Leadership Susquehanna Valley                 June 2008

Letter From the President

Kristen Moyer

As I sat at my computer struggling to write my final article for the LSV alumni newsletter, I decided to look back over the last 13 years of the LSV program.  We started with the first class in 1995 and the 13th class graduated a few days ago.  We now have over 340 alumni and those alumni serve on over 344 different nonprofit boards and volunteer organizations.   At the graduation ceremony I challenged the 2008 class members to find an organization that they are passionate about and go and serve on it.  There are many organizations in the Susquehanna Valley that need help.   LSV’s current vision is to strengthen the Susquehanna Valley by preparing tomorrow’s leaders.  I hope that the new graduates and all alumni choose to serve and make the Susquehanna Valley a great place to live and work.   

As I end my tenure as president, I would be remiss if I did not take a moment to personally thank the LSV Board of Directors and GSVCC staff for their dedication to the LSV program.    Finally, I would like to remind everyone that we are still recruiting class members for the 2008-2009 class.  If you know someone who may be a good candidate for the program, please have them contact the Chamber office at (570) 743-4100 or download an application from the Chamber’s Web site at www.gsvcc.org under the “Community Development” link.

Letter From the Executive Director

Dave Hall

Summer is rapidly approaching, which usually means time to catch your breath, but LSV is alive and well and working hard on next year. Ryan Unger of SEDA COG starts his term as president, and the 27 graduates of LSV 2008 can now join its alumni association.  It was a good class, and represented a number of Susquehanna Valley businesses.

As always we welcome your inputs, so please let me know if you would like to become more involved.  Right now we are working on the August orientation, the September retreat, and October public issues program day.  Soon to follow will be communications and public relations in November, and health and human services in December.  Just let me know where your interests lie, and I’ll be happy to get you started.

Recruitment is still ongoing, so if you know of a good candidate, encourage him or her to apply.  You can find an application on the Chamber’s Web site: www.gsvcc.org. Just go to the Community Development tab and look under LSV.  There are still a few slots left.

The Greater Susquehanna Valley Chamber will administer the service contract again this year.  I’ll serve as the executive director, and Jenny Daddario, Megan Bollinger, and Dawn Gessel will be very involved as well.  570-743-4100 will reach us by phone and dhall@gsvcc.org will reach my computer screen.  Use the same e-mail format if you want to go directly to Jenny, Megan or Dawn.

LSV Grads Challenged to Make a Difference in Their Communities

Dawn E. Gessel

It takes more than just time to make a difference as the Leadership Susquehanna Valley (LSV) Class of 2008 found out at the June 19 graduation ceremony, held at the Best Western Country Cupboard in Lewisburg.

Kristen Moyer, president of LSV, challenged class members to find an organization they were passionate about and not just serve on it, but help lead it.

 “If you remember one thing from my address, I hope you remember this: The Susquehanna Valley needs you to get involved as a leader,” said Angela Hummel, director of organizational development and training for Evangelical Hospital, as the night’s guest speaker.

“As a leader with passion and purpose, you basically have two choices--to be part of the problem or part of the solution,” Hummel said, adding “To be part of the solution to the issues we face in the Susquehanna Valley, you need to choose to be proactive.”  

Brenda Reichenbach, special projects sales representative for The Daily Item, was this year’s Guy Temple Distinguished Leadership Alumni Award recipient.

The award honors a LSV alumnus who has demonstrated exceptional regional and community leadership.  

A LSV Class of 2007 graduate, Reichenbach currently serves on 11 different community organizations, including the Sunbury River Fest Committee, Sunbury Revitalization Inc. and Relay for Life.

Twenty-seven locals from all walks of life graduated and are now ready to serve their communities with passion and integrity.

“I guarantee that what people will say about you will not be about what you achieved for yourself, but what you achieved for others,” said Hummel.

The Central PA Chamber of Commerce sponsored the night. Penn State Cooperative Extension was the class award sponsor.

