Meanwhile, in beuatiful Florida...

Someone here complained about it being chilly last night. I was confused.

More and more people are showing up for the convention as we speak, and we are waiting for the rest of the NY contingent to make there way here to wonderful Crystal River. The morning was spent in competiton, with JCI NY having a competitor in Masters Speak-up, Speak-up, Write-up, and the Portfolio/interview section whose name escapes me right now. Thankfully I can come back and edit this later. My own prepared speech went well, not as good as I had hoped but then again, what does. This afternoon, we have our debate, which should be a good time, and also callbacks for Masters Speak-up consisting of a 3-5 minute impromptu speech.

Overall it's gorgeous down here. After morning comps, a group of us piled into a car to run to the liquor/food stores and search for lunch. Some bottles and sandwiches later, we drove past the hotel in search of a beach, for which the driver, Mike from Johnson City, saw a sign. After a while of driving by what can easily be described as "not-beach", a u-turn was made. The highlight of the drive, however, was the random singing involved in the car. The five of us attempted a rendition of Total Eclipse of the Heart, nailed Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen, and proved we didn't quite know all the Disney songs we thought we did.

Limos, songs in cars, speeches, and good conversation... so far so good with this Year-End National Convention.

And we arrive

The hotel is nice, an interesting little location tucked away amidst golf courses, offers to swim with the manatees, and other Florida occurences. We are checked in, and I am sitting at the business center waiting for ID competitions to start.

So due to my laptop being annoying, there was no post from Washington airport, where I got a bunch of dirty looks for the size of my carry-on, nor from Tampa airport. When I arrived, I met up with Pam and Cathy from Batavia and went about trying to figure out where the shuttle was going to pick us up, the hotel being a drive away from the airport. After some trials and tribulations, and meeting up with JCI NY Treasurer Kim, we discovered a whole group of other Jaycees waiting at one of the shuttle pickups. After waiting, our ride arrived. And what a ride. A full bus, tricked out inside, owned by a Ranch nearby that specializes in horse riding lessons and providing other vacation services so that families can all be entertained. The bus was a tight squeeze at first, with all the Jaycees and our luggage, but that problem was rectified when the rest of NY here right now and I hopped into the stretch limo they provided. It came complete with a gentleman in a cowboy hat behind the wheel. Pictures will be uploaded later if I can punch my laptop into functioning.

Well wish me luck, debate competition is scheduled for this evening. I am going to go get out of this suit coat, I feel like a used car salesman...

On the road again

Please do not feel I am neglecting the overhaul of the blog, but something big came up that needs my attention. And that big event is...

National Year-End Convention in beautiful Florida!

I am sitting in the Syracuse airport, hoping my laptop continues to work, downloading podcasts to listen to on the plane. In Florida, I will be participating in the Debate competition with some lovely ladies from Batavia, and also competing in the Masters Speak-up. JCI NY should have a good showing in these ID competitions!

I hope to be blogging all week, as well as adding pictures. According to the agenda there is a pirate costume contest, and I come prepared.

Apologies in order

As some personal and technical issues have prevented me from updating this blog. Please note that a complete overhaul is at hand, due to the voting in the above poll. I agree, Pirates of the Central Region has a nice ring to it.

I am posting this as an apology, and also as a thank you note. Many of you bought tickets for the first annual Liverpool Jaycees St. Patty's Day in a Basket Raffle, hoping to win the above:




And as for the winner, let some Liverpool Jaycees take it away (as well as our leprechaun mascot, clad in green, who picked the winner):



Congratulations to the Thompsons for their win, and thanks again to you all on behalf of the Liverpool Jaycees!

On conventions and seminars

Coming up next month, JCI New York State is putting on a Government Affairs Leadership Seminar located at the Clarion Hotel in Albany, NY from March 6th-10th, 2009. This is a very unique experience, including:

• Local Officer Training
• Government Affairs Training
  
• Presentation of the Outstanding New Yorker/Humanitarian Award
  
• A tour of the Capital Region
  
• The opportunity to lobby and meet the people that run our state government

Hotel reservations can be made with the Clarion, and let me know if you want a registration form.

Sorry for the delay in posts!

And me not posting for a while, even after being referenced in BVP Patty's blog as someone who posts more often than not.

