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2008-2009 YEAR IN REVIEW: CELEBRATING 25 YEARS OF LEADERSHIP
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Dear Leadership Palm Beach County Alumni and Graduates:
My tenure as Leadership Palm Beach County's President during our recently completed 25th Anniversary Year was one of the most gratifying highlights of
my life. Our Silver Anniversary Year exemplified the work and professionalism
of hundreds of graduates and businesses who dedicated thousands of volunteer hours and resources over the last twenty-five years. Each of us can stand proudly together as we reflect on one of the most accomplished years ever, while paying tribute to the many leaders who provided the foundation
of our success!
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As you take a moment to peruse this “Year in Review”, please join me in thanking our staff, volunteers, committee chairs and sponsors for their personal commitments and sacrifices on a job well done.
Please consider how diligently the Board of Directors has listened to alumni input and guidance to enhance our programs and alumni engagement activities. And, please take note to the fact that Leadership Palm Beach County is indeed the premier professional leadership organization in our
county, which we will continue to build upon to sustain this twenty-five year legacy.
Through our mission statement to “Educate and Unite Leaders to Build a Better Community”, we have together turned silver into gold. Our organization is strong and continues to be filled with the very
best our community has to offer.
Thank you for this opportunity and thank you for all you do!
Brian Edwards, Class of 2005
President, 2008-2009
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LPBC Community Partners
LPBC thanks our 2008-2009 Community Partners for supporting our work to
"Educate & Unite Leaders to Build a Better Community".



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LPBC SILVER ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS
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In recognition of LPBC's Silver Anniversary, the Board, Past Presidents and committee chairs set up a number of ways to celebrate twenty five years of Leadership in our community:
- In August 2008, we kicked off our 25th year with the Silver Anniversary Luau, chaired by Past President Michele DeLong and 2008 graduate Monica Manolas. Representatives from twenty-five years of LPBC adult classes were in attendance to celebrate this milestone - both at the Luau and the after-party in the LPBC hospitality suite.
At left, 2008-09 President Brian Edwards, flanked by the Past Presidents Council, duels with Barry Berg, LPBC's first President, over who gets to cut the LPBC Silver Anniversary Cake at LEA 2009. |
- In September 2008, LPBC launched our "Second Wednesday" series, combining networking & knowledge following each Adult Program Day monthly on second Wednesdays, September through
May. Each month featured a unique speaker linked to the day's topic along with a cocktail reception where LPBC graduates could reconnect while getting to know the current class. The Second
Wednesday series continues in 2009-10 - starting next Wednesday, September 9 - free for
registered alumni, but general grads & guests are welcome! Register at www.leadershippbc.org/events
- September 2008 also saw the kick-off of LPBC's Strategic Planning process, led by Rita Craig,
who donated significant time and talent toward this effort with 2008-09 committee members Sarah Alsofrom, Pedro del Sol and Nancy Proffitt. LPBC's Strategic Planning process generated a revised Mission Statement - "Educate & Unite Leaders to Build a Better Community" - and also mapped out strategic imperatives that will help structure and focus LPBC's continued growth in the coming years.
- In February, LPBC moved into our first public offices in the organization's history. LPBC now
resides within the American Cancer Society building at 621 Clearwater Park Road, West Palm Beach,
FL 33401. Please update your address books with our new location & numbers: Phone - 833.4321/
Fax - 833.4320.
- Laurel Baker, with Marketing & PR co-chair Holly Finch and Paul Polisena, produced a Silver Anniversary Video, highlighting LPBC's leadership and key programmatic aspects from the past 25 years. Many thanks to Stephen Leek Photography for donating significant time and resources to the production of this video! Please check back to the LPBC website mid-September to view the video.
This August, LPBC kicked off our next 25 years with the Second Annual Leadership Luau, and started implementing our strategic plan's strategic imperatives throughout all LPBC committees. Next week,
we kick off our 2009-10 Second Wednesday series. Visit www.leadershippbc.org/events to register, and www.leadershippbc.org/alumni.htm for a list of 2009-10 committees, chairs, Ambassadors & events. |
LPBC CORE PROGRAMS: 2008-2009
2008-09 saw an expansion of LPBC's work to educate and unite leaders to build a better community, but our three educational programs – Adult Leadership, Youth Leadership & FOCUS - continue to stand as the core of LPBC, helping drive our mission throughout the county.
