A Message From Our Community of Lebanon Association President
As I ponder my first year as the president of the CLA, I find myself feeling lucky and fortunate to work with 24 awesome and dedicated board members who without a second thought volunteer so much time to this organization to ensure our mission is met. Collectively, the board members log thousands of hours of community service along with our other event and committee volunteers.
The trust that was placed in me to lead the organization was exciting and inspiring at the same time. This was especially manifested during the strategic planning process—opening the organization up to opportunities, yet at the same time recognizing the bedrock of who we are. Kate Gallagher of CoLab led our planning session and visited with us back three times to guide the board through the activities and tasks needed to finalize our living document. A summary of the strategic priorities that was developed as a result of the strategic planning session is now available on our new web site. And, that’s a great place to start our year in review.
Our accomplishments include: 1) New Website (developed by a local organization, Fresh Creative) www.lebanonpa.com 2) Analyzed our events and determined those that are important to our mission and vision 3) Completed the Hometown Heroes Banner project and started new campaign of CLA Event Banners 4) Retargeted the Jazz Festival to a Music Festival with 30 craft brews 5) Updated our Annual Event to a Gala while maintaining the spirit of the event by awarding the business person of the year and the Lester Leffler Community Service Award 6) Sign project welcoming visitors and residents alike to Lebanon on all four gateways to the City 7) Combined the Spring and Fall Craft Shows into one to be held in the Spring 2015 with a jury process to qualify vendors as true crafters (items must be handmade); although there will be an area for our members who wish to have a stand.
Would you like a stronger relationship with the CLA through your membership investment? I encourage you to get involved by attending one of our four luncheons which provide networking opportunities and the time to connect with other community members. Or, perhaps you are thinking about volunteering for one of our events which draw hundreds or thousands of people to the downtown. For the music festival alone, 90 volunteers on the day of the event to ensure our guests enjoyed the day. Or, perhaps you like the idea of committee work; we can always use people’s talents who have an interest in what we do.
While I am sure the CLA and other community associations around the state will face many challenges in the near Continued on Page 7