LSV Class of 2008 & Sponsoring Companies:

Keri Albright, Greater Susquehanna Valley United Way

Deborah A. Brokenshire, Sunbury Community Hospital & Outpatient Center

Tina S. Brown, SEDA-Council of Governments

Douglas R. Diven, Hand UP Foundation

Jane A. Faherty, Susquehanna Bank

Brian W. Heinbaugh, Viking Energy of Northumberland

Elizabeth L. Hendricks, Evangelical Community Hospital

* Joseph Kantz, Kuhns Brothers Log Homes -- Class Representative

Lincoln Kaufman, Mid-Penn Engineering Corporation

Amanda K. Keister, The Daily Item

Jeanette L. Kitchen, First National Bank of Pennsylvania

Patricia Lightner, Keystone Building Products, Inc.

James D. McIntyre, Mid-Penn Insurance Associates

Kerri C. Potsko, Geisinger Medical Center

Rea S. Ptacin, McCann School of Business & Technology

Kim H. Ranck, Mifflinburg Bank & Trust Company

Rose A. Rapp, Swineford National Bank

Matthew D. Romania, Evangelical Community Hospital

Christian A. Ruhl, Lewisburg School District

Barry W. Sands, AgChoice Farm Credit

Rick A. Schroeder, Sunbury Community Hospital & Outpatient Center

Christopher M. Sheaffer, Larson Design Group

Daniel S. Snyder, Geisinger Health System

Steven B. Stumbris, Bucknell University Small Business Development Center

Katherine A Vastine, Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit

Paula A. White, Warrior Run Development Corporation

Judson C. Williams, J. Kleinbauer Company

Mother & Daugher Graduate From Leadership Programs

Recently, Jessica Ranck, a junior at Lewisburg High School, graduated from Building Leaders of the Susquehanna Valley (BLSV).   Jessica’s mother, Kim Ranck, graduated from Leadership Susquehanna Valley (LSV).  Both programs follow a similar format:  monthly day-long programs focused on a single topic such as economic development, local government and the law.  Leadership and communication skills are interwoven with presentations by community resource persons, role-playing activities, panel discussions and field trips.  

When asked the value of participating in each leadership development program, both immediately identified increased self-confidence. 

Jessica said, “It was definitely a confidence-builder.  I learned how to effectively work within the group to reach a compromise that suits all members. Balancing this work (school work) with my BLSV assignments proved to be somewhat challenging, but it helped me to improve my time-management skills.” 

Kim added, “It has been very rewarding personally--I gained self-confidence by working with and getting to know my 29 classmates who were virtual strangers to me nine months ago.”

Kim commented on how her leadership experience has changed her opinions/attitudes about leadership: “Although all the field trips were interesting, I found Education Day at SUN Vo-Tech to be the most eye-opening.  I didn’t realize the scope of the programs offered there and how vital it is to offer our students an alternative in which they can learn a trade and graduate with the necessary skills to become members of the workforce.”

Both agreed a lot of work in any community is behind-the-scenes on the part of local elected officials; often long, thankless hours for which they often receive recognition/attention only when they make an unpopular decision. 

Jessica said, “I learned that everyone has the responsibility of being a leader in some form.  Leadership doesn’t necessarily come with a title (such as CEO or president), but it is essential in all aspects of life.”

They both identified learning to work together with other people (sometimes people they’ve known only a short time) to accomplish a goal or project successfully  as one of the most important things that they learned  while participating in these leadership development programs.

Development Committee News

Dennis Martz

The development committee sponsored a Founders Luncheon on June 10, 2008.  It was well attended by our founding organizations: Central Pa Chamber; Greater Susquehanna Valley Chamber; Selinsgrove Chamber; Union County United Way; Central Susquehanna Valley United Way; Lower Anthracite United Way; Susquehanna River Valley; Union County IDA; and Penn State Cooperative Extension.  Guy Temple also attended and gave a good history of the Leaderships Susquehanna Valley (LSV) founding fathers: Guy Temple; Gary Baylor; Rod Keller; and Bob Garrett.  A letter from Rod Keller was also read in his absence. It was interesting to hear the process and purpose of organizing the LSV back in 1993.   Our founding fathers and organizations had a great vision for the LSV program: "Strengthening the Susquehanna Valley by Preparing Tomorrow's Leaders".   We sincerely appreciate our Founding Organizations for their vision for the Valley and for their continued support.