Quantitative evaluations and qualitative feedback both illustrated the ongoing success of
these programs, and offered feedback that helped us continue to improve. This year, we were especially proud to welcome more volunteers than ever in the planning & execution of
all three programs. |
Adult Leadership – Class of 2009
Chairs: Jack Lansing, Laurel Baker, Monte Lambert
Class Project Leads: Sally Chester, Christine Koehn, Ezra Krieg, Geri Muoio
Building on the 2007-08 success in revising both the curriculum and the Adult Program Committee structure, this year's Adult Program Chairs selected to further refine both, ensuring that the best
and most relevant information was delivered to the Class of 2009, while engaging as many alumni volunteers as possible in the process.
The Class of 2009 tackled the year with gusto, applying their talent and energy to establish high expectations for both individual learning outcomes and class project deliverables. The class also contributed to some very lively Second Wednesdays, setting the bar as the first class to enjoy this
new addition to the session days. Overall evaluation scores and feedback on the core program continued to be very positive, but Program Chairs gleaned valuable suggestions which will be
applied to improve the overall class experience and quality of learning for the Class of 2010.
For the Class of 2009 Projects, a formal RFP was once again distributed countywide to solicit Project proposals. Proposing organizations were able to refine their proposals through formal "Proposers Workshops", set up to improve the process for organizations & LPBC alike. After reviewing a record number of proposals, the Class of 2009 narrowed their choices to three organizations and projects:
the "Hire-Ability Project" with The Arc of Palm Beach County, the "Rise & Shine" Food Co-Op with the
Boys & Girls Club; and infrastructure support, strategic planning & a gleaning project with The Food
Alliance of Palm Beach County. Visit www.leadershippbc.org/adultleadership for overviews of
each project.
The Class of 2009 elected Sean Alveshire of Stiles Construction and Andrew Baumann of Lewis
Longman & Walker, P.A., to represent the Class of 2009 on LPBC's Board of Governors. Lucy Carr
of National City will serve with Noemi Coltea of Boys Town as the 2009 Class Ambassadors. For a
list of 2009 graduates & their companies, please visit www.leadershippbc.org/adultleadership.
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Youth Leadership – Class of 2009
Chair: Eric Hopkins
Youth Leadership Palm Beach County once again received a full roster of Youth nominations before
the listed deadline, and selected 48 students to participate, resulting in another maximum capacity
class of Youth graduates. The Youth Leadership Polo Shirts (shown on Brandon Perry, pictured below
left) were donated by ARCADIS, and the Youth headshots for the directory were once again donated by Polisena Photography. The first permanent name badges in YLPBC's history were donated by
Michele DeLong.
The largest volunteer committee in Youth Leadership history produced exceptional learning
experiences for these high school juniors, while securing enough support from sponsors and
community supporters to deliver the program free of charge. Special thanks to the South Florida
Water Management District, Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler, and The Palm Beach Post for their
significant sponsorship support.
LPBC handed out six scholarships to the Class of 2009 grads. Thanks to Forte Interactive, the
lawyers of Jones Foster Johnston & Stubbs, P.A., Sid & Annette Stubbs, and the Songwriters in
the Round benefit for sponsoring four out of six of our $1,000-$1,500 scholarships. The year
ended with over 200 guests attending graduation in May to hear keynote Ed Chase and the
committee laud our graduates and recognize scholarship recipients. For a complete list of Youth
grads with their school affiliations, visit www.leadershippbc.org/youthleadership
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FOCUS 2009
Chairs: Graham Ernest-Jones, Kim Jones, Ike Powell & Nancy Proffitt
The core FOCUS team returned to the committee, bolstered
by a significant number of Class of 2008 graduates, to
execute an exceptional program and a strong recruiting effort
for FOCUS 2009. Several new topics were covered - including
the issue of ethics - and evaluations returned more positive
feedback in terms of content and quality of learning
experience. The committee also secured a record number of
sponsors in support of the program and receptions.
