President
Class of ‘08
Dear Friends,
We have gotten off to a roaring start and September is not slowing down. Thank you for all the positive feedback on the revamped LP Retreat Social and skits. Kudos to the new LP Skit Committee for taking the theme of the LP Program and Program Days and making a short, fun and entertaining skit, taking the burden off each Program Day team and giving this year’s class much to look forward to. Our Alumni also told us they liked the extended social, food and activities like Alumni Bingo, Mentor / Mentee meetup, and Photobooth to make catching up with old friends and meeting the new class fun and enjoyable. We also had our first LP Photo Contest and congratulations to Dawn Scott ’12, who was chosen as the winner this month. Please keep tagging your LP Photos with #LP2019!
When you see this year’s LP Skit Committee members: Darrin Johnson ’14, Bob Childress ’11, Sally Evans ’15, Matt Evans ’17, Todd Willsie ’12, Kevin Kenney ’18, Lorrie Cline 17‘, Susan Lee ’18, Ricky Butler ’15, Marilyn Miller ’17, Suzan Decker Ross ’12, please let them know how much you enjoyed it.
This year’s LP Retreat was outstanding with a team that’s been working together for 4 years, they were able to deliver an impactful 2 days to the new class using the Strengths Based Leadership principles as our foundation. The feedback from the class was consistent that it “exceeded all my expectations.” Thank you to Felicia Donnelly ’05, LP Retreat Committee Chair; Andrea Henning ’15 and Dev Pathik ’11 as our Co-Facilitators; along with the Retreat support team of Darrin Johnson ’14, Seema Ramroop ’17, Allie Chandler ’18, Bob Childress 11‘, Sean King ’15 and Jennifer McGrail ’99. It was not only impactful to the new Class Members it also impacted some very special kids who received much-needed bikes as you will see in the letter enclosed from Operation Gratitude.
We are thrilled to announce we’ve launched our new LP Leadership Mentor Program as one more way to enhance Leadership Development within our Program. A huge shout out to the 42 esteemed LP Alumni leaders who answered the call as leaders do and agreed to mentor one member of this year’s class. Please see the list of this year’s 2019 Mentors and their Mentee in this issue. When you see them – thank them for their leadership.
This month we are also launching our new Lessons in Leadership video series, where we will hear leadership tips and insights from each of our LP Sponsors this year in a short video thanks to the amazing skills of Allie Chandler ’18 for making these happen. This month’s Lessons in Leadership video will be from Duggan Cooley ’07, and his team at the Pinellas Community Foundation – be sure to check it out, thank them for their support of Leadership Pinellas this year and feel free to share it!
Thanks to Suzy Sofer ’15 for the idea of starting a new LP Leadership Bookshelf – love to keep hearing from you what books on Leadership you recommend – these are a great start. Look for us to pose different questions of the month on our Facebook page to get your input and share your wisdom and insights here. If you haven’t liked our Facebook page – please do!
Don’t forget to check our new Save the Dates section for easy reference on our website and the flyer included in this Leader Reader with all the Program Day debriefs. Hope to see you at the Mellow Mushroom this Wednesday, Sept 12, 2018, at 5:30 pm after the first Program Day.
A huge thank you to all our Leadership Pinellas Alumni Volunteers, Sponsors, Alumni Boosters and LP Leadership Circle supporters – we couldn’t do all we are doing without your support!
Whew – well that’s my September update so now I’m curious, what’s on your mind? How are we doing? I am always open and receptive to hearing what’s important to you! Let me hear from you (727-710-8035). Have a great month and hope to see many of you Wednesday at the Mellow Mushroom Social Debrief. Until then …
In your service,
Cyndee Haydon ‘08