A young model of success

Three years in, and professionals group has built membership, goals.

It's a little tough to pin down exactly when Young Professionals of Reno County was officially founded.

While leaders initially planned to establish the organization in January 2008, the buzz about a group for young professionals necessitated a couple of "kick-off" events.

"People kept asking about when we would have our first event," said Jessica Miller, founding member and current membership director. "We wanted to wait until January, but felt like we had to do something."

First there was a pre-kickoff celebration in July 2007 and then the official kickoff and announcement of the group the following September.

In January 2008, the group officially began charging for membership.

Looking back, it seems the excitement about the group's founding three years ago was indicative of its future success.

Today, YP Reno County boasts 223 members and it has become somewhat of a model for similar groups around the state. To that end, the nonprofit group plans to host a statewide YP Kansas Summit later this year.

On Thursday, YP Reno County will play host to its annual meeting, at which it will update members on the group's progress as well as future plans.

The past

The idea of a group like YP Reno County was born of conversations among Leadership Reno County participants about how to get younger citizens engaged in the community.

The idea grew beyond the leadership class when founding YP members Aubrey Abbott Patterson and Nathan Meyer began asking other young professionals in town what they thought of the idea.

"Resoundingly people thought it was a great idea," said Patterson, who now serves on the YP Advisory Council.

Through a series of what Patterson described as "marathon" meetings, a 15-member steering committee created the founding principals of YP Reno County.

Their goals are to serve as a resource for young professionals in Reno County, and to be their voice in Reno County communities.

YP Reno County also wants to provide activities, services and programs that will benefit its members in a variety of ways, including individual, social, philanthropic and leadership development.

With those goals in mind, the group over the past three years created Monthly Mingles, along with many other group activity opportunities - like volunteering or going caroling. It also has helped organize some intramural sports teams, among other things.

To get members involved in the community, YP Reno County sends weekly e-mails that include upcoming events or opportunities around the community.

"It's not our goal that our members just be connected to YP, we also want them to be connected with the community; to serve on boards or to volunteer with other organizations," Miller said.

The growing attendance at Monthly Mingles - which has reached 150 people - is considered a significant accomplishment. Mingles are sponsored and hosted by local businesses.

"Our question used to be - how will we get people to show up," said Mandy Swisher, 2010 Advisory Council chair. "Now we're talking about whether there will be enough space. That's a milestone to me."

Another accomplishment YP leaders noted when looking back over the past three years is YP members' volunteerism.

"This is an exciting piece because our members respond and respond in a big way to volunteer opportunities," Miller said, adding that YP members have volunteered for organizations like the Reno County Growth Coalition, of which she is the director, as well as United Way, Dillon Nature Center and other organizations. They've also organized their own volunteer opportunities - such as cleaning up Carey Park.

Finally, YP Reno County was involved in bringing author and consultant Rebecca Ryan to Hutchinson last year to speak about what the community could do to be more attractive to the next generation of leaders.

Ryan's visit spurred community volunteer groups that have, through working with the Reno County Growth Coalition, organized activities like Bike to Work Day and a Halloween 5k as well as Explore Hutch, a monthly evening of entertainment for adults.

The future

While YP leaders are excited about the growth of their organization to date, a large membership isn't the goal. Sustainability is.

"From the start, we've been cognizant that YP can't just be a new and exciting thing for awhile, it needs to be long-lasting," Patterson said. "Someday the people who founded it will move on, so we've done a lot of talking about structuring the organization so that succession can happen."

Miller agreed.

"We celebrate our membership numbers - it is exciting," she said. "But at every advisory council meeting, we talk about having a quality organization - not just high numbers. We have to continue to provide things our members want and to meet their needs."

One of the ways they'll do that in 2010 is to put a greater focus on connecting members with other community groups.

YP Reno County's "Voice" action team, which shares what YP members care about with those who will listen, will launch the "Get on Board" program.

For that program, YP Reno County will work with the Volunteer Center to connect nonprofits with YP members - both for volunteer opportunities and for leadership roles.

"We believe it will be an initiator for those members who want to get involved and don't know where to begin and also for the nonprofits that want some new blood, but don't know how to find it," Swisher said.

The "Connection" team, which initiates and promotes efforts in Reno County that unite people, businesses and organizations, is organizing the first ever YP Kansas Summit in Hutchinson this spring. YP leaders are hopeful that young professionals from all over the state will converge upon the Salt City to learn more about how to start their own groups.

The "Pulse" team, which is responsible for planning, coordination and implementation of social events and activities, will focus on creating more family-friendly events, such as a summer barbecue.

YP leaders are looking forward to the continued success of the organization, saying each milestone is exciting - and somewhat unexpected.

"As an advisory council, I think we still look across the room at each other and say, 'Wow!'" Miller said.