The St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce is now the third largest Chamber in the state of Missouri.

According to a press release, the Chamber added 263 members in a special member event which wrapped up Thursday night. About 200 volunteers worked to recruit the new members into the Chamber.

“We are incredibly proud of our volunteers and how hard they worked this week to help grow the Chamber,” said Natalie Redmond, Vice President of Membership for the St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce.

The Chamber now has 1,390 members, which ranks just below the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce and the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce, which has roughly 2,000 and 1,550 members respectively. St. Joseph has more members than the St. Louis Regional Chamber, Lee’s Summit, Joplin, Cape Girardeau, Columbia and others.

“Our volunteers really took to heart the mission of the Chamber, which is to better the community by growing businesses and employment while also furthering educational opportunities to prepare tomorrow’s workforce,” said R. Patt Lilly, President and CEO.

The goal of the membership event initially was to gain 150 members, but that goal was broadened to 200 as the three-day event progressed.

“Adding 263 members to our roster helps the new companies because they now have a wealth of resources to help them grow and it also helps the community as a whole because membership in the Chamber also supports the economic development of our city,” Lilly said.