As president of the Chamber of Commerce of Walker County, Linda Lewis has made many contributions to the area’s economic development. She initiated the development of a new five-year strategy for the chamber called Focus Walker County. As a result of the strategy, a successful campaign raised $1.2 million to implement a plan focused on four initiatives for all of Walker County, which include Workforce Development and Education, Tourism and Image, Retail and Commercial Attraction and Legislative and Public Policy. She was selected as Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce Association of Alabama and is also on the board of directors for the Business Council of Alabama. Lewis also helped design Youth Leadership Walker County which prepares high school juniors for future leadership roles and to obtain a deeper understanding of the community and its resources. She assisted with the development of Groundhog Job Shadow day introducing all high school freshman throughout Walker County to the world of work through a job shadowing experience with local businesses.
Lewis is a graduate of Walker College and University of Alabama Birmingham where she majored in Secondary Education. She attended the Community Development Institute, Jacksonville State University. Lewis is also a graduate of Leadership Alabama and Leadership Walker County.
Of her many impacts in the community, Lewis has been recognized by Chamber of Commerce of Alabama, and has received the Rotary Foundation International Paul Harris Fellow Award. She has served on the Advisory Board for the Carl Elliott House Museum, the Bankhead House & Heritage Center Advisory Board and the Junior Ambassadors of the Chamber of Commerce Advisory Board. Lewis is the past chairman of Big Brothers Big Sisters, and has also been named the Daily Mountain Eagle Newsmaker of the Year and Walker County Citizen of the Year. Lewis was Walker County Chairman for the 2009 United Way of Central Alabama campaign. She also accepted the role as Chairman for the American Red Cross, Walker County Chapter and Heroes Campaign all in which exceeded the goals to be met with the projects.
Lewis has been religious education teacher for 35 years at St. Cecilia Catholic Church. Lewis says of her Girl Scout experience, “Girl Scouts enabled me to achieve many accomplishments, past and present, from the early guidance and commitment of great leaders. Girl Scouts was a way of learning about myself and other people, and focusing on working together to attain results. I earned 54 badges, and to this day still have my sash. The Promise and Law continue to provide a positive role for leadership development today and into the future."
Lewis will be honored at the Central Alabama Women of Distinction Luncheon on March 4. You can purchase tickets online at www.girlscoutsnca.org/wodcentral.
