Commerce and candidates promoted at Fort Smith chamber expo

 

story and photos by Joel Rafkin
[email protected]

From health to wealth and many more in between — about 70 businesses participated in the Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce Business Expo held Friday (Oct. 8) at the Phoenix Expo Trade & Event Center. The event brought business owners together in the morning to do some inter-business networking followed by a luncheon and afternoon session open to the public.

Fort Smith city director candidates spoke during the hour-long breakfast briefly espousing their platforms and providing details on their backgrounds and qualifications.

Scotty Thurman, former Razorback basketball player, spoke during the luncheon. Thurman is best known for sinking a clutch three-point shot late in the 1994 NCAA national championship game against Duke. The shot, made with less than a minute left in the game, put Arkansas on the path to a 76-72 win.

Thurman, who is in charge of preparing University of Arkansas student-athletes for a life after sports, talked about the importance of communities working together as a team. He also requested support from the Fort Smith area business community in his efforts to connect UA players to the business world.

The luncheon, originally estimated to attract 200, had a crowd of more than 300.

During the afternoon, area business owners and representatives had the chance to connect with potential customers from the public sector while promoting their products and services.

Drawings were held during the expo for door prizes and most booths gave away small items such as pens, coffee mugs or tote bags emblazoned with the name of their business.