The 2016-2017 Leadership Fort Collins class will receive their diplomas on May 11 at the Rio Grande Agave Room. Leadership Fort Collins, a program of the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce, is designed to educate and motivate leaders who are committed to shaping the future of our community while encouraging inspired and active involvement that contributes to the betterment of the community.
Thirty-five current and emerging leaders from throughout the Fort Collins area were selected to participate in the 2016-2017 program, which began in September 2016 and will conclude on May 11. Participants came together on the second Thursday of the month for a day-long session to learn more about Team Building, Government and Transportation, Economy and the Environment, Education and our Community, Social Capital, State Government, Health and Emergency Service Providers and Social Infrastructure. The graduating class is a diverse mix of professions with representative from education, large and small business, not for profit and government.
In addition to attending eight all day educational sessions, members of the class were also challenged to complete a service learning project in the community. The 2016-2017 Leadership Fort Collins Class has planned and produced seven different class projects benefiting the Fort Collins area.
The Leadership Fort Collins graduation will include recognition of individual class members and a keynote addresses by Horse & Dragon Brewing Company Founder Carol Cochran. The graduation event, sponsored by Austin’s American Grill, Baseline Engineering and Vern’s Liquor, will be held May 11 at 5:30 p.m. at the Rio Agave Room.
Graduating members of the class include:
Alex Alvarez, C3 Real Estate Solutions
Alison Aristoff, PVH and MCR Foundation
Valerie Arnold, Windermere Real Estate
Rick Behning, Baseline Engineering
Savanah Benedick, Larimer County Community Development Division
Erik Berlin, Construction Business Development
Emily Birdsall, Jolly Events
Ryan Cassidy, Colorado Business Bank
Jess Dyrdahl, Colorado State University
Alex Falloon, Wells Fargo Advisors
Jill Foster, Belfor Property Restoration
Megan Griffith, CSU College of Agricultural Sciences
Eric Hansen, The Group, Inc.
Marva Hewett, Caliber Home Loans, Inc.
Beth Higgins, Poudre School District
Natalia Infante Caylor, Thrivent Financial
Angela Johnson, Blue Ocean Enterprises
Miles Kailburn, Old Town Media
John Kloster-Prew, Audubon Rockies
Christopher Lowe, UCHealth
Nick Morris, Bond & Morris
Tiffany Paulus, Deltek, Inc.
April Peterson, Blue Federal Credit Union
Jennifer Ray, Woodward, Inc.
Colan Scheidenhelm, Schure Consulting, LLC
Alaina Squires, Brinkman Construction
Zachary Sumner, BW Container Systems
Mary Beth Swanson, Voices Carry Child Advocacy Center
Abe Theiss, Brinkman Construction
Jessica Torres, FLEXX Productions
Melissa Venable, American Red Cross
Jessie Willard, UCHealth
Meghan Willis, UCHealth
Chris Wood, Platte River Power Authority
David Young, City of Fort Collins
The program was produced by the Fort Collins Area Chamber with assistance from a steering committee:
Melinda Brown, Melinda Brown Events
Heather Buoniconti, Food Bank for Larimer County
Jennifer Cooper-Miller, SummitStone Health Partners
Mark Culloton, Austin’s American Grill
Maryann Fillingim, UCHealth
Shannon Hein, City of Fort Collins
Lauren Ives, Heath Construction
Nalo Johnson, City of Fort Collins
Diane Jones
SeonAh Kendall, City of Fort Collins
Amy Kolczak, University of Colorado Health
Heather Matz, The Group
Jennifer McLain, Alpha Center
Emily Peddicord, Mortenson
Teresa Sedlak
Brad Ward
Applications for the 2017-2018 Leadership Fort Collins program will be available in late-June. Anyone interested in learning more about the program or applying should contact Ann Hutchison at (970) 482-3746 or [email protected].
About the Fort Collins Area Chamber
The Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce is the leading membership-based organization in northern Colorado, dedicated to helping businesses succeed. Investing in the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce puts members in contact with more than 1,200 business owners and managers in the market. For more than 100 years, the Fort Collins Area Chamber has influenced efforts to maintain and grow the business community in Fort Collins. For more information about the Chamber call (970) 482-3746 or visit www.FortCollinsChamber.com.