'Consummate professional': Volusia County's longest-serving chamber exec retires

Clayton Park, The Daytona Beach News-Journal
4 min read
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PORT ORANGE − Port Orange Mayor Don Burnette said he once told Debbie Connors that it would be "a cold day in hell when you retire."

Connors retired Wednesday after 22 years as president and CEO of the Port Orange South Daytona Chamber of Commerce.

Sure enough, Burnette jokingly noted to Connors and a laughing audience, "Today is the first day of winter. It's going to be in the 20s in a couple of nights. The things you do to get out of things!"

Port Orange Mayor Don Burnette cracks a joke that gets a laugh out of Debbie Connors at her retirement party after 22 years of service as CEO of the Port Orange South Daytona Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday evening, Dec. 21, 2022.
Port Orange Mayor Don Burnette cracks a joke that gets a laugh out of Debbie Connors at her retirement party after 22 years of service as CEO of the Port Orange South Daytona Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday evening, Dec. 21, 2022.

Connors was Volusia County's longest-serving chamber executive, having initially led the Port Orange South Daytona Chamber as executive director from July 1991 to November 1997 and then as CEO from April 2007 until now.

More than 150 people packed the Riverside Pavilion in Port Orange to pay tribute to Connors.

Burnette and Bill Hall, mayor of South Daytona, proclaimed Dec. 21, 2022, as "Debbie Connors Day" for their respective cities while Daytona Beach Shores Mayor Nancy Miller was also on hand to read a proclamation thanking Connors for all she had done for her city as well.

Debbie Connors holds up proclamations she received from the mayors of Port Orange, South Daytona and Daytona Beach Shores at her retirement party after 22 years of service as CEO of the Port Orange South Daytona Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday evening, Dec. 21, 2022.
Debbie Connors holds up proclamations she received from the mayors of Port Orange, South Daytona and Daytona Beach Shores at her retirement party after 22 years of service as CEO of the Port Orange South Daytona Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday evening, Dec. 21, 2022.

'Leader extraordinaire'

Kimberly Dillon, 2022 board chair for the Port Orange South Daytona Chamber, praised Connors for being "a consummate professional, a confidante, a friend, a shoulder to lean on and a visionary and a leader."

"What an honor it is to propose a toast to a leader extraordinaire," added Dillon, a business loan officer with Truist Bank.

Burnette in his proclamation noted Connors' instrumental role in creating the Port Orange/South Daytona Leadership program in 1995. Dozens of people in the audience raised their hands when he asked how many graduated from that program over the years.

Connors also is a past president of the Port Orange/South Daytona Rotary Club as well as a past president and current advisory council member of the Port Orange Family Days Community Trust who Burnette credited for making it "what it is today. That's a big, big, big thing for this community."

Connors also currently serves as vice chair of the Volusia County Growth Management Commission.

In between her two stints working for the chamber, Connors worked as area director of the American Cancer Society and general manager for Clark Properties.

Connors teared up as she told the gathering, "The chamber is all about connections and it connected me to some of my closest friends here. It (also) connected me to my husband."

John Connors, who is now retired, served for 13 years as executive director of the Ormond Beach Chamber of Commerce and, as a consultant to the Port Orange South Daytona Chamber, "helped the board hire me before I knew him," she recalled.

Debbie Connors said she finally met her future husband at a statewide conference put on by the Florida Chamber of Commerce. The couple married the following year.

The couple who live in Port Orange have two daughters, a son, and four grandchildren. She said they plan to remain in the area but look forward to spending more time with their grandchildren as well as taking trips.

"You all mean so much to me," Connors told the audience. "I love you all so much."

Kimberly Dillon, board chair of the Port Orange South Daytona Chamber of Commerce, gives a speech thanking Debbie Connors, front row second from right, for her 22 years of service as the chamber's CEO at Connors' retirement party Wednesday night, Dec. 21, 2022.
Kimberly Dillon, board chair of the Port Orange South Daytona Chamber of Commerce, gives a speech thanking Debbie Connors, front row second from right, for her 22 years of service as the chamber's CEO at Connors' retirement party Wednesday night, Dec. 21, 2022.

LOOKING BACK: Read a 2014 interview with Debbie Connors

BUSINESS BOOSTER: Chamber works with city to rejuvenate Port Orange's U.S. 1 corridor

WELCOME WAGON: City officials, business leaders take part in celebrating groundbreaking for Fysh Bar & Grill

New chamber CEO to start Jan. 1

The Port Orange South Daytona Chamber has hired Diane Charles to become its new president and CEO. Charles will start her new job on Jan. 1. She is a former Emmy award-winning television executive who has an extensive background in business, communications, event marketing and fundraising for nonprofits. Her resume includes working as a vice president of corporate communications for a "major Midwest retailer," according to a news release issued by the chamber.

Diane CharlesDiane Charles
Diane Charles

Founded in 1977, the Port Orange South Daytona Chamber has 660 members and represents businesses in Port Orange, South Daytona and Daytona Beach Shores.

Volusia County's previous longest-serving chamber executive was believed to be the late George Mirabal who for 20 consecutive years was the CEO of what now is the Daytona Regional Chamber of Commerce. He also came out of retirement to serve as interim CEO for seven months in 2013.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Consummate pro: Volusia County's longest-serving chamber exec retires

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