CONTACT INFORMATION
Benjamin L. Newbern
Marketing & Communications Coordinator
Shoals Chamber of Commerce
Phone: (256) 764-4661
Fax: (256) 766-9017
prmarketing@shoalschamber.com

CHAMBER ANNOUNCES SHOALS YOUNG PROFESSIONALS ASSOCIATION KICKOFF

Florence, Ala. – June 1, 2006
The Shoals Chamber of Commerce announced today the kickoff of the Shoals Young Professionals Association, an upstart organization that’s seeking to put brilliant new minds on the Shoals business community map. SYPA will seek to organize and connect future leaders together, promoting a sense of activism and community.

It’s a simple concept, and one that has gotten many in the Shoals excited about the future. The Shoals Chamber of Commerce has rapidly moved toward the launch of its new civic group, and is already scheduling future events for Summer 2006. SYPA's inaugural kickoff event takes place on Thursday, June 8 at 5:30PM at Brinley Bros. Downtown Bistro, 230 East Tennessee Street, Florence, will later be followed by an afterhours event at Shaolin Computers, 122 South Court Street, Florence, on July 7 at 5:00PM, in conjunction with the Downtown Florence Unlimited's First Fridays program.

"All too often, Generation X-ers in the Shoals complain of a lack of social activities available to them. That sense is equally applicable to young members in the business community," said Beth Haddock, the Chamber's Membership Coordinator, and SYPA Chairwoman.

According to its mission statement, SYPA seeks to empower and engage "young professionals in the Shoals area through community service, career development and networking opportunities, thereby increasing their potential to make the Shoals area a better place to live, work and play." Its target age will be for individuals age 21-40, although there is no specific age requirement for membership.

"We wanted to bring fresh young minds together for networking and social events, to create a better framework among our membership in identifying future leaders, and to generate some differing perspective," said Ben Newbern, the Chamber’s Marketing & Communications Coordinator, and SYPA Vice Chairman for Public Relations.

"At the same time, there’s a definite need to offer career development to our members – learning the skills we need to engage ourselves in the community and in leadership roles. We also want to encourage a sense of community service. It’s obviously important to the business community to give back, and that sense is not lost on SYPA," said Newbern.

SYPA already boasts an 6-member board of directors, and a committee structure that allows members to take part in everything from charitable giving to website development to marketing planning.

In its early planning meetings, held Friday afternoons at Brinley Bros., "only a handful of individuals would meet to — if anything – kick around ideas," Haddock explains. "Currently, dozens have expressed interest, and new individuals continue to inquire, and attend planning sessions."

SYPA is also a definitive way to prevent "brain drain," the migration of educated young professionals to larger cities, and typically away from their hometowns or cities where they attended college. By its formation, the group would work with the Chamber in advancing programming to ensure that talent stays in the Shoals, and doesn’t move to larger nearby cities like Nashville and Birmingham.

"The Shoals is a smaller community compared to most, but there is a wealth of young talent here. The time was right to move forward in creating a network of young professionals, to create a better sense of community and leadership. This really is the future of the Shoals," said Haddock.

For more information, visit http://www.shoalschamber.com/sypa/.

The Shoals Chamber of Commerce is a non-profit agency dedicated to promoting economic growth and enhance the quality of life for all Shoals citizens.