A Letter from the Chair
Dear YLS Members:
As the
incoming chair of the Young Leaders Society for 2008-2009, I want to
take this
opportunity to thank you for your commitment to the United Way of the
Midlands
and the Young Leaders Society. It is
hard to believe that it has been only a year since YLS was formed. As
of July 1, we proudly claim to have over 260 members, representing over
$116,000 in new gifts to the United Way of the
Midlands. 
I want to extend
a special thanks to Cindy Burton (last year's YLS Chair) and all of the other
members of the YLS Steering Committee for contributing their time and talents
to the cause. Over the last year, these volunteers
were responsible for developing, organizing and running different events for
the benefit of the membership. Whether focused
on social, volunteer or professional development themes, each one of these
events provided opportunities for YLS members to better themselves and enhance
the common good in our community.
During this
summer, the YLS Steering Committee (featuring several new members) will be meeting
to plan events and set priorities for the upcoming months. I am confident that we can continue the
momentum from last year's successes and hope to see the number and diversity of
events grow further.
In the next
few weeks, you may notice some changes to our website. In addition to
updating the information about
the YLS, the YLS Steering Committee and recent and upcoming events, we
hope to
roll out some new features like creating your own member profile, a
members-only message board and more. This new look also dovetails with
the
"LIVE UNITED" campaign and marketing material that you will begin
seeing more of, whether in print and television media or through your
company's
fundraising campaign for the United Way of the Midlands. If you have a
moment, please visit our
website www.ylsmidlands.com to stay
abreast of current events.
Despite our
past success and the high caliber of the members of the Steering Committee, I
challenge you to do three things this year to make YLS a better organization:
(1) attend or participate in as many of the events as you can, (2) get involved
with one of the three subcommittees of the Steering Committee (e.g., Professional
Development and Marketing, Volunteer/Social, Recruiting and Resource
Development) and (3) don't be afraid to tell us what you like (or don't like) -
remember, this is your organization - if you think the YLS should focus
on a specific priority area (or not), please email us at YLS@uway.org.
Thank you
again for your commitment and I look forward to seeing you this year!
Michael J. Seezen, Esq.
McNair Law Firm, P.A.
YLS Chair (2008-2009)