Buffalo Rising Online

Sep 26th, 7:46am By Joseph McHenry

On September 12, my peers and I made a trip to Cradle Beach in Angola to kick off this year’s Youth Leadership Erie County (YLEC) program* with an orientation retreat. While a major component of the retreat was developing friendships and skills that will last throughout the nine-month program, it was also a time to showcase the ability and enthusiasm of the next generation of leaders in Western New York (WNY).

This year’s class, which includes students from 33 area high schools, spent the two-day retreat learning valuable leadership skills that we can apply in our schools and neighborhoods. The importance of exchanging ideas and viewpoints was stressed as a vital attribute in effective leadership, as was an appreciation of diversity in our region. When I asked my fellow classmate Gabrielle Basile of Iroquois High School what she learned about communicating ideas, she remarked, “I learned how to communicate my ideas while allowing others to have a chance to say what they were thinking.”

By supporting a positive dialogue among a cross-section of youth regarding the core issues in WNY, we can raise community awareness and reach a higher level of successful engagement in projects that help to make this area a better place to work, to study, and to live in.

To me, one the strongest features of YLEC is that participants arrive from all over the region and have differing perspectives on a wide array of matters. As leaders, we must strive to reach a consensus that empowers everyone to buy into the decisions we make and then, together, work to make our decisions a reality that benefits everyone. This key leadership quality, of increasing and ongoing collaboration, of unity, will be essential as Buffalo continues to attempt to transform itself into a thriving city that entices its youth to stay and raise families in “The City of Good Neighbors.”

Another unique feature of YLEC is that I and my classmates meet monthly, but not in a traditional classroom. Different venues within The City of Buffalo and its environs serve as our classroom for the day, with each session focusing on a particular topic of importance. The topics range from Arts and Culture to Diversity to Community History and more. During each of these sessions, we are given an opportunity to ask community leaders questions in order to gain a better understanding on what is going on. In this way, we learn how to better lead and achieve and--most importantly--how to contribute toward solutions.

I look forward to sharing with the Buffalo Rising readership the events of each session throughout the year and the impact they have on me and other YLEC members.

Nine months from now, when we graduate from the program, I expect that I and my classmates will have a clear grasp concerning how the region arrived at its current state, the issues that it faces going forward, and the ideas that will create a more prosperous WNY for all to enjoy. For the days and years to come, we will be active leaders in our schools and our neighborhoods, striving to insure that the voices of all are heard, the opinions of all are represented, and that we work toward solutions from the strength of common ground. This is the future of our region, and that future begins today.

Photo: Team-building exercises at Cradle Beach orientation.

*Leadership Buffalo encourages an appreciation of service, diversity, inclusion, and openness to change in its community. Dedicated to developing future leaders of Buffalo and Erie County, New York, Leadership Buffalo supports participants in achieving an in-depth understanding of the Buffalo-Niagara region, establishing a network of other leaders in the community, and developing the tools and influence needed to shape critical decisions and needs affecting the community. To date, more than 800 individuals have graduated from Leadership Buffalo programs, including Class Experience, Rising Leaders, and Youth Leadership. The Youth Leadership program serves 45 high schools students from across Erie County and is provided free of charge thanks to the generous support of Erie County Youth Services, the United Way, The Children's Foundation, HSBC Bank USA, and Hunt Charitable Foundation. For more information, please visit www.leadershipbuffalo.org. For more information about Leadership Buffalo’s Youth Leadership Erie County program, please contact Sara Emhof at semhof@leadershipbuffalo.org or 716.849.2626, ext. 16.