Leadership class finishes program 6/27/2009 12:28 AM
By ROB NOVIT Senior writer
Technically, the members of the Leadership Aiken County Class of 2009 said goodbye to each other at a closing ceremony Thursday. But that's not the case at all.
"The best thing is that these people are like family now," said Sarah Griffis, Hitchcock Healthcare's marketing and development manager. "I feel I could call them and they would help me with anything, as much personally as professionally."
Each year Leadership Aiken County provides the opportunity for participants to learn more about their community through a series of field trips over a period of nine months. They network with each other and develop and implement a community project. Pam Amendola, a Leadership alumni, served as the current group's coordinator, while other alumni hosted field trips.
The financial sponsors included the Aiken Department of Public Safety, Aiken Regional Medical Centers, Bridgestone Firestone, USC Aiken and GlaxoSmithKline. The organization also includes Junior Leadership Aiken County, a similar program for eighth- and ninth-grade students.
An Aurora Pavilion administrator, Rachel Moulton didn't expect to learn so much about her community, despite living in Aiken throughout her life. She was introduced to industries she wasn't familiar with, along with the community's social services and the people they serve.
"It's also getting away from one's circle of friends," Moulton said. "It forces you to meet new people, and, ultimately, you learn a lot about yourself."
As a supervisor with the S.C. Department of Social Services, Seletha Gartrell did get the chance to share the community's social service needs with her new friends.
The experience "has been very rewarding," Gartrell said. "We've learned a lot together and came together to create something that will help Aiken County."
For many of the Leadership members, the class project proved to be the most memorable activity. After much discussion, they decided to host an overnight retreat for mostly middle school students at the Bishop Gravatt Episcopal Center, where class member Lauri Yeargin is the executive director.
For all of the 35 kids who attend the retreat, it was the first time in such a rural camp setting. They participated in a camp fire, stayed in cabins and stayed up late. The event culminated with team-building activities on the high and low Ropes courses at the center. The class of 2009 wants to continue the project next spring.
"I've had several mentors in my life," said Jerry Beck, an executive at the Lower Savannah Council of Governments. "They helped shape and model my life. I really enjoyed working with the kids and offering guidance to work on their skills. It was rewarding to watch them on the Ropes courses, doing things they were terrified of at first. But they overcame their fears and learned that, with a support group, you can achieve and do anything you want."
The other Leadership participants included Eric Abdullah, Mary Carol Anderson, Sharon Cormier, Stephanie Dingle, Kenny Dukes, Andy Grodzicki, Steve Hamlett, Heather Hanami, Dave Isherwood, Gina Kelly, Sandra Korbelik, Emory Langston, Keisha Lloyd-Kennedy, Donald Miles, Eric Muhlbaier, Rochelle Oldfield, Sharon Rodgers, Mike Thomas, Lisa Tindal and Lauri Yeargin.
Contact Rob Novit at rnovit@aikenstandard.com.
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