.bodytext {float: left; } .floatimg-left-hort { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right: 10px; width:300px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-caption-hort { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:300px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-vert { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right:15px; width:200px;} .floatimg-left-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; font-size: 10px; width:200px;} .floatimg-right-hort { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px;} .floatimg-right-caption-hort { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px; font-size: 10px; } .floatimg-right-vert { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px;} .floatimg-right-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; font-size: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; border-top-style: double; border-top-color: black; border-bottom-style: double; border-bottom-color: black;} .floatimgright-sidebar p { line-height: 115%; text-indent: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar h4 { font-variant:small-caps; } .pullquote { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 150px; background: url(http://www.dmbusinessdaily.com/DAILY/editorial/extras/closequote.gif) no-repeat bottom right !important ; line-height: 150%; font-size: 125%; border-top: 1px solid; border-bottom: 1px solid;} .floatvidleft { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatvidright { float:right; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} Chad Airhart said he decided that life on the campaign trail is a young person’s game. Not just young, but also a single person’s game. After a year of marriage to his wife, Jodi, Airhart said he’s ready for some quality time just for family. He has been in his new role as executive director of the Waukee Chamber of Commerce for less than two weeks, and in addition to the easier schedule, he’s discovered the job is a perfect fit for his background

What were you doing before you came here?

I was the Iowa Coalition Director for [Mitt] Romney for President.

Why did you leave?

That was a great spot to be in. But campaigns take a lot of time. I’ve been married a year, and I want to focus on that. It had nothing to do with the campaign; I just didn’t want to work 80 hours a week anymore.

What made you want to work for the chamber?

For the past four or five years, I’ve been working in the public sector, and this was an opportunity for me to work in the community that I live in. My wife and I chose to move here a year ago because this is the community we wanted to live in and eventually raise a family in.

So this was an opportunity for me to play a key role in the community and to work with businesses, organizations and individuals to encourage economic development and prosperity for business owners. It was just a great spot for me to be where I could serve my community and at the end of the day still bring home a paycheck. Really, everything I’ve done in my past, whether it was a graphic design firm or managed a store or the world of politics, it’s all been about sales. This job, really, is selling the community of Waukee.

Where were you before you moved to Waukee?

I’ve always been in Central Iowa. I grew up on the East Side of Des Moines, from kindergarten through college at Grand View. I’ve lived here every day of my life except for one year where I lived in Creston and ran a congressional office for Rep. Steve King.

Is politics something you’ve always been interested in?

I owned my own graphic design firm for several years, and then Sept. 11 happened. I thought about myself and what I wanted to tell my grandkids that I did for a living. I wanted to be able to tell them something more than I just sent out an invoice and collected a paycheck. I wanted to tell them I worked for a cause or something more noble, and so, began looking for a way to serve my country in some capacity.

What are your biggest goals for the chamber?

We have a lot of rooftops right now, so one of our goals is to bring businesses to Waukee. Alice’s Road, making it four lanes all the way from the interstate, is going to be a huge project for this community. There’s going to be a lot of businesses that are going to set up because of that. We also need to help our members reach out to the residents of Waukee. There are approximately 10,000 people who live in Waukee. That’s a lot of mouths to feed, a lot of shoes to buy and a lot of great opportunities for our businesses here.

Do you have any hobbies?

Golf is a hobby of mine. I’m obviously a political junkie. I’m also a baseball fan. I’m a huge Yankees fan.

How did you grow up in Cub country and become a Yankees fan?

I’m a huge Iowa Cub fan. Make sure that gets in there. But the Yankees stems from my Grandma Betty, who lived in New York. … She was always telling me about Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio and Roger Maris. I immediately started liking the Yankees. In fact, once I get moved into my office, I have a Sports Illustrated from when Mickey Mantle died that is framed. I’ll bring it in and hang it. This is from 1995, and I always say to people that was before the Yankees started making the playoffs. So that’s my proof that I was a fan and I’m not just jumping on the bandwagon.