History, Romance, and Adventure

TEXT BY STEVE BLAIR

Harrisburg has not come to be the thriving metropolis that it is in 2009 by luck or by chance. Years of careful planning, collaboration and planning among government, business, industry, social program entities and civic organizations have set a standard of excellence that has placed Harrisburg as one of the finest small cities in the country.  Harrisburg touts excellence in economic growth, crime prevention, poverty management, environmental responsiveness and innovation.  Despite the hard times Harrisburg has faced and endured during 2008 and the outlook for 2009, Metropolitan Harrisburg has remained one of the most economically insulated areas of the state.

Countless organizations in the Harrisburg area have a plan that includes preserving, enhancing, developing and maintaining the integrity of the Susquehanna Valley.  Among them is Leadership Harrisburg Area.  “My experience with Leadership Harrisburg Area (LHA) has gone well beyond an educational experience.  The relationship formed among social classes, ethnicities and backgrounds of everyone involved has helped bring a global perspective to LHA’s mission of servant leadership.  Each member of the LHA Class of 2009 has become deeply involved in and committed to our respective service projects beyond what we’d ever imagined.  We think of our projects as missions we have been called to, rather than requirements of the program.  These projects are performed through a sincere interest and commitment to making a difference. To see projects come together and organizations achieve their goals instills inspiration and hope for the future of the City of Harrisburg.  Leadership Harrisburg is a phenomenal program!”  says Pastor Brenda Alton of Kingdom Embassy 2411 North 4th Street Harrisburg – LHA Class of 2009.  Alton, the newly elected President of The Interdenominational Ministers’ Conference of Greater Harrisburg, is a member in LHA’s Community Leadership Series (CLS).  CLS is a 9-month program designed to familiarize participants with the challenges and opportunities that face the Harrisburg area. CLS was a program launched by LHA in 1986.  This leadership training opportunity is open to professionals who are established in their careers and now seek ways to serve their communities. Candidates for the program are chosen through a competitive process. 

Participation in a team project is a requirement to graduate the CLS program.  The LHA Class of 2009 is serving:  Drug Free Pennsylvania; Harristown Development Corp; Jewish Family Services; Open Stage; and United Cerebral Palsy of Harrisburg.   The team projects provide off-the-job training for CLS class members and an opportunity for them to learn new skill sets as well as develop their professional skills to meet specific needs of each non-profit organization served.  Team projects have served over 30 organizations since 2002.   

“Our team projects provide a win-win-win situation for professionals to enhance their skill sets; non-profit organizations to gain dedicated volunteers; and the community gains new programs and services,” says Una Martone, President of Leadership Harrisburg Area.

LHA was formed originally by the Capital Region Chamber of Commerce in response to a need for a forum of shared concern among informed leaders from all segments of the community. Still today, LHA promotes excellence, ethics and responsibility in nonprofit leadership through experiential training programs and placement resources. LHA grew to become a private, non-profit organization serving Cumberland, Dauphin and Perry Counties to engage, develop and mobilize a diverse group of leaders to shape our region’s future, strengthen our communities and enhance the organizations they serve.

Among the priorities of LHA is diversity.  LHA embraces diversity and holds it as a core value.  Their board members, class members and partners in each of their programs represent diversity of race, culture, religion, profession, age, socio-economic, geography and beliefs.  LHA is committed by their mission statement to securing facilitators, panelists, locations and program participants that represent as many levels of diversity as there are people.  They are intentional about inclusion in terms of actively seeking diverse groups and organizations to participate in their programs. 

 “LHA is an excellent professional development program.  In addition to the many practical learning experiences, the camaraderie of my classmates was a real bonus.  My only regret is that I didn't enroll earlier in my career.  I would encourage anyone who is interested to pursue participation,” says Kim A. Payne, Manager of Public Relations and Corporate Communications, Lancaster General Hospital.

In addition to CLS’s focus on key topic areas:  History of the Region, The Quality of Life, Human Services, Economic Development, Justice & Public Safety, Healthcare, Government, Education and Community Service.  The program focuses on key skill areas Communication, Teamwork, Project Management, Diversity, Sensitivity and Strategic Planning.

“My experience with LHA was truly eye-opening and rewarding.  The class exposed me to opportunities, individuals, and organizations in our region that I never would have met otherwise.  I would recommend LHA to anyone with a genuine interest in enhancing their leadership skills and giving back to their community,” says J. Marc Kurowski, CLS Class of 2008.

I had the opportunity to join Leadership Harrisburg Area for a brief segment during the Human Services day of their Community Leadership Series in January.   In preparation for the session, LHA recommended the text books The Working Poor by David K. Shipler; Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehreneich; and The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls.  Thirty-four class members convened on a wet, icy morning with the interest and desire to learn about the neediest citizens of Central PA as well as the people and organizations that form a safety net to serve those who can’t serve themselves.   Among these organizations was the Holy Spirit Medical Outreach Center housed in the basement at Christ Lutheran Church on Allison Hill.  Their program Director is Reverend Jody Silliker, Director or Community Outreach Services, Holy Spirit Hospital and Pastor of Christ Lutheran Church.  The Outreach Center through private donations and grants provides healthcare services to the poor and disenfranchised; people that are ineligible for or don’t have access to public services for various reasons.

