Bilingual Outreach Opens New Doors in Abilene

A Hispanic small business owner attended the Abilene Chamber of Commerce’s first bilingual Business After Hours as a nonmember, marking her first chamber event. She left with a connection to the chamber’s Military Affairs Council and a new avenue to explore government contracting and opportunities associated with the local Air Force base.

The connection illustrates the Abilene Chamber (Texas) 's broader effort to strengthen relationships with Hispanic-owned businesses by making its programs, resources and networks more accessible.

Hosted Sept. 24 by the chamber’s Hispanic Business Council (HBC), the bilingual Business After Hours brought more than 80 people together for networking and programming in both English and Spanish. About half the room was new to the chamber or had recently re-engaged. Roughly one in four attendees were nonmembers, while another quarter were members who had not been active.

“Our Hispanic population is the fastest-growing demographic in our area,” said Ashley DiMauro, senior director of operations for the Abilene Chamber. “We want to be forward-thinking and proactive when it comes to making sure that we have a strong pulse on their needs in our community.”

The HBC played a central role in reaching businesses that might not otherwise engage with the chamber. Members visited local businesses with bilingual materials, promoted the event through their networks and reviewed AI-assisted translations to ensure the language was natural and conversational. Their involvement extends beyond events, with volunteers regularly helping chamber staff communicate with Spanish-speaking business owners.

“It takes a while to build that trust,” DiMauro said. “Over time, we’ll be able to build a better bridge because that’s just so important for our region, to make sure everyone has a voice at the table.”

The event brought in other first-time participants, including representatives from a Hispanic radio station that had never attended a chamber event or HBC luncheon.

“There were some new faces, and it was amazing to see all different backgrounds come together, not only to network and support our Hispanic businesses and community, but also to build relationships,” said HBC Chair Leslie Sepeda.

The chamber is also looking beyond individual events to make its membership processes more accessible. Membership applications now help staff identify Hispanic-owned businesses and connect them with the HBC. A Spanish-language membership application is also in development.

For the chamber, the bilingual event was one step in a longer effort to build trust with Hispanic-owned businesses. By pairing personal outreach with more accessible programs and processes, the chamber is working to make those relationships a lasting part of its work.