Wrangell Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Tracey Martin will leave the position on Aug. 29 after one year on the job to travel the world with her husband.

Martin said she planned to stay longer but decided to leave after her house sold faster than expected.

“We put our house up for sale, and I honestly thought we would be looking at a year or so before it sold,” she said. “It didn’t take that long. It sold quickly.”

She and her husband Dennis will leave Sept. 3 on the ferry.

The chamber is advertising for a new director. Applicants may apply online by following the posted link on the chamber Facebook page.

“We aren’t going to hire anyone until we’re confident that we have found the right person to fill her shoes,” said Chamber President Sylvia Ettefagh.

“We’re sad to see her leave, because she’s been a very big part of helping get things turned around for the chamber. She will be missed. But she has the opportunity to make a big life decision and to go travel the world. We wish her the best, and she will always be welcome here.”

Martin started working for the chamber last August after retiring from 30 years of teaching. She said her mission was to bring people together and streamline the director’s responsibilities.

“I’m proud of the fact that I was able to streamline a lot of things in the director’s position,” she said. “There were so many things going on within that position and it was just overwhelming for one person.”

She organized multiple aspects of the director’s role and created better systems.

“There are so many binders in my office, now. Everything is put together really well,” she said. “I helped establish a better system. Implementing systems is what I’m good at, and I was able to bring that to the position.”

The job previously required overseeing multiple events, which Martin felt detracted from the chamber’s central mission.

“Now that we have returned so much responsibility for the Fourth of July events to the public, the chamber is now more freed up to focus on things like bringing in businesses and different economic drivers,” she said. “That’s what the chamber is supposed to be about.”

The couple plans to travel extensively, starting with family visits.

“I asked my husband what he wants to do, and he said: ‘I want to see the world.’ So that’s what we’ll do,” she said. “We’re going to go south to visit some family members, and then we’re going to Japan.”

Martin previously lived in Japan as an English teacher.

“We’re going to go to Tokyo for a couple months, and then we’re going to the Southeast Asia region,” she said. “It’s going to be nice, because we’ll fly to somewhere like Thailand, but we’ll be able to travel to other Asian countries, like Vietnam, by bus.”

She believes the chamber is well-positioned for future success.

“It’s an exciting time here,” she said. “Because the borough is looking at different things to improve the economy and the chamber is working closely with them, and the chamber is focused on helping the borough accomplish the same goals. It’s exciting to think about how things could improve in a few years.”