Nice to Meet Ya: Amanda Miyamoto

The expansion of Dripping Springs is astonishing. Not only population-wise, but also business. Businesses that were unimaginable just a few short years ago grew west of Austin, even during the COVID-19 pandemic.

One thing that keeps the business community together is a network of them, all different businesses and services talking and thinking on the same level. This is what the Dripping Springs Chamber of Commerce provides.

“The mission of the Dripping Springs Chamber of Commerce is to provide business leadership and advocacy for the continuous improvement of the economic environment.” Considering the new businesses in just the past two years, continued growth is expected.

The DSCOC’s Membership Director is Amanda Miyamoto, a job that is in capable hands. She’s an El Paso native, graduated high school there, graduated UT-Austin with a mechanical engineering degree and was hired by Dell, where she worked for three years.

Her husband got a good job offer and they moved to Denver, and they lived there for six years. She missed Texas, her family and like some of us said, “I did not adjust well to the cold.”

Having two daughters, finding a good school district was now essential. Her sister lived in South Austin and recommended a few neighborhoods with Dripping Springs ISD on the list. They liked Belterra and moved there.

PTA was on the list of where to volunteer, and that is where she met Susan Kimball, the Chamber’s Executive Director, who was also a PTA volunteer. Amanda also volunteered with the Chamber, and was soon hired. Most recently, she was made Membership Director.

“I'm in charge of membership events, marketing and communications. I do everything that Susan doesn't have time for, as she is always busy,” Amanda said.

“I do all the things to keep the team running that she doesn't directly do. I don't have to do a lot of cold calling, they come to me. It is now a lot more customer service.”

It was tough during Covid, informing businesses what was happening. Especially when you have over six hundred members.

“Communicating to the members and suddenly learning all about zoom calls. We would do workshops for our members trying to keep up with everything coming from the government as far as who can be open, what are the rules for being open or being closed? How can you reopen? That was the big one,” she said.

A lot of members of the chamber are wineries, breweries and distillers, and rules for re-opening were strict under mandated rules. They had fifty to sixty people at their zoom meetings.

As for the future, it looks bright. “I'm really just getting busier as more businesses are growing and helping them navigate this crazy growth that's here, essentially and there's those that don't want things to change,” Amanda said. “But the businesses are coming. And I think a lot of the business leadership understands that and wants Dripping Springs to grow smart.”

“I'm really just getting busier as more businesses are growing and helping them navigate this crazy growth that's here... Businesses are coming. And I think a lot of the business leadership understands that and wants Dripping Springs to grow smart.“

–Amanda Miyamoto