When Executive Director Rick Prose first took office at the Boothbay Harbor Region Chamber of Commerce in January, he didn’t know he‘d be the first of four new hires in just a couple of months.

Through a series of new opportunities coming up for people and moving out of the area, the Chamber lost its visitor and member relations coordinator, administrative coordinator, and marketing and events coordinator around the same time.

“It’s been a challenge,” Prose said. “And while nobody could ever replace the people we’ve lost, I think we’ve put together an excellent team.”

Newly hired are Eva Carey as the new visitor and member relations coordinator, Roseanne Taylor as the new administrative coordinator, and Patricia Royall as the new marketing and events coordinator.

Carey is originally from Maine, but has spent the most recent part of her life working for the United States government in California. She has a strong background in information technology, which Prose said is “invaluable.” She’s been spending her time familiarizing herself with the local businesses and owners around the Boothbay region.

“It’s great having her here,” Prose said. “A lot of what we do is it, and she knows so much about it, such as getting into the website and fixing things when it needs it.”

Taylor has owned several businesses in the Boothbay region and is described by Prose as “an extremely hard worker who is smart and has really stepped up to the plate.”

“Rose took over a job where a lot of the knowledge was stored inside Brooke’s (Hubner) head,” Prose said. “Thankfully, Brooke — and Cherie Scott and Michelle Davis, for that matter — have all been really helpful and are happy to answer calls and emails when we have questions.”

Royall currently lives in Richmond and is the former executive director of the Chocolate Church in Bath. She has owned her own business, and originally applied for the executive director position at the Chamber. While Prose got the job, when he came in, the board of directors handed him her resume with the suggestion he seriously consider her for the position.

“I put her resume next to mine and I would have hired her for the executive director position,” Prose said with a smile. “So I took them at their word.”

“It’s all new for us,” Prose said. “We’re a brand-new group doing what the chamber does for the first time. Our main focus is on our members; there hasn’t been a lot of continuity here for a while, with four executive directors in five years. We want to assure everyone that we are still here and focused on our task, promoting the region.”

Prose said they all have lots of new ideas they are working on, like updating the region guide with some “real editorial content” and “powerful imagery” that tells a story about the region. The staff is also talking about creating an app for visitors that would show maps to chamber businesses, link to websites, and provide on-the-go information directly to tourists.

“We need to move into the digital era,” Prose said. “Currently 24 percent of visitors to the chamber website visit it on a mobile device. We should capitalize on that.”

“We have a great new group who all add a lot of value to the Chamber,” Prose said. “They understand the importance of updating our services. We’ve been the number one avenue to promote the region for the last 54 years and we need to change with the wave of the future.”