2009 Leadership Dorchester program awarded diplomas to its twenty graduates on Friday, November 20, 2009 at a ceremony held at the Woodlands Resort in Summerville,
Leadership Dorchester is the leadership training program of the Greater Summerville/Dorchester County Chamber of Commerce -- a year long training program for new and emerging leaders in Dorchester County and Greater Summerville.
The roster of graduates included Mac Baughman, Al Bradham, Claude Bray, Chris Campeau, Misty Carson, Ryan Castle, Ben Coakley, Michael Colucci, Tracey Erbe, Mahalla Ford, Becky Ford, P. J. Johnson, Stacey Lindbergh, Sean Makens, Jack Mitchell, Lana Musti, Les Phillips, Tony Pope, Ellen Priest and Kathryn Tupper.
Directing the program for the Greater Summerville/Dorchester County Chamber of Commerce was Rita Berry, President and CEO. “We also have a large number of people to thank for the successful completion of the program. Most of all were the 60 presenters that took their time to provide programs during the eleven months of the 2009 year. We also wish to thank our many chamber volunteers and the chamber staff for their assistance,” said Berry. Leadership Dorchester was coordinated for 2009 by Jim Friar, President of JMF Services LLC.
The 20 graduates of the program were saluted by Chamber Board Chairman Robby Robbins at the afternoon ceremony.
“There are many factors of leadership that are important to you and to us. Foremost among these is the ability of leaders to help the staff of their businesses to grow and prosper within their companies. While there are other leadership skills, helping others is the primary skill to being successful as an owner or a business manager.” he said.
Robbins then presented Leadership Dorchester 2009 Diplomas. He was assisted by Louis F. Caputo, CEO of Summerville Medical Center and the title sponsor of the 2009 program, and by Rita Berry.
In addition the 2009 Leadership Dorchester Diploma, each graduate was given a copy of Summerville -- a History of the Flower Town in the Pines by Barbara Lynch Hill. The 500-page publication was signed by Mrs. Hill, Summerville Mayor Berlin G. Myers and Robbins.
The morning presentations included a colorful Frances Beidler Forest video and comments from Sanctuary Manager Norman Brunswick. “It is a pleasure for me to present this natural treasure that we have here in Dorchester County- the largest forest of its kind remaining in the world.”
A civic club forum was also presented which included overviews from Don Nye on Rotary, Shirlie Taylor on the American Business Women's Association, and Johnny Bevon as he spoke about the Coastal Carolina Fair -- a project of the Charleston Exchange Club.
Bevon, the Chair-elect of the Chamber Board of Directors, then led a planning roundtable in which he sought comments from the Leadership Dorchester 2009 class regarding their experiences.
“This was a good opportunity for us to gather information in regards to program improvement in Leadership Dorchester 2010,” he said.
The Leadership Dorchester class then reviewed its Children in Crisis service project and displayed the mounted newspaper clippings and awards in recognition of the effort.
The class photo was taken in the Woodland's Garden prior to the Graduation Luncheon and Awards presentation.
“It was a pleasure for us to have Summerville Medical Center's CEO, Lou Caputo, help us in honoring this Leadership Dorchester class. We greatly appreciated having Summerville Medical Center as our title sponsor for 2009.  It means a great deal to the graduates of the training program to have community sponsorship and participation of this caliber", noted CEO and President Rita Berry. Tony Pope, Agent for State Farm, Insurance was also a sponsor of the program. The November session of Leadership Dorchester concluded the eleven-month program for 2009.
For information on the 2010 Leadership Dorchester class beginning on January 21, 2010, please contact Rita Berry at the Greater Summerville/Dorchester Chamber of Commerce at rberry@greatersummerville.org.