Candance Castlen Brake will step down later this year as President and CEO of the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce, ending a decade-long tenure marked by advocacy, community growth, and an emphasis on small business support.
Brake, who was appointed to the role in March 2015, will remain in position until a successor is named. She and her husband, Nick, plan to relocate to be closer to their adult children.
“From day one, it has been about our small businesses,” Brake said. “Small business owners put everything they have — their financial resources, health, time… their lives — into their business. We come to work every day with this in mind. We want to work as hard as they do to deserve their support. Small businesses truly make communities strong, interesting, and unique. They give us our character and promote our quality of life. And they put food on the table of their employees. Working for them has been an honor I will never forget.”
Brake noted that while most of the Chamber’s nearly 1,000 members are small businesses, there are also large corporations, nonprofits, financial institutions, public sector organizations, and healthcare.
“Our membership represents every sector in our community,” she said. “It truly is a tapestry of so many different walks of life coming together to make Owensboro stronger and better.”
Brake previously worked for the Chamber in her first job out of college in 1993, returned in 2000 to lead education and workforce programs, and later served as executive vice-president of the Chamber and Economic Development Corporation. She also served three terms as an Owensboro City Commissioner — playing a key role in the downtown revitalization — and later as Deputy County Judge-Executive, where she was chief of staff for Daviess County Fiscal Court.
“I always came back to the Chamber,” she said. “There is no other work like this.”
Under her leadership, the Chamber navigated the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, strengthened its advocacy at the state and federal levels, and expanded programs designed to develop local leadership and talent.
She played a key role in reigniting programs such as Leadership Owensboro, Chamber Young Professionals, and Educators in the Workplace. In 2022, the Chamber launched the Greater Owensboro Leadership Institute, and it recently added programs like Leadership Owensboro Alumni and Engage Owensboro to connect residents with service opportunities. A new program for executive-level professionals is also set to launch later this year.
Brake said she believes talent development is essential to improving the region’s overall quality of life.
“Talent development and retention efforts make a deep impact on communities our size,” she said. “They create environments for small business growth and entrepreneurship. They assist corporate partners in recruiting and retaining professional jobs.”
In the last decade, the Chamber has worked on numerous legislative priorities, including widening Highway 54, lighting the Blue Bridge, establishing two Family Court judgeships, securing interstate designations and corridor planning with Indiana, expanding broadband access countywide, and supporting the reduction of the state income tax.
“Speaking with one voice is incredibly important in getting things accomplished,” Brake said. “The Chamber’s role as a convener for community priorities has been very effective, and I hope that continues in the future.”
Brake said she believes her departure will make room for new energy and ideas.
“One of the most important aspects of leadership is recognizing when it is time to move on and make way for others with fresh perspectives to step forward,” she said. “My extensive work with younger people — including past and current staff members — leaves me confident that our community has many aspiring leaders who can take the helm and move our Chamber to the next level. Our Board of Directors is comprised of doers – people who make great things happen. They will be a great support to the next leader of this organization.”
Board Chair Olga McKissic credited Brake with inspiring others to lead and serve in new ways.
“Upon returning to Owensboro in 2015, I intended to live a simple life — substitute teaching and doing community service. Little did I know that meeting Candance Brake would elevate that service to new heights,” she said. “What began as tending my church’s landscape and walking the halls of the Daviess County Judicial Center to pray with others evolved into becoming a board member — and eventually board chair — of the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce.”
McKissic added, “Candance brings out the best in others, and I will truly miss her beautiful smile, laughter and uplifting words of encouragement. Wishing her all the best in this next chapter — Godspeed.”