This year's class went above and beyond in the "class spirit"
department. Extending well beyond enthusiasm during the
class, FOCUS 2009 held a reunion at LEA 2009 - just narrowly
losing out to the Adult Leadership Class of 2009 in a
competition for the most class members in attendance. A
significant number of FOCUS 2009 class members applied
and were accepted into the Adult Class of 2010. Visit www.leadershippbc.org/FOCUS for general information on the program, and check back in
November for information on FOCUS 2010.
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LPBC SIGNATURE EVENTS - 2008-2009
Leadership Palm Beach County annually produces two signature events: Songwriters in the
Round to raise money for Youth Leadership Palm Beach County, and the Leadership Excellence Award dinner to recognize the impact LPBC graduates have in our community. Thanks to our exceptional volunteers and generous support from sponsors & graduates, both events hit new
highs this year. |
Songwriters in the Round
Chairs: Ron Harbison & Marty Rogol
This year's benefit, presented by Roger Dean Chevrolet,
welcomed back crowd favorite Leslie Satcher, who brought
Nashville friends Marv Green, Wynn Varble & James Slater (the first pianist in SITR history) to entertain a sold-out crowd.

In addition to putting on an unforgettable show - which included an impromptu duet by Slater and his mother, an experienced Latin music singer - the performers auctioned off a signed guitar and signed mandolin, along with autographed, framed song sheets. With event proceeds, Songwriters 2009 netted over $28,000 in support of Youth Leadership.
Songwriters in the Round 2009 was presented by Roger Dean Chevrolet and supported by Double Platinum Sponsor Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler, Platinum Sponsor Merrill Lynch, along with a record
number of Gold Sponsors, and Friends of Leadership sponsors. A complete list of sponsors is
available on-line.
Last year, the Songwriters in the Round committee established a permanent Youth Leadership scholarship memorializing Sharon Blazy, the wife of Songwriters in the Round founding performer
Kent Blazy, whose ongoing dedication to and support of the event provided the foundation for its ongoing success. Sharon passed away after a sustained illness, but her memory will be honored
each year through a dedicated scholarship awarded to an exceptional graduate of the Youth
Leadership Program.
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Leadership Excellence Award Dinner
Honorary Chairs: Rod Macon and Rita Craig
Chairs: Bob Bertisch & Terry Gearing
Nearly 320 LPBC graduates and guests attended the 2009 Leadership Excellence Award dinner
at the West Palm Beach Marriott. 2009 LEA Recipient Wendy Sartory Link was honored along
with nominees Barry S. Berg, Rev. Pamela Cahoon, Barbara Cheives, Cheryl K. Crowley,
Dale Hedrick, Shannon Sadler Hull, Mike Jones and Connie Scotchel-Gross.
This year's event featured an open bar cocktail reception, sponsored by Ackerman, Link & Sartory, P.A., along with a display of all Class of 2009 Projects. LEA 2009 continued the competition among classes to see who could generate the highest number of attendees. The Class 2009 won top
honors & the Class Ambassadors were recognized for their support in generating record attendance.
The 2009 Leadership Excellence Award dinner was presented by The Palm Beach Post, and
supported by Platinum Sponsors Dignity Memorial Funeral, Cemetery & Cremation Providers
of Palm Beach County, Florida Power & Light Company, and RSM McGladrey/McGladrey &
Pullen, LLP, along with Gold, Silver and Bronze sponsors (listed on-line) - whose generous
contributions totaled over $30,000.
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ALUMNI COMMITTEES 2008-2009
Leadership Palm Beach County graduates have the opportunity to engage in one of more than
fifteen committees in support of LPBC's mission. Our Core Programs and Signature Events are detailed above, but alumni engaged in many other ways to make a difference - within LPBC & throughout our community. See below - & check out www.leadershippbc.org/alumni.htm for
more information.
- Recruiting Committee
Chair: Monte Resnick
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The Recruiting Committee produced five "networking & information sessions" on their way to another stellar year of engaging new candidates in the FOCUS and the Adult Programs.
