The Greater Lafayette Chamber of Commerce isn't just at the top of its game locally — it's also dominating the national league.

The Lafayette Chamber beat out 7,000 chambers from across the country to earn The American Chamber of Commerce Executives' top award as National Chamber of the Year.

"It's a very big deal, and we're very grateful to be recognized by our peers," said Rob Guidry, president and CEO of the Greater Lafayette Chamber of Commerce, which announced the win Friday in a news release.

ACCE recognized the Lafayette Chamber's "excellence in operations, member services and community leadership," according to the release.

"It's a source of pride in the organization, and a substantiation for the membership in the community to know we are relevant and can be counted on to help the community move forward and create a great quality of life," Guidry said during a Friday evening phone interview from Los Angeles.

Guidry represented the chamber during a finalist interview Wednesday. His only competition by that point in the selection process was the chamber in Longview, Texas.

On Thursday evening, Guidry and his eight employees accepted the award during ACCE's annual convention in Los Angeles.

Members of the chamber's board of directors paid out of pocket to send all of the chamber's employees to Los Angeles to accept the award, Guidry said.

" Louisiana is often stereotyped to be less than progressive, so when we can stand up in an auditorium full of people from across the country and accept this type of award, it's a great thing." Guidry said.

A panel of chamber peers and former award recipients from across the country judged the competition.

But the national award isn't the only recognition the Lafayette Chamber has garnered recently. The United States Chamber of Commerce gave the Lafayette chamber its reaccreditation earlier this year with a five-star rating, the top classification for such chambers.

"The chamber is in business to be the voice of business," Guidry said. "It creates a climate where we can create jobs, and jobs generate payroll, and payroll goes to buy food, clothing, transportation and recreation and to pay medical expenses. When business does well, everybody in the community does well."