Caldwell: Young professionals make positive connections
Spokane’s young professionals have hit the terrible twos, but all is well.
An organizer of the Spokane Society for Young Professionals says participation continues to increase, and the group has expanded its activities beyond just networking. Informal “Beer With” gatherings have included meetings with Spokane Mayor Dennis Hession, Rep. Cathy McMorris, R-Wa., and Sterling Financial Corp. Chairman Harold Gilkey.SSYP has also held a drive to collect professional clothing for job-seekers who want to make a good impression. The society has begun talks with the Shriners regarding arts and crafts projects for patients, and helping with the 2007 National Junior Disability Championships set for Spokane in July.
Bethany Luck-Hutson is one of the five SSYP co-founders who in November 2004 decided they would have to create for themselves an organization that would not only bring young professionals together, but also would put them in better touch with their community.
Only 20 were expected for the first meeting at the Catacombs Pub in November 2004. More than 100 showed up. Luck-Hutson, a marketing assistant for the Spokane Regional Convention and Visitors Bureau, says SSYP membership has climbed to about 200. Dues are $25 per year, and the society is in the process of obtaining designation as a charitable organization.
She says the group interprets “young” and “professional” liberally. Energy, not age, is the key.
Although most members are in their 20s, “We have members who are 50,” Luck-Hutson says.
Of course, like any group of more than one, it also has a Web site, www.ssyp.org.
Despite its youth, Luck-Hutson says SSYP is among the more mature of the dozens of similar groups springing up around the country. A national Web site lists hundreds, many of which were represented at a September national convention in Madison, Wis. That happens to be the home of Next Generation Consulting, which has been a leading advocate of the new organizations. Founder Rebecca Ryan was in Spokane in September 2004 urging the community to do all it could to retain its talented young.
SSYP was born just two months later.
Spokane newcomer Matthew Beckman says the group has come a long way. And his is a unique perspective: He was president of the Duluth (Minn.) Young Professionals until relocating three months ago to become director of corporate relations for the Gonzaga University Athletics Department.
Beckman, 29, says SSYP has connected him with the area’s young leaders more quickly than would otherwise have been possible for someone totally new to the area. He has also drawn on the Spokane Rotaract Club, an affiliate of Rotary International, to network. Rotaract, like its parent, is service-oriented, but has added social and professional development activities.
Its Web address is www.spokanerotaract.org.
Jack Knudsen says he admires the desire among SSYP members to make Spokane a better place to live. Knudsen, 39, was raised in Spokane but had not lived here for 18 years. He moved back from Bellevue just one month ago.
The business development manager for Ascentium, a software and marketing consultant, was referred to the society by a friend.
He is candid about using the group to make business contacts, and enthusiastic about what he has found. In just his first meeting, he met one chief executive officer, one chief financial officer, as well as other marketers.
Knudsen also says one of the strengths of the Spokane Young Professionals is the organization itself. Luck-Hutson and others keep members busy, and networking, he says.
“You have a bunch of people who are really striving to know who’s who in Spokane and are really trying to make a difference,” Knudsen says.
Call them young professionals. Call them, À la author Richard Florida, the creative class. Most of all, keep them.