The Young Leaders of Northeast Indiana (YLNI) is pleased to announce its 2010 - 2011 Board of Directors. The following were elected to serve as officers: President, Michael Barranda, Burt, Blee, Dixon, Sutton & Bloom, LLP; Vice President, Lisa Updike, Barnes and Thornburg, LLP; Secretary, Beth Bobay, Lincoln Printing; Treasurer, Ryan Hart, Lake City Bank.

The following individuals were selected to serve on the Board of Directors: Director at Large of the Executive Committee, Tamesha Fikes, Salin Bank; V.P. of Community Involvement, Sam Graves, Strahm Group; V.P. of Membership, Amy Johnson, Northwestern Mutual Financial Network; V.P. of Leadership Development, Katy Silliman, Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership; V.P. of Marketing, Heather Schoegler, Parkview Foundation; V.P. of Social Programming, Emily McCabe, Vera Bradley; Director at Large, Andrew Thomas, Ridge NAPA Auto Parts; Director at Large, Mike King, Aptera Software; Director at Large, Courtney Tritch, Northeast Indiana Fund/Talent Initiative; Director at Large, Luke Squires, First Source Bank; Director at Large, Kelly Pautler, Carson Boxberger, LLP.

The announcement of YLNI's 2010-11 Board of Directors is also a time to thank Mike Kanning and Wendy Stein for their service and dedication to the organization as they step down from the Board. Both founding members of the organization, Kanning and Stein served as the organization's first and second Presidents, respectively. Only Stein and Andrew Thomas have served on the Board each of the organization's five years of existence.

"I am honored and excited to follow in the footsteps of Mike and Wendy," stated incoming President, Michael Barranda. "They have truly been rocks for this organization over the years, and much of YLNI's success is a reflection of their vision and leadership. While I expect them to continue to support YLNI in other capacities, we will certainly miss their presence on the Board as leaders, friends and confidants."

The Board of Directors is the governing body of YLNI and serves to maintain the organization's mission and strategic initiatives. The Board of Directors approves and oversees all community activities and events. This is the fifth year of the Board of Directors. A steering committee was in place prior to the board's inception.

About YLNI  
The Young Leaders of Northeast Indiana (YLNI) is a dynamic group that is connected to the community and committed to making it a vibrant and viable place to live, work and play. The mission is to engage and empower our young leaders through community, professional and social opportunities.  

A vision of Northeast Indiana by those poised to inherit it.

Our young leaders have spoken: when it comes to community development in Northeast Indiana, it turns out that the majority of young adults are more interested in the creation of professional career opportunities and mass transit, over the creation of more bars and restaurants.  At the same time, they appreciate the region's low cost of living and parks.

For the past year the Young Leaders of Northeast Indiana (YLNI) have gathered feedback from over 200 of Northeast Indiana's emerging leaders in their 20s and 30s, in an attempt to understand what the demographic believes are the strengths of the region, and how to make it a better place to live, work and play. The information was primarily collected through an online survey conducted at www.ylni.org. On June 23, YLNI will release its 2020 Vision brochure to the public at the Northeast Indiana Fund's Regional Economic Summit to be held at 6 p.m. at the Grand Wayne Center in Fort Wayne, IN. The event is free and open to the public.

As part of the survey process, respondents were asked to choose the top five assets that make Northeast Indiana attractive and the top five areas in need of improvement. Respondents selected five choices among 36 identified categories that fell into seven general areas: Health & Fitness; Transit; Job Opportunities; Education & Enrichment; Community Diversity; Affordability and Entertainment.

The brochure also prominently showcases the narratives of approximately 20 young leaders that represent unique ideas or various recurring themes from the study, and provides information about why the individuals choose to better Northeast Indiana.

"This brochure is not just about the data," incoming YLNI President, Michael Barranda, said. "We want young adults and community leaders to see that young leaders are not defined by particular professions or interests; rather, community leaders are any individuals that are ready, willing and able to make this community better."

The release of the full-color, 28-page brochure is the culmination of the "Engage" phase of YLNI's 2020 Vision Project, and is the beginning of the latter stages of "Empower" and "Execute."  Made possible with the support of the Lincoln Financial Foundation, the goal of Engage is to pull together insight from area young adults in an effort to provide a true representation of Northeast Indiana's Gen Xers, Gen Yers and Millennials, and to identify new visionaries of the community.  "Empower" involves educating the community about the visions, and cultivating the future leaders of the community.  Execute will be the implementation of the various visions and initiatives identified from the project.

The 2020 Vision survey and brochure was accomplished in large part by a task force that included YLNI VP of Community Involvement Sam Graves, as well as committee members Monica Freeman, John Hudson, Lori Keys, Justin Stalter and Courtney Tritch.