After a tour of the outreach center, Jody escorted the group through the littered streets of Allison Hill where they ate lunch at the Soup Kitchen at Saint Francis of Assisi Catholic Church on Market Street.  They interacted with the women, children and men for whom the soup kitchen provided the only hot meal of the day.  After lunch, a tour of Goodwill Industries was followed by a panel discussion with human service experts from Bethesda Mission, Catholic Charities, Christian Churches United, Dauphin County Contact Helpline and the YWCA to end the day.  The panelists identified gaps in our human services system as well as strengths and weaknesses of the continuum of care available to the less fortunate.  LHA President, Una Martone, closed the session by compelling each class member to share the information and activities they experienced during the 6-hour session, and use their new-found awareness to identify their own role in providing solutions to the problems of homelessness, poverty and despair in our communities. 

Leadership Harrisburg Area offers four programs in addition to the Community  Leadership Series; The Executive Leadership Series; Leadership Speakers Series; Annual Non Profit Conference; and Youth Community Development Team.  

In keeping with LHA’s commitment to outstanding leadership among a diverse group of people, a core of their mission, local executive Zachary Scott, Vice President of the Central Pennsylvania District of UPS was the Keynote Speaker in the February 2009 Leadership Speakers Series event. Scott explained how he translates diversity to the bottom line at UPS.

Other speakers for the 2009 series included the Businessman Soldier, Robert Desousa.  The finale of the LHA Speakers Series 2009 is a luncheon panel featuring the winners of the “Best Places to Work in Pennsylvania” competition.

In efforts to reach high school students with its leadership philosophy, LHA partners with the Rotary Club of Harrisburg to deliver the Youth Community Development Team or YCDT that started in 2004 in celebration of the 100th year of the Harrisburg Rotary. 

The Harrisburg Rotary is self-commissioned to improve the quality of life in the areas it serves and has served in a methodical and organized manner.  In doing so, Harrisburg Rotary has involved business, industry, social service agencies and local faith-based ministries.  The Harrisburg Rotary has operated hand in hand with organizations that share common goals in terms of preserving the integrity of our community through education, awareness and networking.  

Rotary began in Chicago around 1910 by a few lawyers meeting at “rotating” locations.  This is how the name “Rotary” was established and members were called “Rotarians.”  They have since then, come to operate all over the world. Rotary is a secular organization open to all persons regardless of race, color, creed or political preference. There are more than 32,000 clubs and over 1.2 million members world-wide.  The stated purpose of the organization is to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations and help build goodwill and peace in the world.

The focus of YCDT was to involve the youth in our area and to set standards, give guidance to and inspire young people to acquire leadership skills early in life.  The program is modeled after a youth program in Michigan that was implemented by grants from the Kellogg Foundation and the Michigan Community Foundation.  The YCDT continues through 2009 and has produced 140 alumni.  YCDT is committed to teach high school juniors and seniors about community service, community philanthropy and leadership.  Each year, for the past five years, the thirty-five high school students who applied to and were accepted come together on school time with their class advisors.  The students meet monthly at the Harrisburg Regional Chamber offices on North Front Street.  The students are from Harrisburg High, Sci-Tech High and Bishop McDevitt High School.

The YCDT Class of 2009 has developed a focus on helping Harrisburg students break the wide-spread fallacy that higher education is beyond the reach of an average 8th grade student. They are doing this through developing and sharing processes to pursue higher learning through academic goals in their early years of high school, preparing for standard testing, applying for student aid and enrolling in an institution of higher learning.

The YCDT students have issued a Request for Proposal to agencies, which have a capacity to partner on this initiative.  The students will raise $6,000 to be awarded to the winning entity that submits the “best” proposal.  Through mentoring, coaching and facilitating monthly sessions, LHA’s graduates serve as a critical resource to these students who are the future leaders of our community.  The inter-dependent mix of programs provided by LHA has evolved through many years of collaboration by some of Metro-Harrisburg’s finest.

LHA has and continues to breathe new life, sensitivity and a sense of responsibility into the present and future business leaders of the Susquehanna Valley.  Raising awareness of the social responsibility required to sustain growth of a successful community were among the original goals and purposes of organizing and conducting the program. LHA has evolved into an organization that carries a reputation of excellence consistent with the hopes of those who have vested interests in our region.  Graduates of LHA, chosen through a competitive process are held to standards of excellence and ethics that exceed any State Board Agency.  The title “Leadership Harrisburg Area Class of 19XY,” in your personal banner or resume, is confirmation you have earned this honor by succeeding in changing Harrisburg in a way that required dedication, work and a genuine concern for the future of the City and surrounding communities. HBG