2. 

“Finding a new leader for the MACC seemed to be a fairly straightforward goal at first,” said Michael Carroll of Dean Bank, Chairman of the MACC’s Board of Directors; “but that only scratched the surface of what the challenge really became. It was finding the ideal combination of small business experience, the ability to connect people, a comfort level working with our political leaders, advocating for our members and an appreciation for the unique opportunities and challenges that are inherent within the 10 communities the MACC serves that ultimately became the ideal we were trying to capture. Our members will quickly come to see that this organization has that with Siobhan.”

Ms. Bohnson brings career experience to the position that gives her unique perspective into organizations large and small. She has been a small business owner, having owned and operated a maternity clothing store for almost six years earlier in her career. Most recently, she was the Vice President of Retail Banking for Country Bank, supervising the sales and service goals of a 15-branch financial institution. She served as a member of the West Boylston School Committee for 7 years and was recently elected the first female selectman in West Boylston’s history.

“Delivering value to the members of the MACC is a dynamic and exciting opportunity”, Bohnson said after accepting the position. “It feels like the right blend of my skills with both a continuation of what has been accomplished over the past decade under Barry Feingold’s leadership and new ideas that will help sustain and grow the Chamber for years to come. I can’t wait to get started!”

Bohnson stated that her first 30 days will involve familiarizing herself with both the current members of the Chamber as well as reaching out to those businesses that are no longer members.  “I really want to find out specifics as to what our members think and feel about this partnership. The next step then becomes reaching out to the businesses that aren’t currently members to tell them how important they are to our long-term success and have conversations around discovering what their needs are.”

“Barry Feingold’s pending departure was unexpected and this area will miss him,” said Shefali Desai, incoming MACC Board Chair. “We can’t thank Barry enough for his service and we will all miss him. With every departure, however, comes an opportunity. Our members will soon benefit from a new leader as the voice of our business community. We are delighted to welcome Siobhan to the MACC," Desai added.