The Valrico Fishhawk Chamber of Commerce just celebrated its 11th year and the future of the area is bright.
The Chamber started off with 15 people, and today, it's home to more than 250 members.
"Friendly, caring. The people are very caring. If anybody's had an incident in the family or anything, we come together, we bring food, we support them. We do whatever we can. I think that one of the things about this community is how much we all take care of each other," Patti Sutherland, President of the Valrico Fishhawk Chamber of Commerce, said.
In addition to supporting local businesses, the Chamber picks a charity of the year to support and provides scholarships to trade schools for high school students.
"I'm a 20-year Valrico resident, I just love the community. I was fortunate enough to retire two years ago because of the community, because of their support. And as you know, insurance can be toxic. So why not do something on the opposite end of the spectrum, where everyone is just having a great time. And I get to do what my best friend," said David Segui with iSmash of Tampa.
iSmash is opening up a location here in Valrico. They'll feature axe throwing, paint splatter rooms and rage rooms. They hope to open on June 1.
Rhonda McDaniel owns Caring Touch Skincare in Valrico. She started a skincare business in the community which closed in 2017, and since, she's been making handmade soaps and lotions. She said the community's constant support, especially when her husband was in the military, is what keeps her here.
"I have grandkids here. My kids have grown and I love the community. I have friends here, have family that moved here, so I'm not going anywhere," said McDaniel.
Justin and Kim Binghim opened up Pigtails and Crew cuts. They recently opened in November and specialize in haircuts for younger kids. The idea started when their own son was hesitant to get his first haircut.
"I actually came from a long line of hairstylists myself, my grandfather owns a hair salon and my aunt was one of my closest, you know, family members; she actually passed away not too long ago. So it's like got a little special spot in my heart. Because she was the first one that cut my hair when I was younger, and I still remember that experience," explained Kim.
Brian Potter is another Valrico business success story. He owns the Florida Foam Factory, which specializes in a foam party that they bring to whenever you are in Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco and Manatee counties.
"So I moved here five years ago from the Charlotte area, came down here and was looking for what's going to be my next big thing, whatever that is going to be. I fell in love with the Florida Foam Factory and then it became a part of this Chamber and this Chamber has exploded my business and everybody in the Chamber has been a big part of that. And they're like my family. I love them," said Potter.
