Pssst . . . Committee Members are Cooler than Everyone Else Got your attention! OK, so maybe joining a City Club committee won�t make you smarter or better looking than the next guy, but the paybacks can certainly rack up faster than the payouts. Sure, you�ll spend a little extra time, but you�ll get better acquainted with fellow members, and you�ll have a chance to help make City Club �the best version of itself that it can be,� as Executive Director Erik Hanberg recently told The News Tribune. So instead of saying �Oof!� say �Wow! Where do I sign?� Committee meetings are open to all; dates and places occasionally change, so contact the chair to verify before attending. September 10, 2009
Telling City Club�s Story to the Masses: Erik Hanberg Chats up The News Tribune
When a City Club audience edges over 100, it�s a pretty good day for our 25-year-old organization. So what does it mean when a potential audience hits the six-figure mark? �Pretty good� changes to �pretty great.� That�s what happened September 8, when The News Tribune ran a lengthy Q&A with City Club Executive Director Erik Hanberg in its business section. The TNT�s weekday circulation is roughly 128,000�a big audience for a prominent City Club feature. In the article, Hanberg described City Club�s purpose and membership, and his role as its first executive director, along with sharing some details about his background. September 10, 2009
Nominate a Seinfeld Leader by October 1 Not all great leaders bear the title of president or CEO. Some serve quietly in small capacities, yet inspire us with their vision and vitality. Some are younger but make up for their lack of experience with energy and inspired team-building. Now you have a way to recognize these promising leaders: nominate them for City Club�s 2009 Dennis Seinfeld Leadership Award.
Download a nomination form from the City Club website, or call the office to request a paper form. You may also pick up a form at the September lunch program. Completed forms are due back at the City Club office (by e-mail, postal mail, or hand delivery) by 5pm on Thursday, October 1.
Finalists will be recognized at the November lunch program. They will also receive a six-month City Club membership, mentoring, and support to become an established leader in our community. The winner will receive an award and a one-year City Club membership.
Check Out �Conversations RE: Tacoma�
City Club has joined with a varied group of community organizations and institutions working together to present an annual lecture series on urban design�related topics. This fall�s three-part series�Conversations RE: Tacoma�will focus on Tacoma�s built environment: past, present, and future. The conversation begins with urban Tacoma�s recent past, including the still-controversial downtown makeover of the 1980s and �90s. The makeover of the south end of downtown Tacoma and the adjoining waterfront during this period continues to generate discussion and controversy. Three of the principals involved will explain the personal, institutional, political, and business circumstances and alignments that led to this remarkable transformation of an urban core. The three-speaker panel, below, will be moderated by David Nicandri, director of the Washington State History Museum. � David Allen, former executive director of the Executive Council for a Greater Tacoma � Bruno Freschi, internationally acclaimed Canadian architect and lead designer for Expo �86 in Vancouver � Michael Sullivan of Artifacts, Inc., former City of Tacoma preservation officer The lecture will take place at 6:30pm on Thursday, September 17, at the history museum, 1911 Pacific Ave., Tacoma. Many thanks to Catherine Oleson for representing City Club on the planning committee. August 26, 2009
President Sue Schaeffer Signs Off on a High Note For me, this year went by in a blink! At my first board meeting last September the tasks before me were many, and getting on the other side of them seemed difficult.
Enter a first-rate, dedicated board, and our work benefitted from many hands. Thanks to our superb group of board members and volunteers, we implemented the following:
� Our first in-depth corporate benefits program
� Our first annual campaign fundraising piece, which raised over $3,000
� Rebranding of City Club with a new logo, website, and e-newsletter
� An organizational restructuring that led to the hire of Executive Director Erik Hanberg
� A superb team to plan our 25th anniversary celebration in October
� Our 19th community study, to research civic engagement and how to attract the next generation to clubs like ours
� Our first partnership with the Broadway Center, co-sponsoring Randy Cohen on November 15
We have had our challenges, particularly in the area of membership, and that�s where you come in. Please continue to support our Club by bringing your friends and neighbors to experience our events.
My thanks to the more than 40 volunteers who have worked very hard this year to help City Club flourish. It has been my honor to serve with such a remarkable group of people who supported and worked toward the above initiatives with enthusiasm and elbow grease. Thank you also to all of our members for your support and input that has helped the board keep our work in perspective.
I have every confidence in our new leadership and I have no doubt that our new president, Ann Gosch, will take the club to new heights next year. She, too, will need your support. She has mine.
All the best to you and yours,
�Sue Schaeffer, Outgoing President August 12, 2009
Meet City Club�s New Membership and Administrative Coordinator: Vania Kent Vania Kent�s first day on the job was August 3 and two days later she was checking people in and meeting members and guests at the annual summer outing at the LeMay Museum. New to Tacoma, Vania (pronounced VAN-ya) recently moved here from New York via Columbus, Ohio. While in Columbus, she was the founder and director of a nonprofit called Local Effort, Global Effect, which connected dedicated volunteers with the organizations where they were needed the most.
