‘It’s a great way for our residents to show the Wimberley pride and show people what our town really is’ - Deb Johnson
WIMBERLEY — More than 20 years after its inception, the Wimberley Valley Visitor Center is evolving to better serve the needs of the community through a new board of directors and more volunteering opportunities.
The 501(c)(3), which is also known as the Wimberley Convention and Visitors Bureau Foundation, is considered to be a cornerstone of the Wimberley Valley since 2003, serving tourists and residents by providing comprehensive information about local events, services and businesses. Now, it is operating under a newly-appointed independent board of directors with a dedicated focus on its mission, while also continuing to maintain a relationship with the local chamber of commerce.
“It has been an organization that has been the primary point of contact for visitors, local businesses and people to come and ask for information, not only about what is happening in terms of events, but also what organizations there might be available,” explained Deb Johnson, secretary of the Wimberley Valley Visitor Center Board of Directors. “For example, for locals to join, to volunteer their time or to get involved in terms of businesses promoting or helping them promote their business and put the word out there.”
In late 2024, the visitor center and chamber of commerce — who used to share the same board members — made the decision to separate the boards in order to serve both organizations and the community to their highest value. Before the transition, Johnson explained that the visitor center was only promoting businesses that were members of the Wimberley Valley Chamber of Commerce.
“Now that we have a whole different board, we're actually opening up our doors to every business in the Wimberley Valley area and the city of Woodcreek. They don't necessarily need to be affiliated or be a member of the chamber of commerce,” she said. “We are reevaluating how we conduct our mission to make sure that we are being reflected to the needs of our town [and] to the needs of our visitors because we are cognizant that it was not the same thing 20 years ago as it is now. So, we're trying to leverage and maximize more of our digital spaces, as well as our physical environment. In the next few months, you're going to be seeing that we're going to be more active about inviting the community into our space.”
The Wimberley Valley Visitor Center Board of Directors, which is made up entirely of volunteers, invites community members to get involved — whether that be by volunteering, offering their insight or supporting the center’s efforts to sustain and grow the community hub.
Johnson has served as a volunteer at the visitor center for the last four or five years before becoming a board member of the organization in the last quarter of 2024. Because she was new to Wimberley, she wanted to get to know the town and the people who live in it, leading her to become a volunteer.
There are several volunteering opportunities available at the Wimberley Valley Visitor Center, Johnson said, especially since the new chapter and rebranding. There is something for everyone who wants to come in and give their time, Johnson explained, as there are people who bring in various skill sets from different backgrounds.
“Previously, our volunteer roles were very limited to basically come and sit at the desk and work as a welcome ambassador and give out flyers or information to whoever comes or answers the phone. Basically, that used to be, honestly, all of our roles, just serve as that friendly face, which is a huge role and it's something that we're still looking for, but now we're also, again, opening it up to maybe not everyone is like that people person that wants to sit there and talk to other people, but they have other incredible skill sets, maybe organizational skills and they can help us manage volunteers. Maybe somebody's really good with grant writing, so they can help us to get those grants to be able to improve our facilities,” Johnson said. “We're really opening it up to be a more collaborative space for the community, where everyone has a space and they can come as they are and do what they really feel that their skills can be best utilized.”
The Wimberley Valley Visitor Center is located at 14100 Ranch Road 12. The board welcomes all who are interested in becoming part of the community hub; to volunteer or learn more, contact [email protected] or visit bit.ly/4hRjqCb.