Alumni Appeal

I am proud to report that we had a very successful first campaign.Alumni contributions totaled $1,775.00.    The Class of 2002 had the highest level of giving and the Class of 2007 had the highest percentage of class members contributing.  The competition was close. These class’ and members were appropriately recognized at the June 19 graduation.  Thank you to everyone who contributed.

Group Projects

Economic Development Group

Steven Stumbris

The mission of the Leadership Susquehanna Valley (LSV) economic development group, consisting of Kim Ranck, Rose Rapp, Barry Sands, Rick Schroeder, Chris Sheaffer, Daniel Snyder and Steven Stumbris, was to kindle the spark of entrepreneurship in the next generation of leaders of the region.  We wished to increase awareness of the opportunities for the entrepreneurs of tomorrow by giving charismatic local entrepreneurs of today a venue in which to share their experiences and serve as role models.  To achieve this goal, we organized a panel discussion for the Building Leaders of the Susquehanna Valley group (BLSV) featuring: Judy Spiegel, co-owner of J. Kleinbauer and Kinfolk’s Family Restaurant; Justin Dunkleberger, CEO of PennWind; and Mark Johnson, general manager of ASP Services Inc.  The BLSV is a “high school version” of LSV coordinated by Janet Allis, extension educator for the Penn State Cooperative Extension and LSV board member, consisting of area juniors with the interest and potential to be the leaders of tomorrow.  The panel event was held on April 23, 2008 at the Otterbein United Methodist Church in Sunbury, with the discussion covering topics from starting a new venture, buying into an existing business, and notes on the long-term experience of being a business owner.  

Panel member Dunkleberger enthusiastically said, “I’ve been around the world to most of the major cities in the U.S. and I can tell you, there’s no place I would rather be to develop my business than right here in this area.”

Feedback from the BLSV was both overwhelmingly positive and truly inspiring; with attendee George Specht, a Shikellamy high school junior, remarking, “After seeing the panel, I was able to realize that we do have opportunity here in the area to grow and to flourish.”

Environmental and Quality of Life Issues Group

James McIntyre

The Quality of Life Group decided to create a Neighborhood Guide of Services. We wanted to provide a comprehensive guide of services that are available to those living in our area. This can certainly improve the quality of life of those individuals who are made aware and take advantage of the services available. This guide gives information on different service organizations throughout Montour, Northumberland, Snyder and Union counties. The Neighborhood Guide of Services covers a wide range of services from education, employment, financial, housing, legal and emergency assistance to domestic violence, drug and alcohol services, health services, child care and welfare. It also includes information about county government offices, senior centers, food banks and transportation. An electronic copy of The Neighborhood Guide of Services will be available on the chamber Web site via a link.

Ag & Land Use Group

Katherine Vastine

The LSV Agriculture and Land Use group chose to work with the Northumberland County Conservation District (NCCD) and its annual tree sale to help raise awareness throughout the Susquehanna Valley about the District’s mission by assisting in marketing and distributing the items sold for the 2008 sale.  In order to accomplish this goal, the committee created three marketing tools which consisted of a public service announcement, press release and a mass e-mail template.  Group members also scheduled time with NCCD staff to organize and assist in the distribution of tree sale items.  Results of the project included the NCCD’s mailing list increasing by 165 individuals, a customer count increase of 8 percent and a 5 percent increase in the net profits raised over 2007.  Through the completion of the project, group members learned a great deal about the Conservation District and gained an appreciation for the scope of its services. 

Youth Issues Group

Lincoln Kaufman

The “Youth Issues Group” created a Youth Resource Guide. The guide provides a listing of the many programs and agencies that are available for the children and families of the Susquehanna Valley. This guide is meant to aid newcomers and current residents alike in finding ways to get themselves and their children involved in their communities. With programs ranging from the performing arts to sports, outdoor recreation to agriculture, there is truly something for everyone in our region.