Peers across PA present Main Line Chamber CEO with Keystone Award
Main Line Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Bernard Dagenais was presented with the Keystone Award by the Pennsylvania Association of Chamber Professionals (PACP) at a professional development conference in Bedford, Pa. on Nov. 14.
The Keystone Award was established in 1963 to recognize outstanding service in, and contributions to, the profession of chamber management in Pennsylvania. It is the highest honor bestowed by the PACP. It is not presented on an annual basis, but only at such times as an individual has merited such recognition. Dagenais is the 28th recipient of the award. For the first time in the history of the award, PACP recognized two Chamber leaders. The 29th recipient is Venango Area Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Susan Williams, who is in her 19th year of service.
“Bernie is not only a leader in his own community. Through long-time service as a PACP board member, Board Chair and mentor to so many in our profession, he has been generous and inspiring in sharing his views and vision for optimizing the value of chambers of commerce to their businesses and communities,” said Immediate Past Chair of the PACP and Bedford County Chamber of Commerce CEO Kellie Goodman Shaffer. “Our industry is better as a result of his efforts and I am so happy to see him recognized for all he has accomplished.”
Dagenais took the helm of The Main Line Chamber of Commerce and became President of the Main Line Chamber Foundation in 2010 after a nearly three-decade career in journalism, culminating with his role at Editor-in-Chief of The Philadelphia Business Journal. Under his leadership, the Chamber has become the top-ranked suburban Chamber of Commerce in Greater Philadelphia, according to 2023 Philadelphia Business Journal Book of Lists, while also winning the 2021 Large Chamber of the Year Award from PACP. He holds the IOM designation, which is a Chamber credential awarded to those who have completed 96 hours of nonprofit management training through the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Institute for Organization Management. Dagenais served as PACP Board Chair in 2017. After he left the Board of Directors, Shaffer appointed Dagenais to return for an additional year in 2020 to help meet challenges relating to the pandemic.
“It’s great to have my peers provide me with this honor, but it would not have happened without the Board of Directors that hired me and helps the Chamber team in its work connecting our members with business, leadership development and talent,” Dagenais said. “I share this award with the staff that powers us and the members who seek to accomplish great things through their participation and financial support. I hope it helps brings added attention to the positive difference we make together.”
The Main Line Chamber serves Delaware, Chester and Montgomery Counties, with a significant number of members also based in Philadelphia. It offers leadership training and professional development through its Talent and Education Network, Society of Professional Women and Leadership Main Line programs. The mission of PACP is to enhance the quality and relevance of chamber management in the Commonwealth of PA. To achieve this mission, PACP is dedicated to providing continuous quality education in professional and organizational development to its members.
