The Chattanooga Area Chamber celebrated its 120th anniversary with a keynote address by Sen. Howard Baker, announcement that the Chamber's Chattanooga CAN DO campaign has raised nearly $9 million and recognition of this year's winners of the Alfred P. Sloan Awards for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility. In remarks that blended nostalgia and boosterism for Chattanooga, Baker recalled his days at McCallie School -- "one of the great, great experiences of my life" -- and said the community's educational institutions are a major strength.

Chamber CEO Tom Edd Wilson enjoys Sen. Baker's remarks at Annual Meeting. Photo by David Andrews.

Baker, who received two standing ovations from the audience of more than 850 at the Convention Center, praised Chattanooga's scenic location, historic significance and the philanthropy of its private sector. "The community has prospered," said the former Senate Watergate Committee Vice-Chair and U.S. Ambassador to Japan. "And its promise for the future is even greater."

In response to a question about the loss of civility among members of Congress, the 81-year-old Baker, admired as a consensus builder, said, "Politics has gotten so mean, so rash, so accusatory that it's having a corrosive effect on the system of government." He said for government to work everyone has to have "a decent respect for the other fellow's point of view."

Baker's appearance was laced with instances of his celebrated sense of humor:

• He recalled that when both The Chattanooga Times and News-Free
Press endorsed him for the Senate, the publishers agreed by
telephone that one of them had to be dead wrong.

• He said people often ask him how far it is to Japan, which he
continues to visit regularly after completing his ambassadorship
in 2005. His reply: "It's three meals and four movies."

• He noted that the three-member law firm his grandfather
founded, now Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell and Berkowitz --
boasts 500 attorneys today -- something he said that would
appall his grandfather. He also remarked that his law firm had
bought four of the Annual Meeting luncheon tables. "And there's
not a billable hour in the bunch," Baker said, looking downat his
law firm members seated near the stage.

The Chamber paid tribute to Baker with a donation to the Baker Center for Public Policy at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and a screening of images depicting Baker's service as Chief of Staff for the Reagan White House, among other public service posts.

Prior to Baker's remarks, Nick Decosimo, managing principal of Joseph Decosimo and Company and Chamber board chair for the 2007 fiscal year, announced that the Chattanooga CAN DO
campaign has raised more than $8.9 million to fund the Chamber's comprehensive economic
development strategy for the next four years. He said he hoped to be able to announce the full funding of the $10 million strategy in the near future.

Frank Schriner, who served as Chamber board chair for the past year, pointed out that since the launch of the Tell the World! campaign in 2003, the Chamber has directly supported 48 companies in announcing over 6,000 new jobs and more than $700,000,000 in investment. "Those successes and the successes of your individual companies have ramified through our economy for a net gain of 15,000 new jobs as of July 2007, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics," said
Schriner, who serves as president of First Tennessee Bank.

Schriner praised the Chamber for introducing Business Building Blocks, a seminar series based on requests from the membership, and Quick Connect, a program that allows participants to make 32
new business contacts in just 90 minutes.

The meeting also included announcement of the Sloan Award winners: The Center for Community Career Education at UTC, Management Recruiters International Chattanooga, Reading Education for Adult Development (READ) of Chattanooga, Inc. and Unum.