When not helping at City Club, Vania is a yoga therapist, specializing in post-traumatic stress disorder. Welcome, Vania, to City Club of Tacoma! August 12, 2009
Calling All Leaders! We all know up-and-coming leaders�those who take an idea, inspire others, and make it reality, regardless of age or background. Many such people are not publicly recognized as leaders, perhaps because they are young people just starting to grow into a leader or older individuals who only recently have emerged to take on a larger role in the community. An emerging leader could be in student government or new to local politics or community organizing. �In short, we�re looking for a �rising star� in the community,� says Julie Anderson, Leadership Committee chair.
Please nominate one of these promising leaders to be the 2009 Dennis Seinfeld Leadership Award winner. We�ll be handing out nomination forms at upcoming programs and will also be posting the information online. Completed forms are due back at the City Club office by October 1.
Finalists will be recognized at the annual Leadership Luncheon on November 18 and will receive additional support to become an established leader in our community. August 12, 2009
City Club's new Executive Director, Erik Hanberg
Meet City Club�s New Executive Director Erik Hanberg
The new face of City Club administration is Erik Hanberg, who began as Executive Director on July 15. A quarter-time position, the E.D. reports to the Board of Directors and will supervise the new half-time Administrative and Membership Coordinator, Vania Kent, who will come on board August 3. (Watch the next Catalyst for an introduction of Vania.)
Erik says he is eager to bring his nonprofit and small-business experience to City Club. Recently he was a partner in Exit133.com, a hyperlocal community news site (which was the subject of a City Club lunch program in July 2008). He helped found Suite133, a co-working space in downtown Tacoma. He currently works as a project manager and web developer for Mary Holste Design.
In 2004 Erik became the Managing Director of Tacoma�s nonprofit art-house movie theater, the Grand Cinema. During his 2 1/2 years there, he dramatically increased special programming and educational opportunities, including film classes, youth outreach, and the popular 72-Hour Film Competition. He also helped increase fundraising by 400 percent during those two years.
Erik gained nonprofit experience in marketing at the Tacoma Regional Convention + Visitor Bureau and in development and communications at Bellarmine Preparatory School.
Born and raised in Tacoma, Erik is passionate about the Tacoma community. He sits on the Distribution Committee for the Greater Tacoma Community Foundation and is on the Steering Committee for the 2009 South Sound Technology Conference.
Erik left Tacoma for college; he holds a bachelor�s degree in English from Carleton College in Northfield, Minn. City Club is pleased that he came back to town! July 29, 2009
Thank you, Lela! After the City Club Board of Directors voted earlier this year to establish a new structure for club operations, Lela Fishe, our Administrator for the last three years, decided to leave the club when the new structure goes into effect. That time has arrived, so Lela will bid us farewell at the end of this week.
I remember her taking over the position like it was yesterday. I was struck by her enthusiasm and creative ideas for bettering the club. Lela has continued working hard for the club to the end, particularly in increasing corporate memberships. For that, we are very grateful.
Please join me in wishing Lela all the best for her next endeavor. -- Sue Schaeffer, President July 29, 2009
City Club is Seeking Catalyst Editor
The Club is seeking a new Catalyst editor, since current editor Ann Gosch will be rising to president on September 1. The newsletter editor serves on the Board of Directors and also is entitled to attend all programs free of charge�quite a perk for a volunteer position. Now that Ann has established this Word template, producing a new issue is as easy as slotting in a new story in place of an old one. If you or someone you know is interested in this opportunity, please contact Ann Gosch for more information.
Help Us With City Club Directory Update
Time once again to update our annual membership directory. As is our custom, we will be asking you to update your information in the same mailing as the ballot for new board members, except this time both will be going out by e-mail, so watch your inbox. (Members without e-mail will be sent forms by snail mail to return to the City Club office.) Besides listing yourself, you can showcase your organization in the City Club directory! Just sign up for one of our new corporate memberships (as low as $250!) and you will be able to advertise in the directory, a publication that is retained for a year or more by about 400 City Club members. Likewise, we are seeking an in-kind sponsor to print the directory in exchange for advertising. Check out all of your options by clicking here.
Thank you for helping us make the directory current and useful for all members and affordable for the club.
How Well Are We Living Our Mission?
This past year we�ve worked on several initiatives to increase our membership, and one of the ways we can do this is by living our mission: to provide a nonpartisan forum that brings people together to explore issues and ideas affecting the South Sound community.
Note that word nonpartisan. Pierce County may be generally more liberal than other areas in our state, so it may be that many of our members and guests are more liberal in their politics. But City Club is not and should not be a �clubhouse� for liberals. Our purpose is to provide a common meeting ground to exchange ideas and stimulate intelligent thinking. To that end, the programs committee strives to present not only a wide range of topics but also a diversity of ideas.
You as a member can do your part to help everyone, regardless of political persuasion, to feel welcome in our midst. When you sit down to dinner and a political discussion comes up, of course you may voice your opinions. But be mindful that if you do so in a way that assumes everyone shares your view, you may alienate those of a different mind-set. We sometimes hear from more conservative or even moderate members that they feel marginalized.
During the Q&A portion of a recent program, for example, an audience member compared Republicans to al-Qaida. This was certainly an extreme example and although we can�t control audience questions, the point remains that such conduct does not promote inclusion.
The board and our committees work hard to make City Club a welcoming place for all. We want to see the club grow in all directions. Please help us by encouraging people with a wide range of backgrounds, occupations, and interests to come and enjoy our programs. Our club will be much richer for it.
As always, thank you for your support of City Club!