Multiple things have happened since the last post, let me keep you posted on some news from around Region Central:

• Johnston City held a social in conjunction with the Southern Tier Young Professionals. A few state team members were around, including me, after the Executive Committee meeting took place at YMCA in Binghamton. The social went well, and it is always interesting to meet other young professionals.
• As discussed at the meeting and throughout last week, it was decided that the Liverpool Jaycees will be hosting the OYNY/NY Jaycee Senate 45th Anniversary Convention in May. More details will be posted shortly
• Patty just sent out the packets on the Outstanding Young New Yorker program. As a former competitor and judge, this competition holds a special place for me. I encourage every chapter to try and find a worthy high school senior to sponsor!
• Region Central was at growth last month! As we move through the year, we are going to keep momentum strong, and also be on the lookout for extensions! Remember, the goal is for Region Central to improve every year and every month.

Some excitement within the region, as we look forward to the Spring. Also, I extended the voting on the theme of the year by a few days.

Congratulations Kathy Lanfear!

2009 JCI Saratoga Springs Chapter President Kathy Lanfear is currently giving her inauguration speech, after Outgoing President Ed Cady had an amusing oath administered to him for his new office as Chairman of the Board. Kathy's speech is encouraging international networking, and also instilling the spirit of a positive change. She encourages everyone to look for what's next, always searching for the next step forward.

State Business Vice President Patty (Business Area of Opportunity) and I are both impressed with the ceremony and seriousness that the chapter brings to their year-end and installation. They still keep the sense of fun though, I am quite jealous. It is a pleasure to be here, thats definite.

After a long drive

I am here sitting in the Big Apple restaurant in Saratoga Springs, celebrating with JCI Saratoga Springs. It is their Year-End/Installation banquet, with members and state officers around enjoying the fine restaurant and unknowingly being entertained by karaoke in the next room. it is always nice to see a chapter gather together and recognize the good that they have done and look ahead to all the good they can do. This past year, they collaborated with a number of other organizations to build a playground in Ballston Spa. After a wonderful slide show demonstrating images from the 6 day build, they recognized a local high school teacher who spear headed a neighborhood group which was behind the playground idea. To me, it is essential for a chapter to not only pay attention to the good works done by members, but also to commemorate the work of those in the community.

Dessert is coming out, and Outgoing Chapter President Ed is talking, so perhaps more later.

Some updates

First of all, from the President of JCI Saratoga Springs, who will be hosting their Year-End/Installation banquet this weekend:

Just a reminder that the JCI Saratoga Springs Superbowl Social will be held on Sunday, February 1, 2009 begins at 2pm for Pre-Game Football. The event will be held at 124 Louden Road, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. BYOB. Please bring a dish to share. Please RSVP to (518) 527-1774 or via e-mail jcrecre8@aol.com.

The JCI Saratoga Springs Daytona 500 Social will be held on Sunday, February 15, 2009 begins at 12pm for NASCAR kickoff. The event will be held at 124 Louden Road, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. BYOB. Please bring a dish to share. Please RSVP to (518) 527-1774 or via e-mail at jcrecre8@aol.com.

Two great socials celebrating two of the largest sporting events of the year. If you are around the area or are interesting in attending, let them know!

For anyone out there reading this, if you'd like to have me add any events, pictures, videos, etc... let me know.

Also, the Liverpool Jaycees have their first fundraiser of the year! Would you like to win a Saint Patty's Day party to go? Liverpool is selling raffle tickets for a chance to win a basket of Irish whiskey, Irish creme, Guiness, potatos, corned beef, and cabbage. Tickets are 1 for 2 dollars, 3 for 5 dollars. Interested? Email Krista.Vazquez@aol.com, or leave a comment here with an email address.

Back home...

Yesterday marked the end of the convention. A couple of notes from Saturday evening and Sunday:
- Will be attending the National Convention in Florida. Looking forward to representing the state in the Masters Speak-up competition, and also to see National Vice President Chrystal again, as she will be there in her home state.
- The banquet was fantastic. Good show Embassy Suites, and good turn out Jaycees. Let's build on it for next year.
- After party was fun. Thanks to everyone for making the hospitality suite look so good after we were done with it.
- Sunday morning's meeting was fairly smooth, and was a good way to start our year as the Executive Committee.

Looking forward, this Saturday is JCI Saratoga Springs' Year-End/Installation banquet. Will be heading across the state to meet all I can and take in their celebration.

I'll be looking into making a calendar for this outpost, if anyone has any suggestions let me know.