The Class of 2010 recruiting events were generously hosted and sponsored by Gunster, Attorneys at Law in West Palm Beach; Riverside Bank in North Palm Beach; Nicole's Village Tavern in Wellington; and Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler in Boca Raton.
At left: Resnick with 2007 grad Kimberly Rodale & Stuart Rosenfeldt of Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler. |
The recruiting year kicked off in January, with a special session following FOCUS Day 1 hosted by the City of Boynton Beach at their Intracoastal Clubhouse that generated strong applications for the Adult of 2010 from a significant number of FOCUS graduates.
A record number of interested community members attended the next four recruiting sessions, held regionally in the north, south, west and central regions of our county to help increase the number and diversity of applicants. The committee members and Board also attended a variety of key events in our community as representatives of the recruiting committee to help increase the diversity of LPBC candidates, and increase the visibility of the Adult Leadership Program among local business, nonprofit and government leaders.
The committee and LPBC once again thank LPBC alumni for their dedication to the Adult Program, and for encouraging friends and colleagues to apply for LPBC. |
- Alumni Relations Committee
Chairs: Tammy Clarke & David Greene
This year, the committee and Class Ambassadors saw continued
success in their work to bring alumni
together more frequently and encourage
them to be more active. Bolstered by
monthly Second Wednesday sessions,
and supported by the many events LPBC produced during this Silver
Anniversary year, the committee
generated record engagement among
alumni - and, it would seem, record fun
for the classes (see the Class of 2005
at left enjoying Songwriters).
The Ambassadors continued to lead communication among their classes to
keep alumni abreast of key LPBC and
community events and news. Leadership Palm Beach County's FaceBook page continued
to grow, reaching 130 members by the end of the year. For an invitation to join the
LPBC FaceBook page, or for information on how to join the Alumni Relations Committee as
an Ambassador or volunteer, email Alumni Relations Chairs Tammy Clarke or David
Greene: tammy@casslevy.com or david.greene@ruden.com - and check out alumni info
at www.leadershippbc.org/alumni.htm
- Marketing & Public Relations
Chair: Laurel Baker & Holly Finch
The Marketing & Public Relations committee focused this year on the 25th Anniversary
milestone, fielding surveys with the Past Presidents Council and key graduates and
alumni to generate content for the Silver Anniversary video & information for the LPBC
archives, capturing key organizational milestones and memories. The committee debuted
the video - which included photos by Paul Polisena and Stephen Leek, and was produced
by Stephen Leek Photography - at the 5th Annual LEA dinner.
The core messaging developed by the
Marketing & Public Relations Committee
significantly benefited LPBC's Adult Program
(co-chairs Monte Lambert, Laurel Baker and
Jack Lansing are featured at left). The recruiting
committee successfully utilized resources
including the Talking Points card to help alumni
deliver consistent messaging about LPBC, its
mission and its core programs to recruits.
At the 2008-09 Annual Meeting, Chair Laurel
Baker noted that alumni are doing the best job
of marketing Leadership Palm Beach County,
commending LPBC alumni for their success spreading the word and increasing the visibility
of our organization.
- Up Close & Personal Committee
Chair: Bradley Harper
The Up Close & Personal Committee continued to provide alumni with access to key
leaders in small group settings to discuss substantive issues & concerns. This year, the
committee welcomed Tim Sanders, business speaker and author of bestselling business
tomes The Like-Ability Factor and Saving the World at Work. Sanders shared his perspective
on key factors that differentiate good leaders from the great ones, and offered local
organizations a list of must-read business books (click here for a copy of the list). In
January, the committee facilitated a session with the South Florida Water Management
District's Carol Ann Wehle, who presented on the US Sugar Deal - the largest wetlands
reclamation project in history... click here for a copy of the presentation.
Visit www.leadershippbc.org/events in October to register for the next Up Close &
Personal session, scheduled for November 3 with Bill Strickland, author of Making
the Impossible Possible.
