Menifee Chamber of Commerce fires executive director

Story corrected to show that Neil Winter was fired from his position with the Chamber of Commerce.

The Menifee Valley Chamber of Commerce on Thursday fired Executive Director Michelle Pack -- its fourth director in less than two years.

Menifee 24/7 has learned that Pack was terminated with no notice following a closed session of the Chamber's Board of Directors Thursday morning. She was informed that her dismissal was immediate and she was told to cut her own final check before leaving the office.

Asked the reason for Pack's firing, Chamber Board President Karen Nolan told Menifee 24/7 that the Chamber "needs to take a certain direction. We felt it was best to have a mutual departure. We need to fulfill our direction of putting its memberships first."

Pack's dismissal comes at the end of a year in which paying memberships in the Chamber increased from 215 to 373, according to a source. Nolan was asked how the Chamber's direction was not being fulfilled.

"Basically, it's the same direction we've been taking," she said. "We felt we needed to have somebody in that position to move it forward. (Pack) was the executive director during the increase in enrollment, but we also had a person who was employed with us as a marketer but had to step down for a time period because of his campaign. Those periods coincide."

Nolan's reference was to Neil Winter, who spent several months recruiting members as a Chamber employee before he was fired by the executive board, which claimed his campaign for mayor constituted a conflict of interest. Winter defeated incumbent Scott Mann in the race for mayor last month.

"I think Michelle played a viable role in helping certain things come in by working the administrative part of it, but Neil definitely was more of that marketing person who went out and visited businesses," Nolan said.

Winter said he was saddened to hear Thursday that Pack was terminated.

"In all honesty, that was my job," Winter said about his work in recruiting new members. "Michelle hired me to do that so she could focus on fundraisers and other activities."

Reached by phone, Pack had no comment.

Nolan said that a committee has been formed to search for a successor. In the meantime, she said, current staff members will run the office.

The Chamber has gone through a series of leadership changes since the departure of Dorothy Wolons, who worked as CEO for almost 10 years. Wolons went out on work-related stress disability in early 2015. She later filed a lawsuit against Chamber board members, claiming she was illegally terminated while on disability. Reached by phone on Thursday, Wolons had no comment on the pending litigation.

A press release sent to the media from the Chamber board on April 15, 2015 announced that Dee Cozart was hired as interim CEO, replacing Wolons. She served until July 23 of that year. On that day, according to a source, board members were notified that the executive board had hired Janet Cook, formerly CEO of the Palm Springs Chamber of Commerce and executive director of the Canyon Lake Chamber of Commerce. The board did not give her the title of CEO, restricting her duties to those of executive director.

Just two weeks later, on Aug. 6, the executive board announced in an email to board members that Cook was being replaced by Pack in the position of executive director.

Nolan was asked about public perception of the Chamber of Commerce in light of comments received by Menifee 24/7 that some businesses are not members because of disagreements with the way the board runs the organization. Pack's dismissal came one day after the latest Chamber mixer, which Nolan said attracted 42 people to an event that drew much larger crowds in past years.

"Sure it was less than in the past, but having viable people there is more of a key than the attendance," Nolan said. "Our direction is to find those who want to be participants with the Chamber and take advantage of all it has to offer them, instead of just showing up for something.

"Your perception or public perception regarding the Chamber and what we hear are not the same."

A check of the Chamber of Commerce's website Thursday afternoon showed that the site has been suspended.

Gina Gonzalez, economic development director for the City of Menifee, told Menifee 24/7 "the City remains committed to the business community to work with the Chamber to ensure the success of the community."