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Thursday evening and much of Friday saw the kick off of this year's class of Leadership Ohio Valley. The program, organized by the Weirton Area Chamber of Commerce, is designed to introduce participants to various aspects of our community and encourage them to take a more active role.
Full disclosure, of course. I went through the program myself, back when it was known as Leadership Weirton. Those experiences led to me getting involved in the Weirton Area Chamber of Commerce, including its education committee and board of directors, both of which I currently chair.
The education committee organizes Leadership Ohio Valley, although our influence is pretty much limited to helping to set the schedule and some recruitment. The sessions themselves, the projects, their volunteer service and everything else is planned and implemented by the class.
There are two coordinators -- Brandon Palmeri and Sarah Farran -- who are Leadership graduates and available to offer advice if needed, and session advisors -- Carole Scheerbaum, Will Beaumont, Debbie Watkins, Clayton Henderson, Pat McGeehan, Crystal Harbert, Pam Makricosta and Marvin Six -- who can provide guidance when planning their events. But the path they take and what they do is up to the class.
This year's class is a primarily younger group, and with a variety of backgrounds. You, hopefully, read our article in Friday's edition to see the participants. They represent areas such as government, education, childcare, healthcare, local industry and much more. Some already have taken up active roles in the community, and I hope their experiences will assist them as they grow. For those who haven't, I hope their time in Leadership Ohio Valley introduces them to some of the opportunities out there and we'll soon see what their visions for our area can be.
I've also had the opportunity to get to know some of this year's participants prior to their decision to join the program. Some for a few years, others for a few months and one for her entire life. (Another disclosure: My sister is part of this year's class. I didn't recruit her. She took it upon herself after hearing about the program from others. But, I hope she enjoys her experiences and learns more about herself and the community we call home.)
This is a good group of people. They are enthusiastic and want to make an investment in their community. They want to see businesses come to our area. They want to see our children learn. They want to see a rejuvination in our region.
All too often, I hear the refrain that our area needs younger people to step forward. The old guard is getting older and leaving a vacuum in our community when they leave or decide to step aside. We need new people with new ideas to help us move forward.
We're starting to see that in some areas. People who weren't living here just 10 years ago have come to call the Ohio Valley home and are getting involved. They see the opportunity we have here and want to be a part of it, even if it's just on a small scale.
For me, Leadership gave me a focus at a time when I would have OK to curl up into a ball and ignore the rest of the world. It helped me get through a major loss in my personal life, while showing me things about our area I never knew. It also gave me connections which help me to this day. Some have even become life-long friendships.
I applaud these 14 individuals for having the initiative to take these first steps into becoming part of something bigger. I hope you get as much out of these next few months as I did, if not more.
(Howell, a resident of Colliers, is managing editor of The Weirton Daily Times, and can be contacted at chowell@weirtondailytimes.com or followed on Twitter @CHowellWDT)