Major Leadership Initiative Will Help Address Regional Issues
 
Inaugural Class of the Waccamaw Region Chapter of the American Leadership Forum Revealed


Murrells Inlet, S.C. — Nearly two dozen of Horry and Georgetown Counties’ most influential leaders participated in a new initiative that helped them look beyond town borders and address regional challenges. The inaugural class of the American Leadership Forum, Waccamaw Region Chapter, focused on building the skills and network necessary to advance the entire region.
 
The effort was launched in January 2009 by the Waccamaw Community Foundation and The Lee Institute with a $290,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Founded in 1980 in Houston, the American Leadership Forum is a national nonprofit that aims to enhance community leadership through collaborative problem-solving.
 
“The Waccamaw Region is challenged by unseen geographic and demographic boundaries,” says Jonathan Kresken, President of the Waccamaw Community Foundation. “This initiative will unite an impressive group of proven leaders … Careful training and the camaraderie they gain by working together will empower them to tackle issues important to the entire region.”  
 
“Knight Foundation looks for opportunities to transform communities. Building a network of better-connected leaders through the forum has that potential," said Susan Patterson, Knight's program director in Myrtle Beach.
 
Selected through a rigorous nomination process, participants included:
James W. Adamson, M.D. – Medical Doctor associated with Conway Medical
Barbara Blain-Olds – Assistant City Administrator of Conway
Natalie Pruitt – Vice-President of Interactive Media for The Sun News
Brad Dean – President & CEO of Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce
Dave DeCenzo – President of Coastal Carolina University
Cindy Elsberry - Superintendent of Horry County Schools
Annette Fisher - President of Georgetown County Chamber of Commerce
Lynne Ford – United Way, Director of Resource Development, Georgetown
Liz Gilland – Chairwoman of Horry County Council 
Greg Hembree – Horry County Solicitor
Sel Hemingway – County Administrator, Georgetown County
Jonathan Kresken – President and CEO of Waccamaw Community Foundation 
Fred Richardson – CEO of Grand Strand Water and Sewer Authority
Myers Rollins, Jr. – General Manager/CEO Coast Regional Transportation Authority
Geales Sands – Executive Director, Frances P. Bunnelle Foundation
Bishop John Smith, Jr. – Bishop, Greater Bibleway Church in Conway
Daniel Stacy - Attorney, Lumpkin, Oxner & Stacy, P.A. (Georgetown Co.)
Harold Stowe – Vice Chairman of Waccamaw Community Foundation
Andrew C. Tilmont – Chief Operating Officer of Burroughs & Chapin Co., Inc.
Dennis Wade – President and CEO of The Jackson Companies

The participants agreed to take part in a rigorous, year-long leadership development program consisting of monthly seminars and intensive dialogue regarding:

  • collaborative leadership; 
  • consensus;
  • dialogue; 
  • understanding differences;
  • ethics; and 
  • leadership systems.  

Fellows also participate in a five-day wilderness experience, run by North Carolina Outward Bound. Our inaugural class graduated on February 18, 2010 and have continued to work together as "Senior Fellows" while also joining an active, nationwide network of more than 1,000 graduates.
 
“The American Leadership Forum distinguishes itself from other leadership training models," says Anne Udall, the Institute’s Executive Director. "It actively recruits top-level leaders in all areas of a community, creating a critical mass of accomplished leaders across different sectors of influence – individuals who understand community issues can be solved only through consensus building and the establishment of trust among diverse leaders."  

For more information about the new Waccamaw Region Chapter of the American Leadership Forum or about the Waccamaw Community Foundation, please visit www.waccamawcf.org or call 843.357.4483(GIVE). 

The Lee Institute, a nonprofit, was created by the Lynnwood Foundation in 1997 to honor and replicate the example of community visionary, Bill Lee. The reality that collaboration builds strong communities is the defining principle of The Lee Institute.
 
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes excellence in journalism worldwide and invests in the vitality of the U.S. communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. Knight Foundation focuses on projects with the potential to create transformational change. For more, visit http://www.knightfoundation.org/.

Founded in 1999, the Waccamaw Community Foundation is a public charity that currently manages nearly $14.5 million in charitable assets. The organization's mission is to rally philanthropic resources for the purpose of building a stronger community and a better quality of life for the people of the Waccamaw Region. In 2008 alone, the foundation disbursed over $1.5 million in grants to 200-plus non-profit organizations. 
ALF Inaugural Class