An inaugural event, held the evening of June 13, brought together Leadership McKean alumni from the previous 12 years, the current graduation LM class, elected officials, and many of the community’s principal stakeholders to re-unite, network, and share ideas on the future of the region.

“Strong communities are based on feeling welcome, a sense of belonging, being invested in the community, and having a voice,” said Carolyn Boser Newhouse, executive director of the Bradford Area Alliance and a Leadership McKean board member. “It is important to continue to plan for the succession of our next generation of leaders who will help move our economy and community initiatives forward towards an even stronger future.

“It is for this reason and to celebrate our leaders who have made an investment in our community, that this inaugural event was held,” she said.

Further, “Our strong community of not-for-profit leaders were generous with their time and were involved in the planning process and were front-and-center in the success of this event.”

The evening included roundtable discussions focused on getting to know each other, relationships in the community and the vision for our future.

Newhouse said there was a tremendous response from across McKean County in both attendance, energy and ideas. Also, 97% of survey respondents expressed an interest in future events and many requested being connected with local non-profit organizations. The event was sponsored by Northwest Bank.