MONROE - A group of residents have tasked themselves with the goals of engaging people in creating a community where they want to live, work, shop and raise families. Additionally, they want to attract talented workers to Green County in order to meet workforce needs and grow the local economy and retain talented people within Green County communities so they can contribute to the growth of the area. They refer to themselves as Future Forward! Green County and their mission is to take action to attract, retain and engage the future of Green County.
The Future Forward! group will hold a 2009 kick-off meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 8, at Minhas Craft Brewery to set the goals for the new year. Nikki Matley and Kent Anderson, co-leaders of the initiative, invite anyone from the Green County area that is interested to join them that evening. The four groups that are working on specific projects will report on their accomplishments and their goals for 2009.
"This is a grass-roots effort, a group of citizens that sees the importance of working toward making Green County even more attractive to today's workforce," said Anna Schramke, Green County Development Corporation Director. "And I applaud their efforts. In the last year, they have accomplished much as a strictly volunteer organization."
The original Future Forward! Green County kick-off event was the visit of Rebecca Ryan, Next Generation Consulting, who spoke in October 2007 about what it takes to attract today's young workforce. "It is this age group that we are losing," Schramke said. "We want them to go off to college or tech school and explore the world. But we want them to come home also and to see it as a destination worth returning to." As Green County's population continues to age, employers in the area are going to need to recruit younger workers to maintain their competitive edge. The Future Forward! group sees their role as - opening the door and issuing the invitation to "come to Green County."
In 2008, the Future Forward! groups broke into four sub-groups, each tasked with a special focus. The Leadership Group found themselves faced with the challenge of replacing their original leader Sarah Burgert after her move to Arizona. The group continued to meet and called Nikki Matley and Kent Anderson to the helm. They also oversaw the other three sub-groups, revised a "Welcome to Green County" brochure and worked with the Autumn Swing Dance Weekend as a means of recruiting young professionals.
The second group - the Boomerang Group - is tasked with taking the message of Future Forward! and Green County to former residents. They focused on creating a brochure and in getting information out to high school reunion groups and at large events, such as Cheese Days.
The third group is the Web Portal Group. Because many people today use the Internet to make their first inquiry of an area, this group embraced the task of creating a web presence for Future Forward! and to make sure that there was a web entry point for Green County. Teaming with the Green County Spotlight and creating the Future Forward! Web page took much of their time this year. They are also working on on-line surveys and creating a working list of assets that would draw people to Green County.
The fourth group is the Community Liaison group and is tasked with sharing the message to other groups in the county and to help get the message out to current residents about the great things that are happening in the county.
"We are never going to become Madison or Milwaukee, but to keep and improve the economy we enjoy here in the county, we need to make sure that we have the workers to keep our economy strong," Schramke said. "Efforts like Future Forward! Green County are a strategic part of accomplishing this."
Anyone interested in joining Future Forward! Green County can reserve a space by contacting Green County Development at 328-9452 or e-mail: gcdc@tds.net or contactus@futureforwardgc.com.
For more information about Green County, check out the Web site: www.greencountyspotlight.com. For more information on the Future Forward! initiative, check out www.futureforwardgc.com or contact Green County Development Corporation at 328-9452 or by e-mail at gcdc@tds.net. For an electronic copy of the WOW! Welcome Home! brochure, contact gcdc@tds.net.
The Future Forward! group will hold a 2009 kick-off meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 8, at Minhas Craft Brewery to set the goals for the new year. Nikki Matley and Kent Anderson, co-leaders of the initiative, invite anyone from the Green County area that is interested to join them that evening. The four groups that are working on specific projects will report on their accomplishments and their goals for 2009.
"This is a grass-roots effort, a group of citizens that sees the importance of working toward making Green County even more attractive to today's workforce," said Anna Schramke, Green County Development Corporation Director. "And I applaud their efforts. In the last year, they have accomplished much as a strictly volunteer organization."
The original Future Forward! Green County kick-off event was the visit of Rebecca Ryan, Next Generation Consulting, who spoke in October 2007 about what it takes to attract today's young workforce. "It is this age group that we are losing," Schramke said. "We want them to go off to college or tech school and explore the world. But we want them to come home also and to see it as a destination worth returning to." As Green County's population continues to age, employers in the area are going to need to recruit younger workers to maintain their competitive edge. The Future Forward! group sees their role as - opening the door and issuing the invitation to "come to Green County."
In 2008, the Future Forward! groups broke into four sub-groups, each tasked with a special focus. The Leadership Group found themselves faced with the challenge of replacing their original leader Sarah Burgert after her move to Arizona. The group continued to meet and called Nikki Matley and Kent Anderson to the helm. They also oversaw the other three sub-groups, revised a "Welcome to Green County" brochure and worked with the Autumn Swing Dance Weekend as a means of recruiting young professionals.
The second group - the Boomerang Group - is tasked with taking the message of Future Forward! and Green County to former residents. They focused on creating a brochure and in getting information out to high school reunion groups and at large events, such as Cheese Days.
The third group is the Web Portal Group. Because many people today use the Internet to make their first inquiry of an area, this group embraced the task of creating a web presence for Future Forward! and to make sure that there was a web entry point for Green County. Teaming with the Green County Spotlight and creating the Future Forward! Web page took much of their time this year. They are also working on on-line surveys and creating a working list of assets that would draw people to Green County.
The fourth group is the Community Liaison group and is tasked with sharing the message to other groups in the county and to help get the message out to current residents about the great things that are happening in the county.
"We are never going to become Madison or Milwaukee, but to keep and improve the economy we enjoy here in the county, we need to make sure that we have the workers to keep our economy strong," Schramke said. "Efforts like Future Forward! Green County are a strategic part of accomplishing this."
Anyone interested in joining Future Forward! Green County can reserve a space by contacting Green County Development at 328-9452 or e-mail: gcdc@tds.net or contactus@futureforwardgc.com.
For more information about Green County, check out the Web site: www.greencountyspotlight.com. For more information on the Future Forward! initiative, check out www.futureforwardgc.com or contact Green County Development Corporation at 328-9452 or by e-mail at gcdc@tds.net. For an electronic copy of the WOW! Welcome Home! brochure, contact gcdc@tds.net.