- Ethics Initiative Steering & Subcommittees
Chairs: Marty Rogol, David Baker and Andrew Baumann

In continued work to build and sustain a
culture of ethics in our community, the
Ethics Initiative reached several key
milestones this year. The group established
two subcommittees: the Communications Committee tackled the objectives of
expanding awareness of the initiative, and developing collateral to support local work
to build a culture of ethics, community by
community and company by company. The
second committee engaged in research and discussion to explore launching a ballot
initiative to provide further infrastructure for sustaining and enforcing a culture of ethics.
(Note: the Ballot Initiative sub-committee
will spin off, exiting the LPBC umbrella before it starts to engage in political action work.)
The Ethics Initiative hosted two key events this year: a public launch of the Pledge Signing,
attended by a number of key elected and community leaders (Chair Marty Rogol poses with
Clerk & Comptroller Sharon Bock at this event, above), and the Second Annual Community Forum
on Ethics in June 2009. In autumn 2008, the Steering Committee partnered with the office of
the Clerk & Comptroller of Palm Beach County on its Best Practice event which featured a
discussion of ethics, and the Palm Beach County Planning Congress in support of its second
annual conference on ethics. The committee also supported the PBC School District around
its “Character Counts” initiative, and the Tax Collector's office in rolling out its comprehensive
internal Ethics Initiative.
- Get Real Committee (A Partnership with the Palm Beach County Career Academies)
Chair: Dione Christy & John Southard
The Get Real Program continued to provide a forum for LPBC graduates to lend their
industry expertise and resources to Career Academy Coordinators to help Palm Beach
County schools offer excellent and relevant education to students that is specific to career
training for opportunities within our county. This year, Get Real supported seven school
career advisory boards, focusing on student medical and construction projects, engaging
the American Cancer Society and Balfour Construction teams. Participants advised an
award- winning culinary academy, secured guest speakers for key presentations, supported
mock trial teams with books, supplies, clothing & shoes from Dress For Success, and
conducted senior class project mock interviews. T his coming year, Get Real will focus on
increasing the number of engaged alumni, and continue to target a select number of academies in order to maximize impact.
- Past President's Council, Finance & Audit Committee and
Executive Committee
These three important committees continued to serve our organization in advisory capacities throughout our Silver Anniversary Year. Part of the continuing refinement of the infrastructure of our organization, members of these committees offer insight and guidance to support LPBC's mission, and to help chart a course that is both mindful of our organization's past successes, and aspirational in regards to its potential.
This year, these committees focused on the issues of LPBC's legacy, strategic planning, steps to ensure LPBC's long-term fiscal stability and ability to positively shape the future of our county.
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| 2008-2009 BOARD OF GOVERNORS |
Thanks to each member of this year's Board for generously lending their
time, talents and resources!
President
Brian Edwards
First Vice President
Laura Cunningham, The Palm Beach Post
Second Vice President
Ron Harbison, Valuation Analysts, LLC
Treasurer
Tom Jensen, ARCADIS
Immediate Past President
Martin H. Rogol, Marketing Concepts, Inc.
Members at Large
Sarah Alsofrom, Gunster, Attorneys at Law
Laurel T. Baker, Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce
Toby Basore, TKM/Bengard Farms, LLC
Jessica Cecere, Consumer Credit Counseling Service
Sally Chester, Team Chester
Tammy Clarke, Cass, Levy & Leone, LLC - an Alpern Rosenthal Company
Pedro del Sol, Nonprofits First
Bradley Harper, Olds, Stephens & Harper, PA
Eric Hopkins, Hundley Farms, Inc.
Laureen Hunter, Touchstone Webb Realty
Lisa Johnson, Girl Scouts Palm Glades Council
Patricia White Kearney, BankUnited
Nellie King, Law Offices of Nellie L. King
Jack Lansing, Merrill Lynch
Jane Pike, Prime Office Solutions, Inc.
Ike Powell, Workforce Alliance
Nancy Proffitt, Proffitt Management Solutions, Inc.
Monte Resnick, Neuberger Berman
Wendy Terry, RSM McGladrey, Inc./McGladrey & Pullen, LLP
Lee Williams, Altair Appraisal Group
Alternate Directors
Silvia Garcia, Insurance For You
Legal Counsel
David Greene, Ruden McClosky
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