A Fond Farewell to A Friend - Mine AND Yours, too.

Last month the Chamber Board accepted with regrets the resignation of Dr. Paulette Popovich.  Paulette will be leaving the Chamber Board after serving as Chair in 2011 because she is leaving her position as Interim Dean at The University of Akron Wayne College to embark on a new chapter in her life.

"Dear Colleagues and Friends:

As you may be aware, Wayne College will celebrate its 40^th anniversary next fall. It’s hard to imagine how many students’ lives we have touched, how many goals and dreams we helped bring to reality, how many people we have served in some way, over those 40 years.

I am very proud to say I’ve been a part of that good work for over a third of the College’s lifetime. I’m also very proud to have been a part of the life and growth of Orrville and the tri-county community. I am truly honored to have worked alongside so many of you in many remarkable initiatives and projects. This is a genuinely special place.

So it is with mixed feelings that I inform you of my resignation from the University of Akron, effective January 1, 2012, to pursue some new interests. I assure you that new leadership for the College will be in place well before my departure and the good work of Wayne College will continue for a long time.

Please know how grateful I am to all of you for your support and friendship, and for the contributions of time, talent, advice, and dollars you have so generously given to Wayne College over our forty years.

The future is bright!

With warmest regards and best wishes for continued success,

Sincerely,  Paulette"

We truly hate to see her go.  Paulette brought a high level of enthusiasm and unique interest in our community and the surrounding area to our Board table.  Thanks to her, we were introduced to the "Global Communications and Communities of Choice" essay by Marshall Goldsmith, which led to an entirely new approach to our efforts. She played a major role in developing our new Orrville brand. Thank you, Paulette.  You not only touched the lives of many people at the college, but you also opened our eyes by giving us a better view of who we are.



Here are a few other updates to the Chamber Board to share with you as well.


Completing two 3-year terms on the Board is Mark Auble, Funeral Director at Auble Funeral Home.  Mark has been our go-to guy not only for good insights into the community, the schools and the service business perspective, but also as an adviser for our building and grounds maintenance and improvements.  

Thank you, Mark - you will be missed! 

Mark Zook,
Vice President of Underwriting at Mennonite Mutual Insurance Company, 
will serve as our 2012 Board Chair 

and Stephanie Graber, 

Human Resources at JLG Industries, 

will be the 1st Vice Chair.

 

Nan Whitsel, Account Executive for The University of Akron Wayne College's Department of Workforce Development and Corporate Training will fulfill Dr. Popovich's Board term. 

Also new to the Board this year and fulfilling terms of previous directors are Mike Henkle, Plant Manager at The Scott's  Company

and Curt Sourwine, 
Vice President of Support Services 
at Dunlap Community Hospital.




Completing the roster of our prestigious group 
of Board Members are:

Maribeth Badertscher, 

Vice President of Corporate Communications,
The J.M. Smucker Company

Justin Haislip, 
Haislip State Farm Insurance Agency

Dave Handwerk, 

Mayor of Orrville

Mike Hedberg, 
Marketing Manager, 
Orrville Utilities;
Also Manager of 
The Office of Orrville Economic Development  

Diane Jarrett, 

Owner, PackShip USA

Don McFarlin, 
Operations Manager,

Moog / Flo-Tork

 
 Jon Ritchie, 

Superintendent,

Orrville City Schools

Tony Rohrer, 
Vice President,

The Hummel Group

Jack Rose, 

Director of Operations,

The Will-Burt Company

John Schmid, 

Vice President of Human Resources, 
Smith Dairy Products Company

As you can see, your Chamber of Commerce is guided by an impressive group of individuals.  As President, I am extremely fortunate to have so many outstanding people willing to serve in this volunteer capacity,  sharing their experience, expertise and wisdom for the growth and betterment of this organization and the Orrville area.

Lori and I both want to thank all of our members for your support and assistance throughout the year.  Best wishes for a meaningful Christmas!

Jenni