In the wake of one of the country’s worst economic recessions in recent history, a new president has stepped forward to lead the Rondout Valley Business Association (RVBA). His name is Michael Tumminia.

“I joined the RVBA because I became a business owner in the area and it was a great way to get to know other business owners in the community,” Tumminia said. “I'm excited to continue working with the RVBA and make it a more meaningful experience for the members.”

The RVBA’s mission is to enhance the economic and social opportunities of workers and residents of the Rondout Valley. Individuals and businesses pay a yearly fee — depending on the size of the group — and are given business referrals, networking opportunities and business services. They also host mock interviews and leadership education programs for Rondout Valley High School students, and others looking for jobs.

“From my perspective, [the RVBA] is a great networking connection for me to get to know the people in the community,” Tumminia said. “Where [else] do you go where there's 30 business owners who can share ideas, experiences, knowledge in one place.”

Tumminia first moved to the area roughly ten years ago, splitting his time between upstate and New York City. He has owned the RidgeWell Center, in Stone Ridge, for just over two years and is a partial owner of the RidgeWell Gym that resides inside. On top of these businesses, he works as a certified public accountant in the city.

One of Tumminia’s duties as the leader of the RVBA will be to help promote local businesses. He said the organization already used membership fees to buy numerous “shop local” signs to stick around the community. He hopes that these friendly reminders will push people to support local businesses rather than online tycoons like Amazon. Tumminia said that the RVBA is also in the process of enhancing its website and increasing social media activity to spotlight members.

The RVBA wants to offer a number of educational programs as well, to give business owners strategies and tools to sail through these uncharted economic waters. It will partner with the Mid-Hudson Small Business Development Center to organize a number of business consultancy programs for members. One upcoming educational seminar is called “Social Media Marketing Bootcamp,” on the SUNY Ulster campus. (Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the date for this event has not been picked yet.)

Another major component of the RVBA’s work is advocating for the business community with elected officials. The biggest issue that Tumminia wants to tackle is the lack of reliable cellular service in the Rondout Valley. Remote communication is especially important now that many are discouraged from in-person meetings.

“It happens to me every single day, where I'm trying to have a conversation with somebody about work, and I lose them because I'm driving through so many non-service areas,” Tumminia said. Tumminia added that the shoddy service creates safety concerns if people are left stranded in a remote area with no means of communication.

From an accountant’s perspective, Tumminia said the past five months have caused financial chaos on a scale that he has never seen before. He claimed that even if businesses had set money aside for a pandemic-esque disaster, no one could have expected the financial toll that so many are facing. Despite the setback, Tumminia is optimistic for the future of his fellow members.

“This is something that just, unfortunately, was not necessarily preventable,” Tumminia said. “These times are so challenging that the RVBA wants to help contribute to the bounce back.”