Linnea Noreen, who has worked for the Seattle and Rainier Valley Chambers of Commerce, has been named the new CEO/President of the Lewis Clark Valley Chamber of Commerce.
Noreen has lived in the Lewis-Clark Valley since 2020 She will begin her new duties on Aug 28,2023.
“We are very excited to have someone of Linnea’s caliber lead the chamber,” said Christy Armstrong, chair of the LC Valley Board of Directors. “I have to thank our board of directors, the Executive team and the hiring committee who took the time and effort needed for this difficult task. I know that all of us, felt a tremendous obligation to our chamber members to take the time and dedication needed to put a leader in this position that will be a good steward to the voice of our members and be able to carry out our continued vision of a successful, productive and meaningful Chamber of Commerce.”
Noreen was born and raised in Seattle. She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science with cum laude honors from Wellesley College in 1999. During 2000-03 she coordinated the leadership program at the Seattle Chamber of Commerce and served as the executive director of the Rainier Valley Chamber of Commerce. She helped with event management, schedule speakers, she oversaw programs, budgets, communications, marketing, and boards and committees.
During that period, she was involved with several projects, including assisting with an economic development program for Sound Transit and supporting staff at the Neighborhood Business Council, which is part of the Seattle Chamber of Commerce. She helped leverage public and private funding for leadership development programs at the YMCA in Seattle where she was the program director during 2003-06. She also served on the board of directors for several nonprofit and for-profit organizations, including the Seattle Junior League and PCC Natural Markets, the largest grocery co-op in the US.
After working in nonprofit management for seven years, Noreen became the clinic operations director for Qliance Medical Group.
Noreen then shifted careers and earned a teaching certificate from Seattle Pacific University in 2017. She taught for 4 years in Seattle before moving to the Valley where she was a substitute teacher. She obtained her principal certificate from SPU and earned a master’s degree in French from the University of Washington in 2023.
This past year, she worked as an administrative intern and substitute principal for the Clarkston School District.
Noreen has been active in the LC Valley community as well. She has served on the Historic Preservation Board in Lewiston and has been involved with local PTAs.
Noreen’s hire caps a four-month search to replace Kristin Kemak, who resigned in April to accept the role of President/CEO with Twin County United Way. Noreen becomes only the second CEO of the combined Lewiston and Clarkston chambers since the two chambers merged in 2011. Blake Harrington, who is the Events & Communications Manager for the Chamber, served as interim CEO between Kemak and Noreen.
“The board of directors would like to sincerely thank Blake for the outstanding job she did in the interim,” Armstrong said. “It’s not easy running an organization being short staffed but Blake stepped up and performed well.”
For more information on the LC Valley Chamber, visit its website at https://www.lcvalleychamber.org