Keith Lakatosh, President, 248-854-8446
Spring is here! 
The days are getting longer and the snow has melted. This also means that we are getting ready to start another summer of fun festivals, hit the deck socials and other great opportunities to get involved in the community. The last several months I have talked about creating opportunity and receiving value from the Jaycees. My hope is the spring and summer seasons will help to make this message a reality. Your Community Vice President, Julia Webber, along with her project committee has been hard at work organizing a Green Careers Fair is association with Michigan Earth Day Festival. This is the first year our organization has attempted an undertaking like this and we hope it will provide value for our local community and those wanting to learn more about the “green jobs” that will shape our country’s future.
Other events we have coming up are the Annual Rochester Heritage Festival, where we operate a Rock Wall and Extreme Jumper (members climb for free). We will be going to Mexican Town around Cinco de Mayo for an international dinner, doing some park beautification at Rochester Jaycee Park (yes there is a Jaycee Park) and a plethora of other events scheduled for the next several months. Keep your eyes open for monthly postcard calendars in your mail with the scheduled events.
That being said, I want to reinforce how YOU will get the most VALUE from the Jaycees over the next several months. As you may remember, in February I highlighted three principles that I think help to create value from the Jaycees, they were: participate, lead, and impact. Now is the opportunity to do this. Many of the projects we plan on sponsoring have budgets assigned to them. For instance, the chapter has allotted $100 for an international dinner in Mexican Town for Cinco de Mayo. So here is a chance for you to go have a nice dinner out for a little less than it would cost you to go on your own. What we ask from our members is to help organize these events. At the least, that involves putting a plan behind the event. For the Jaycees, our preferred method is by utilizing the Chairperson’s Planning Guide (a proven planning process to promote successful events). The rest of the project involves acting on your plan. If you are hesitant about running a project, I assure you the board and our experienced members are available to help you through this process. Please volunteer to organize a project, but don’t be surprised if you receive calls from board or other members to participate.
I hope everyone is enjoying 2010. We are a quarter of the way through and I see nothing but a bright future and great opportunities. I hope to see you all soon!