Sam Nettinga spent nearly three decades helping shape Southeast Idaho’s tourism and events landscape. Now, at 89 years old, the former Pocatello-Chubbuck Chamber of Commerce chief executive will receive formal recognition for that work as the first-ever inductee into the chamber’s newly created Hall of Fame.
The chamber will hold an inaugural reception on September 8, running from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Mountain View Event Center, 1567 Way to Grace. General admission costs $10, and a $200 sponsorship package provides entry for five guests. Revenue from the event will be divided equally between the Boys and Girls Club of Southeast Idaho and the Aid for Friends homeless shelter.
Decades of Work That Shaped the City
Nettinga relocated to Pocatello from Boise around the mid-1990s and took charge of the local chamber, holding the top position for approximately four to five years. Tim Anderson followed him into the CEO role in the early 2000s, with Matthew Hunter assuming that position in 2005. Even after stepping back from the chamber’s day-to-day leadership, Nettinga’s involvement in Pocatello’s economic infrastructure continued well into the following decades.
His most significant achievement was spearheading the creation of the Pocatello-Chubbuck Auditorium District, a structure authorized under Idaho law that dates to the 1950s. The mechanism allows a hotel-room sales tax of up to 5 percent to be levied for the purpose of funding tourism-related facilities and programming. Pocatello became only the second Idaho city — behind Boise — to put such a district into operation. It would be another ten or eleven years before Idaho Falls established a comparable district, a gap that illustrates just how early Nettinga recognized the model’s potential for a city Pocatello’s size.
Nettinga served as chair of the Auditorium District board for much of that period and was central to the construction of the Mountain View Event Center, working alongside Grace Lutheran Church as a key project partner. He remained at the helm of the district until his retirement in December 2025.
Current chamber CEO Matthew Hunter, as quoted by the Idaho State Journal, captured Nettinga’s broader significance to the region succinctly: “He was on the cutting edge of getting something like that done in Idaho.”
Civic Service Runs Deep in the Nettinga Family
Beyond his professional accomplishments, Nettinga’s ties to Pocatello’s civic fabric extend through his own family. His sister, Jean Hanneke, is a co-founder of the Boys and Girls Club of Southeast Idaho — one of the two charities that will receive the proceeds from the Hall of Fame event. The connection lends additional meaning to an evening already rich with community significance.
Nettinga recently marked his 70th wedding anniversary, a personal milestone that coincides with the professional recognition now coming his way. His selection as the program’s first honoree reflects a career characterized not just by longevity, but by impact. The Mountain View Event Center, where he will be feted on September 8, stands as a direct product of his leadership — making the venue itself an appropriate backdrop for the occasion.
Chamber leadership has made clear the Hall of Fame will not operate on an automatic annual cycle. The intent is to preserve the distinction’s weight by reserving it for individuals whose contributions genuinely set them apart. That selective approach makes Nettinga’s place as the program’s first name all the more meaningful.
What Comes Next
The inaugural Hall of Fame induction will take place Monday, September 8, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Mountain View Event Center, 1567 Way to Grace, Pocatello. Tickets are $10 at the door, with sponsorship packages available for $200. All proceeds will be distributed equally to the Boys and Girls Club of Southeast Idaho and the Aid for Friends homeless shelter. For additional community and local business news from across the region, visit Idaho News.