NE CT chamber executive director, Betti Kuszaj, to retire after 41 years. What are her plans?

DANIELSON — There are a few lucky people who, on the cusp of retirement, can point to a tangible reminder of their accomplishments.

Betti Kuszaj has a folder full of such remembrances.

Inside a thick packet pulled from a desk drawer inside her office at the Northeastern Connecticut Chamber of Commerce headquarters on Westcott Road, Kuszaj on Tuesday fanned out sheaths of hand-written letters, post cards and other notes of gratitude from chamber members, former state leaders and various Connecticut luminaries.

That list includes University of Connecticut Huskies women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma, broadcast journalist Gayle King and noted forensic scientist Dr. Henry Lee.

“I’m grateful,” she said. “I’m particularly proud of things like getting every sitting governor since 1982 to come out and meet with our chamber.”

Kuszaj, the chamber’s executive director for 41 years, announced her retirement this month after decades of service to an organization that has grown during her tenure to serve 23 towns and more than 530 businesses in the greater Windham County region.

Jill St. Clair came on as Killingly's economic development director in May 2020 after years of working for the city of Norwich.

"Betti was one of the first stops I made after coming to Killingly," St. Clair said. "There's big and small chambers all across Eastern Connecticut, all with their own mission statements. What Betti is amazing at is harnessing the regional vision and mission. And she does that through things like her legislative advocacy in promoting business-friendly practices."

St. Clair said Kuszaj never hesitating in helping promote community projects and would regularly attend ribbon-cuttings for businesses not affiliated with her chamber, all in the spirit of regional collaboration.

"She's on my roster of people to call when there's a new business opening up," St. Clair said. "It was never about turf for her, but rather what was the best way to support the business ecosystem here."

Decades of dedication

During her decades at the helm, Kuszaj has seen the chamber move into its own building, served 36 board presidents and helped local business owners weather economic downturns and a pandemic.

And it all started in 1982 when the former Killingly-Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce ran an ad seeking a new executive director.

“I was a few years out of college, teaching in the Brooklyn school system and working part-time as a waitress,” Kuszaj said. “I didn’t have any chamber experience, but I understood the group was about helping businesses and the business community.”

At that time, the group, then serving about 70 business and not yet merged to become the current chamber incarnation, was operating out of a former bank on Main Street in Danielson.

“My tools back then were a typewriter, carbon paper and a rolodex,” she said, quickly rattling off from memory the phone numbers of various car dealerships, banks and other businesses.

The group in later years merged with neighboring organizations before formally becoming the Northeast Chamber in 1991.

“Our mission is to support businesses and we do that by offering networking opportunities, legislative advocacy, scholarships and our awards gala,” Kuszaj said.

For years, the chamber, like similar non-profit institutions across the state and country, dealt with the vagaries of an economy that, while sometimes challenging, were at least familiar.

Weathering the pandemic

Then came COVID-19.

Business owners reduced hours or shuttered their shops as they grappled with lost income. Shoppers stayed home amid a frequently confusing barrage of information coming from local, state and federal officials regarding the safety of even being outdoors.

Kuszaj, after closing the chamber’s office for one day, was back in her chair at the height of the pandemic and working on solutions.

“I got a Zoom subscription and began reaching out to people – human resource personnel and lawyers – who could talk to our businesses,” she said. “We hosted conferences, had lunch forums on health and wellness and estate planning, all to try and keep people connected and informed.”

And that work had paid off.

“We’ve done more ribbon-cutting for new businesses in the last three years than we ever did in the past,” Kuszaj said. “I think that’s because so many people laid-off during the pandemic took that time to figure out what they wanted to do. And my instinct is, many wanted to open their own businesses. The pandemic became a nurturing ground for entrepreneurship.”

Kuszaj said she plans to remain at her job until Aug. 11 to aid the board in finding her successor.

“My daughter is having her first child in June and I’m going to help care for my grandchild,” she said. “It’s not romantic, but I’m excited for that.”

Praises from members

Sheila Frost, immediate past chamber president, said Kuszaj is a "highly respected, very professional" individual whose dedication to the chamber and those it serves is unparalleled.

"The impact she's had on northeastern Connecticut is monumental," said Frost, owner of Putnam's Courthouse Bar and Grille and member of the chamber's search committee. "She makes businesses better with her support and asks the hard questions. I'm sad to see her go after so many years, but happy she's moving on to the next chapter in her life.

Frost, a member of the chamber's board of directors, is part of the group's search committee tasked with finding a new executive director.

"Betti has very big shoes to fill," she said.

John Penney can be reached at jpenney@norwichbulletin.com or at (860) 857-6965.

This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: NE CT chamber executive director to retire after 41 years of service