Darah Hubbard
Netty Matthews discovered in the land of opportunity that her dream job was helping others fulfill dreams.
Darah Hubbard
Netty Matthews
Matthews, senior vice president for business advocacy at the Fort Worth Chamber, is Fort Worth Inc. 2024 Supporter of Entrepreneurship Award winner. The Supporter of Entrepreneurship Award is presented to an individual who has actively contributed to the growth and success of new businesses in Greater Fort Worth.
“I don't even know how to say this without being [overly sentimental], but that absolutely meant the world to me,” she says of being informed about the honor. “For me, connecting small business owners, assisting small business owners over the years, getting to develop our Small Business of the Year Award program— that has been where my passion has been. That is what excites me in the morning when I get up, supporting people in what they're doing as it relates to their entrepreneurial dreams.”
Matthews was hired by then-chamber president and CEO Terry Ryan in 1989. She found the chamber through an agency.
“When they asked what kind of job I was looking for, I said any job where I get to meet a lot of people. My passion is people.”
In the late 1990s, Ryan asked Matthews to develop a focus for the Fort Worth Chamber on small business, including a small business legislative agenda.
Following that was a program to help local companies grow by developing an updated business plan. That was done in collaboration with the city of Fort Worth.
The chamber also developed a Small Business of the Year awards program, as well as small business workshops, specifically geared toward small business owners, both for startups and for existing businesses.
“So, it was a huge honor at the time to get to develop the Fort Worth Chamber’s focus on small business.”
Matthews’s trip journey to Fort Worth began in the Old World — her native Netherlands.
She was working with her father, who was doing business with Europeans investing in real estate in Florida and Texas.
“But my dad didn't speak English,” she says. “So, whenever he went on a trip, I would go with him for translating purposes.”
Matthews was ultimately hired by the real estate company, which had developments in North Texas. Fort Worth is home sweet home today. She has been here since she was 20 years old.
“It's always been a blast, I will tell you that much. I met my husband through that particular real estate connection. I have loved living here from day 1.”
The job in Fort Worth has been a marriage made in heaven.
“What I've loved about the job is connecting with people. To me, life is really just a huge treasure hunt and people are the treasure. Through my job, I have become connected to literally thousands of treasures.”