Kim Baker began work with the Gallatin Area Chamber of Commerce in November 2013 and was named CEO in February 2015.
Calling Gallatin home since 2000, Kim is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University where she received a Bachelor’s Degree in Organizational Communication as well as University of Tennessee Center for Industrial Services, where she obtained her Tennessee Certified Economic Developer (TCEcD) designation. Additionally, Kim completed the Tennessee Chamber of Commerce Executives Institute as well as four years of U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute, obtaining the designation “IOM”. In 2020, Kim was selected to be a member of the 4th cohort of the US Chamber Foundation’s Business Leads Fellowship Program and is currently participating with other local and state Chambers to address pressing education and workforce challenges, nationwide.
Kim is a graduate of the Transit Alliance of Middle Tennessee’s Transit Citizen Leadership Academy and the Leadership Sumner program, currently serves as a board member for Tennessee Association of Community Leadership (TACL), as a co-director for the Leadership Sumner Youth program, and the program coordinator for the Chamber’s recently launched, Leadership Gallatin. Additionally, Kim serves as a board member for Recovery Court of Sumner County as well as on the committee for the Sumner County Work Release Program. Kim considers herself to be a lifelong learner, valuing the importance of education in our community, and enjoys serving on the Gallatin First Presbyterian Preschool Board of Directors, Volunteer State Community College Foundation’s Annual Educate a Woman luncheon planning committee as well as on the Career and Technical Education Advisory Panels at her alma mater, Gallatin High School, and also Station Camp High School. As an alumna of Pope John Paul II High School, too, she is proud to serve as a member of their recently developed Innovation Advisory Team.
Kim and the Chamber are founding partners of StartUp Gallatin, a program focused on helping local entrepreneurs realize their dreams and equipping them with the tools, resources, and connections to do so. She currently serves as the lead facilitator for the program.
Prior to joining the Chamber team, Kim spent many years in the service industry tending bar as well as working as a nanny for local families. Because of this, Kim still enjoys free-lance bartending and working with children. Sometimes, you can find her and her husband serving as “local celebrity” bartenders at fundraisers where they donate their time and she considers some of her best days when she’s invited to read to local kiddos!
Kim is a Wonder Woman enthusiast (you won’t ever see the two of them at the same time – think about that), has a niche for event planning, and is passionate about small business as well as local growth and development. When Kim is not spreading the local love around Gallatin, she enjoys spending time just about anywhere with her history-lovin’ husband, Ryan, almost-an-Eagle Scout bonus son, Hayden, and wild, redheaded daughter, Annlyn Graham. Add their wild hound dog, Georgia, to the mix, and you can officially say Gallatin, Tennessee has a circus!
