AUBURN - Since it was founded in 1887, the Cayuga County Chamber of Commerce has worked tirelessly for the region's economic future. Thursday marked the chamber's 99th annual dinner, a time to reflect and also look at the work ahead.

Terri Bridenbecker, the chamber's executive director, took a few moments to reflect on the trying economic times the state and country are in.

Bridenbecker referred to the old proverb, “May you live in interesting times.”

It's a statement that can be taken as either a blessing or a curse, Bridenbecker said, depending on the perspective and the times one lives in.

“It is on the news today,” Bridenbecker said. “These are interesting times. But it is not a time for despair or to wallow. We need to learn what needs to be done. You can feel the potential in Cayuga County, from Fingerlakes Crossing to efforts of places like Cayuga-Onondaga BOCES to go green, to our lake as a natural resource.”

Bridenbecker said from her perspective, these developments and others point to the potential for a bright future for Cayuga County's economy.

To illustrate this point, the night's keynote speaker, Paul Speranza, Jr., an executive with Wegmans, spoke on options available for the state's businesses and their employees to make a difference in their collective economic futures.

A Rochester native, who works for Wegmans in Rochester, Speranza said Auburn holds a special place for him. Speranza said when he began working for Wegmans in 1976, it coincided with then Mayor Paul Lattimore Sr.'s efforts to get Wegmans to Auburn.

This development, Speranza said has proven beneficial to both Wegmans and Auburn.

“Paul Lattimore Sr. gave economic incentives to come here and picked out a location and everything,” Speranza said. “It is the work of visionary leaders that can make the difference.”

To illustrate his point, Speranza pointed to efforts Wegmans has made, starting at the grassroots level in Rochester to help improve its community from its employees to the people who live in the area. Speranza gave an example, a program geared toward education, offering students the opportunity to succeed through bettering their educational opportunities. Speranza said he has seen the impact, helping decrease Rochester's crime rate and increasing the high school graduation rate.

Speranza said within the store, programs that encourage eating and living well have also proven beneficial, helping to promote a healthy work environment, which in turn improves the business.

“We take care of our employees,” Speranza said. “They take care of the customers and the bottom line takes care of itself.”

Speranza has also served on the executive committee of the board of directors of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which has allowed him the unique opportunity to see what is working to help stimulate commerce to help communities find ways to solve their economic needs and challenges.

Speranza reiterated the news New York faces difficult economic times but he said he believes there are real, viable solutions.

“We need to look at non-traditional partnerships,” Speranza said. “Business, labor, faith based, academic. We need to come together to start talking and find a common ground and find the things that we need and then take it to our legislators and hold them accountable. We need to collaborate. No one community can do this alone, but a number of communities and groups working together can make a change.”