We are excited to announce that Melissa Lewis has joined the Lancaster Chamber as Customer Experience Specialist for the organization.
If you visit our 115 East King St. office, chances are you will be greeted by Melissa as she serves as the first face you see here at the Chamber. She will be assisting all teams with operational logistics, special projects, customer service inquiries, and more.
Please join us in welcoming Melissa to the team! Get to know her with our below Q&A.
Where did you work previously before your role here at the Chamber?
From 2013-2019 I worked at Demme Learning in Lititz. It’s a family-owned publishing company that primarily produces math and spelling curricula, and I loved my time there. It introduced me to the Chamber and helped me grow as an individual and as an employee! After Demme, I worked as a retail manager for Windstream Communications in Ephrata for a little over a year. Then, sadly for COVID-related reasons, I was unemployed for a time. Fortunately, though, during my time at home I was able to work on myself, figure out my priorities, and spend a lot of time with my daughter who was VERY happy to have my attention!
What are some of your hobbies or passions or interests?
Anyone that knows me knows I love to adopt new hobbies all the time. Sometimes they stick and sometimes they don’t, but regardless they’re fun to try out! Right now, I love baking (cookies mostly), doing book narration for Audible (I have my first in the works!), and painting (rooms and canvas!). I am also a full blown cinephile (love of the art of movies and moviemaking) and when I’m not trying out a new hobby, my tried and true passion is always movies. Horror is my favorite genre, but I’ll watch anything really!
Do you have a quote you are inspired by?
There are two that really stand out to me.
The first is “Just because my path is different, doesn’t mean I’m lost.” I’ve gone through a lot and my journey definitely is a unique one and it’s taken a long time to accept that it’s okay not to follow the “norm”.
The second is “You wake up every morning to fight the same demons that left you so tired the night before, and that, my love, is bravery.” I have that quote on my nightstand and it’s the last thing I see at night and the first thing I see in the morning. Life can be hard, so it’s nice to be reminded it takes bravery to get through each day, good or bad.
What do you love about the Lancaster County community?
I’ve lived in Lancaster County since 2008 (this is a BIG deal to me since I’ve never lived anywhere else more than four years), and I really do call it home. Things that we take for granted, like how fresh our food is, or how much greenery we have, keeps me charmed by this area. Also, weird things are oddly endearing like the “intersection” of 272 and 501 at the Golden Triangle or the multi-pit stops off 30 at Fruitville Pike, Lititz Pike, and Oregon Pike. It’s weird, but it’s Lancaster and I love it!
What are you most excited about in joining the Lancaster Chamber team?
I really excited to be a part of a successful, close-knit group in which everyone has a passion for what they do. There’s a lot to be said for workplace benefits, but I think it’s every bit as important to work with people you enjoy being around and share a common objective with.
not secure