Thursday night, Indiana Beverage hosted a special meeting of The United Way of Porter County's Young Leaders United group. Why was this particular gathering of our community's leaders under age 40 so special? State Senator Ed Charbonneau came to lead a casual discussion concerning our community's needs, dreams, and how to get there. As a bonus, Northwest Indiana RDA CEO Bill Hanna spoke in conversation with these ideas concerning our local development and infrastructure.
In attendance were approximately 30 people from all walks of professional life – some in their first job, some who have just moved to the region, others who have been here their whole lives, and all with different stories. The communal support for our city, county, region, and state, however, was apparent in all conversations, whether simply chatting or seriously discussing the issues facing us today.
The meeting began with some simple networking time. Indiana Beverage provided samples of six of their beers, pop, and bottled water. Appetizers of cheese, fruit, focaccia bread, and artisan meat were on hand for those who wanted to grab a quick bite before jumping into conversations.
"It's a great way for younger leaders to get together and network with each other. It gives them an opportunity to interact with political leaders and business leaders and express their interests in what they'd like to see in Porter County and make some of those things happen," was how Todd Wagenblast of Indiana Beverage saw the event.
After this mingling time, everyone picked tables for a quick presentation on the history of Indiana Beverage as three-generation local company and how they have thrived. Did you know that in 2007, their employees wrote their mission statement? Because there were so many new faces, DePra invited everyone to introduce him/herself to the group before commencing with group discussions.
"I think it's always good when you can get people together. Two heads are better than one, five heads are better than two, so I'm a big advocate for groups and seeing what people have to say about things," said JoElla DePra, Chair of UWPC's YLU group and Personal Financial Officer at 1st Source Bank.
The group discussions were productive – and mostly positive. While acknowledging the problems we face with heroin and being seen as "high and mighty," our YLU talked about well-established businesses, the proposed South Shore Line extension, and the benefits of having so many rural areas. The group discussed how to keep our young people here and how to improve our qualities of life.
Sen. Charbonneau was active in his table's discussion and obviously passionate about having a chance to talk with people one on one, in a small group, and as a whole.
"It's a great opportunity to talk to a a lot of the young leaders in Porter County, in Northwest Indiana, and their the future of the country – for sure! It's always a good idea to include them in the discussion. It's amazing all the vibrant ideas, the different ideas, the thought processes, and one of the big things I want to talk about is quality of life. We're trying to sell Indiana as a place for companies to grow their business and invest money. In order for us to be successful at that, we have to have young, educated work force. Whether they grew up here or moved here, they need to be here to fill those jobs," explained Charbonneau.
When speaking to the group, he stressed the importance of individuals to our community. Charbonneau acclaimed Valparaiso University, Purdue North Central (and Calumet, when speaking of the entirety of the region), and even Indiana University as "jewels." He proposed that we encourage these graduates to stay in our region, rather than leaving. He opened the floor for further discussion on what originally brought everyone in the room to Northwest Indiana. The answers were many and varied, ranging from jobs opportunities to property prices, family ties, and more.
"What kinds of things can we do to make this area more attractive to young professionals?" Charbonneau posed to those in attendance.
Bill Hanna was next, but certainly not least. He spoke with passion concerning our region's need to become, as Charbonneau noted, "more attractive to young professionals." Hi stressed the importance of infrastructure as a selling point that we must implement to compete. Hanna said that we must recognize that, as wonderful as our community is on its own, we are, in many ways, a suburb of what he calls the "city-state" of Chicago. As such, we should think about the implications of living here as opposed to Illinois.
"We're getting to hear from people that we sever in the constituencies that are probably underrepresented. So, they're here making a way for their family, they're working every day, they're paying taxes, they're too busy to really come out, so they have to trust their leadership. And it's a great thing to be reminded of what's important to people. It's going to change the way we think over time," noted Hanna concerning the evening's importance.
This event – and all that The United Way of Porter County and its Young Leaders United do in our community – shows the strength of pulling together to conquer common struggles, become actively involved in our surroundings, and meeting new people. Our Northwest Indianan communities are full of untapped potential, amazing people, and endless opportunities.
Charbonneau, Hanna, and Wagenblast paid the Life companies some incredible compliments for our positivity and passion for the region.
"No matter what business we're in, we're in the business of people. That's number one. You've got great people, but also we're promoting the positive – the good things that are going on. You know, you read the papers, always see the not-so-good things that are going on. And we need to be celebrating the great things that are going on! We overlook them and many of them we take for granted. We just need to remind ourselves – more often than we do – of what we have here," said Charbonneau, perfectly stating our outlook on Life.