Heather Brothers New

Heather is a native of the Gadsden area and has served as the President & CEO of The Chamber from November 2011 through May 2012. She and her husband, Blake, own Gadsden Variety and Cafe in beautiful Historic Downtown Gadsden. She is a proud Gadsden State Cardinal and Jacksonville State University Gamecock. The focus of her work over the past 10 years has centered around economic, community and workforce development.

During her tenure at The Chamber, she resurrected the Leadership Etowah professional development program, developed a new day-long educator workforce immersion program that tours 400 teachers annually through local industry and community college career technical programs and created Excellence in Education – an annual luncheon that celebrates innovation and educational excellence throughout the county. She successfully advocated for a referendum for seven-day sales of alcohol in the city of Gadsden, which led to the new recruitment of commercial businesses.

Her recent credentials include:

Auburn University's Government and Economic Development Institute Intensive graduate – a professional development program that provides a firm base of all facets of economic development, ranging from capital financing, site selection, recruitment and retention and workforce development initiatives.

Certified Chamber Executive (CCE) – less than 4% of the industry professionals achieve this designation globally, having successfully completed an extensive body of work and rigorous 3-part examination.
Institute for Organization Management (IOM) – a 4-year course that instructs in best practices of organizational excellence and management administered through the US Chamber of Commerce Foundation and the University of Georgia in Athens.

Travel Marketing Professional (TMP) – a 3-year course that instructs in marketing, management and development of tourism, with a specialized track on events and festivals, administered through the Southeast Tourism Society and the University of North Georgia in Dahlonega.

She is also an Alabama Accredited Chamber Executive (AACE) and is currently working toward the Certified Economic Developer credential offered through the International Economic Development Council.

Her volunteer hours are spent on the state level with the Chamber of Commerce Association of Alabama, Business Council of Alabama boards of directors and the Alabama Department of Public Health's Office of Women's Health Advisory Council.

Locally, Heather is a strong advocate of workforce development and education and has chaired the Gadsden City Career Technical Advisory Council for 8 years. She is the chair of the Gadsden State Alumni Association and serves on GSCC's Cardinal Foundation, as well. She also currently serves on the boards of Dre Kirkpatrick's 21 Kids Foundation, Gadsden Public Library Foundation and the United Way of Etowah County.

She’s a true believer that when others do well, we all succeed. She’s not afraid to fight for what is right and makes it her personal mission to never let anyone feel alone in a room full of people.

Heather is most proud of her family – her husband and three adult children – Quintan, Savannah and Ashby, who all attended and graduated from the Gadsden City School system. She has a granddaughter named Zeola Rose that is the light of her life, and a primary inspiration to push harder for a better tomorrow in our community.