Guthier to step down from Chamber

Any time Brad Fischer brings a new member of the Owatonna Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism into the office to meet the staff, he stops at Rhonda Guthier’s desk and says, ‘Well, here’s where all the action happens. She runs the place.’”

A rundown of Guthier’s responsibilities would seem to confirm that, though she waves off the idea with a smile.

That’s all about to change, anyway: Guthier will retire May 15 from the OACC after 25 years.

Her title is director of operations, “so I do all the finances, take care of the Chamber Foundation, and do all the HR stuff. And facilities – I take care of facilities,” she said, running through a mental list.

Guthier also sits on the public policy committee and does the administrative work for the executive team and the board of directors, which includes retention visits to member businesses and the Chamber’s accreditation every five years.

She has done the weekly newsletter and business brief for about a decade, after a marketing position was changed.

“I’ve been here so long that anything that comes along … I just do,” Guthier said.

After a milestone birthday in March, she announced her retirement.

“Once I made the decision, it was like the weight was lifted off: Now I can prepare the transition,” she said, “but how am I going to document all of this?”

She’s working on a manual of sorts, compiling responsibilities that range from the annual Secretary of State filing to the auditing of the financials, and from writing and managing grants to stepping in to help with tourism events.

“Director of Operations encompasses a lot of things,” Guthier said – and is a far cry from the administrative assistant role for which she was initially hired.

Lisa Purvis hired her in 2001 when OTC, now Bosch, changed hands, and Guthier lost her job in the purchasing department. She’d been in the role since she was a senior in high school.

She has an eye for details, calling herself a great “close-the-loop type of person,” something she learned from Purvis.

“If someone calls and you don’t have the answer, you find it out and you call them back – especially in a member organization,” Guthier said. “So I learned that early on and I try to teach that, because I’m a firm believe that people should be watching what other people are doing and how they operate.”

She named Sharon West, Betsy Lindgren and Julie Rethemeier as people she watched throughout her career.

“Besides my parents, these women were/are role models to me and I learned by their actions how they handled situations to uplift employees, provide constructive criticism, make suggestions for my personal improvement and so much more,” Guthier said.

“They were mentors and friends; Sharon was a personal friend and we did many things together,” she said, “and leaned on each other through sad and happy times. Sharon was a confidant – I could tell her anything and she did not judge me; she would just listen.”

It’s something her boss, OACC President and CEO Brad Meier, has in turn learned from Guthier.

“Rhonda has taught me about dedication to an organization, dedication to a mission and dedication to the community,” he said. “She comes in to the office early and stays late to get her work done – and has done every job at the Chamber, including interim president twice.”

Actually, it was three times, Guthier said.

The hard work, long hours and attention to detail, she said, are the way she was raised.

“I was taught right, as far as dedication to the job, but there’s a limit now,” she said. “Everything I do is just, ‘oh, this is the last time I’m going to do that’ – and it’s a good feeling.”

Guthier said she and Fischer “joked that we were going to walk out, hand-in-hand,” because they’re close in age.

As she enters her final work week, “no time would have been good for me to leave,” she said. “There’s always something happening, always something going on,” but she wanted to start retirement with a full summer off – something she’s never had.

Guthier usually requests time off around the week of the Steele County Free Fair in August, “because I’m involved in 4-H on the herdsmanship committee,” but even then, she would come in to do the payroll or complete other tasks.

Still, she said, “I’m trying to figure out what retirement looks like. I care about what’s happening at the Chamber; I care what’s going on.

“It’s going to be hard for me to walk out, hard for me to not think about what’s happening inside, every time I drive by,” Guthier said, but she is looking forward to spending more time with friends and having a flexible schedule.

On May 16, she’ll be in her garden; her daughter is planning a girls’ trip to Nashville in June.

Guthier and her husband Michael have no plans to move away; their daughter and her family live in Claremont and their son lives in the Twin Cities area.

Guthier will remain involved in the community; she is a member of the Early Edition Rotary and is the president of the Moonlighters Exchange Club.

In 2022, Guthier received the “Woman of Achievement Award” from Owatonna Business Women for her “service that has paved the way and positively impacted our community for decades.”

That certainly includes her work at the OACC, Meier said.

“Every success the Chamber has had in the last 25 years, Rhonda has had a hand in – and more often than not, the success was because of her,” he said.

The pair share a unique relationship.

“It’s hard to explain,” Guthier said. “I’m able to finish his sentences. I’m able to know what he’s thinking – and just do it.”

Though they created most of the OACC’s current policies and procedures together, Guthier said maybe “it’s just the fact that we worked together for such a long time.”

She has worked hard to always have an answer for people with questions, “and make sure they’re happy with the answer, even if you can’t do anything for them. There are resources and direction we can give them, but empathy is important. I want to make sure they know it’s heartfelt.”

“We will miss her,” Meier said. “We’re happy for her, though, and are excited to see what the next chapter brings her.”

A retirement party is planned for 4 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, May 14 at the Owatonna Eagles.

“It’s time,” Guthier said. “There are times when I think, ‘I’m tired’ – so it’s as simple as that.”