December 2019 Leadership Cayuga Update

December 17, 2019

Members of the Leadership Cayuga Class of 2020 volunteering at Habitat for Humanity this December.

Leadership Cayuga

Bus Tour – On our second session with the Class of 2020, we brought the eager members on a bus tour of the entire county! We traveled from South to North experiencing business, history, agriculture and tourism. We visited the St Matthews Episcopal Church in Moravia to see the beautiful wood carvings. Then we traveled to the Howland Stone Store Museum and Opendoor Project where we learned about the dedication of volunteers and the history of the Howland family. We learned about the dairy industry here in Cayuga County at Oakwood farms. Next we ate lunch at Devaney’s Riverside Grill in Weedsport. Our time at the Sterling Nature Center did not disappoint, beautiful views and the sun came out! We ended the day at Colloca Winery in Fair Haven.

Economic Development and Leadership – Our goal with this session is to be exposed to the economic overview of Cayuga County. We dove right in with an overview of how Cayuga County fits into the regional economic development landscape with Nora Spillane of CenterState CEO. We then heard from many partners in the economic development arena here in Cayuga County. Our panel included Jim Dacey ’89, Chair, Auburn Industrial Development Authority; Renee Jensen ‘17, City of Auburn Office of Planning & Economic Development; Maureen Riester ‘09, Cayuga Works Career Center; Karen Kuhl, Cayuga Tourism Office; Tracy Verrier ’15, Cayuga Economic Development Agency; Dan Welch, Cornell Cooperative Extension Cayuga County

Human Services. We ended the morning with an overview of the business expansion and story from Christina Brooks of Dumond Farms.

In the afternoon we heard a moving speech by Demetrius Nichols, international basketball player and SU Alum. He reminded us to be careful how we talk to ourselves, to work hard and never give up. It was a pleasure to hear from him.

Human Services – This day started once again with the class going into the community to volunteer and learn hands on at human service organizations. We had the class help out at the Rescue Mission, Chapel House Homeless Shelter and Habitat for Humanity. Everyone came back learning much more about the organization than they started with. After lunch we heard from Karen Macier, Executive Director of the United Way of Cayuga County. Karen outlined what the United Way does as well as some of their initiatives with the 211 line and with the ALICE population. We heard from Chris Ellers – CAP, Community Action Programs; David Ward – Sts. Peter and John Soup Kitchen; and Stephanie Hutchinson ‘12 – Auburn Housing authority about the state of poverty, food insecurity and housing in our community.

**From this session some of the class has created a coat and personal care drive for the residents of Chapel House. More information can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/LeadershipCayuga/photos/a.671577652910143/2550213301713226/?type=3&theater

Finger Lakes Grant Information Center

The Finger Lakes Grant Information Center is open Monday-Friday from 8:30am-5pm to use the Foundation Directory Online Grant database. This database gives your access to over 100,000 foundations from across the country that could possibly help fund your organization. New users need an orientation to the software, call 315-252-7291 to set that up.

Strategic Thinking and Planning for Non-Profits January 24^th – 9am-11am – $15 members of Human Services Coalition or Cayuga County Chamber or $25 non-members – In this workshop, you will learn: How to differentiate strategic thinking, decision making, and planning; How to understand the impact of the external environment; How to clarify strategic priorities for easier decision making; Tool and techniques to translate strategy into tangible actions and results; How to move the organization from a tactical mindset to a strategic mindset. Register and Learn more at: http://events.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=ttrel7bab&oeidk=a07egse7dh0d287ba57

Educational Seminars
The Chamber Educational Seminars are free for all Chamber members and a great way to access professional level training for your employees. Have an idea for an upcoming Educational Seminar? Reach out to Jessica at jwrench@cayugacountychamber.com or 315-252-7291

Educational Seminar: 3 Steps to a Stress-Free Tax Season – January 22^nd – 12pm

In this presentation, you will learn:

How to beat procrastination and get started pulling your tax data together.
How to set yourself up to make progress on your tax data in just 10 minutes a day without getting overwhelmed.
How to keep yourself going, finish your tax data early, and avoid the stress of the last minute rush.

Life is too short to waste emotional energy being overwhelmed by tax season.

This can be the year when you actually get your taxes done early – Register today!

Presented By: Chris Belfi, Max Potential Coaching