By Michelle Price
Special to the UCBJ
CROSSVILLE – Members of the Crossville-Cumberland County Chamber of Commerce gathered Tuesday evening at Grinder House Coffee Shop for a meet and greet with the two finalists to become the organization’s next president/CEO. A third finalist withdrew her application earlier in the week.
Both applicants have over 15 years of economic development experience and have served in chamber positions previously.
Ethan Hadley currently lives in Lawrence County, Tennessee and serves as an economic development consultant. His previous experience includes serving as the Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce president and economic developer, and from 2004 to 2013 he served as Vice President of Economic Development for the Huntsville, Ala. Chamber of Commerce. Hadley also spent five years living in Tokyo, Japan serving first as a teacher then working in advertising and industrial recruitment for the state of Alabama. Hadley is fluent in Japanese.
The other candidate, who requested that his name not be used since his current employer is unaware of his application, currently lives in another state, where he serves as the executive director of a chamber of commerce. He has served as president or general manager of chambers in four states. Prior to his economic development experience, he served 26 years in the Air Force and retired as a Lt. Colonel.
The chamber board of directors conducted interviews for the position earlier Tuesday and will meet in a special session at the chamber on Sept. 24 at 4 p.m. to consider the applicants. The meeting will be open to the public.