And I am in a tuxedo

Sitting in the hospitality area at the bar in the Embassy Suites, we are looking classy. We have representatives from Liverpool, JCI Saratoga Springs, and Johnson City at the banquet, with a great turnout from around the state. I feel like the food will be delicious, the company fantastic, and the night memorable.

ID competitions

The Individual Development competitions are just winding up, and I had the opportunity to participate as a competitor and soon as a judge. I crafted a 5-7 minute speech based on a quote provided before the time in the Masters Speak-Up competition, and will be judging for the Write-up Competition. Earlier today, Speak-up competitions were held. These are open to all Jaycee members, except for past/current chapter presidents. Those people are eligible for the Masters Speak-up. Earlier in the day, two teams faced off in the debate competition, with pro and con sides chosen and the groups required to debate a topic that is only revealed to them a bit before it begins. There are other competitions as well, which will be covered more in detail later on. More info can be found on the US Junior Chamber website.

Competitions are a challenge for Jaycees to practice their public speaking, writing, debating, interviewing and portfolio skills. New York State is happy to provide transportation, hotel, and registration for ID winners to be sent on to National conventions to represent the state. So a free trip to Florida in March is a good impetus to give a speech in January.

As always, conventions are full of packed moments of intensity and occasional brief times to sit down and grab a drink. Of course, you can also take time away from some of the offerings and connect with the different people who are in attendance.

Coming up tonight is the banquet, so be prepared for a few pics of people in fancy gear.

JCI Achieve

An example from our JCI Achieve training of what an ideal Jaycee member would be. From the door on his head representing an open mind, to large hands ready to help with any project, ears and eyes open and listening/watching, a strong stomach to handle anything, big feet to both travel with our organization being a global one and also to leave behind a legacy, a large heart, and of course pants. The artist would like to remain anonymous.

Lunch time!

Had a busy morning with JCI Achieve. A picture of our ideal Jaycees will be posted shortly. The Achieve training gives an outstanding opportunity to bring back branding and recruiting information to a local chapter straight from Junior Chamber International.

Right now am waiting on lunch. We are lucky to have two National Vice Presidents in attendance, including one from New York State and Region Central, Pat Wallen, as well as Chrystal Ramsay with a home state of Florida.

This afternoon I will be completing the JCI Achieve programming and either competing or judging competitions. Or napping. We'll see.

An early morning

Awake for the free hotel breakfast (Yay Embassy Suites omelets) and some coffee, and awaiting JCI Achieve training. Should be an interesting session straight from the international organization.

Which I thought would be a good lead in to discuss the set up of the organization. The Junior Chamber, or Jaycees (we go by many names), has a long history of a strong local, state, national and international presence. The umbrella blanket organization is Junior Chamber International, or JCI, which is represented by the link www.jci.cc. Under that are the many national organizations, one of which is the United States Jaycees, www.usjc.org. Here in the US, many states have their own set-ups, including our own great New York Junior Chamber (link forthcoming, the site is being redesigned). And then we come to our local chapters, such as Liverpool, JCI Saratoga Springs, Watertown, Johnson City, and Logan. In between the local chapters and the state organization are the Region Directors, like me.

So there's a bit about the general set up of the organization. It looks like training will be starting soon.

A late night, or an early morning

Just got done with the Executive Committee meeting. Although it ended at a late hour, a lot was discussed and team 2009 seems like we are headed in a great direction. Will be updating throughout the day tomorrow as trainings, competitions, and fun goes on. Now, for a few hours of sleep...

More from Opening Ceremonies...

Some more awards, all for third session(chapters to added later):
Outstanding Region: South
Outstanding Region Director: Gary Abasalo, Region South Director
(we'll see about next time)
Outstanding Staff Officer: Immediate Past President Andrea Ciravalo
Outstanding Elected Officer: Treasurer Kim Lambert
Outstanding Local President: Victor DeLeon, Philippine NY
And finally
The Outstanding Chapter of the Third Session: the Batavia Area Jaycees!

Congratulations to the Third Session Award Winners! Next time, Central Region will be represented!

And somehow, a table cloth was removed! Scotch was spilled. It was a tragedy.

Off to celebrate, and to an executive committee meeting. Updates coming later

Live from East Syracuse

Currently, Opening Ceremonies are going on here at the Embassy Suites. With a good crowd in attendance, 3rd Session awards are being announced. The Batavia Area Jaycees have taken a few, the Philippine New York Jaycees collecting their own, including Outstanding Local Chapter Event. The awards are given out on Friday to encourage attendance and help people get here earlier to enjoy everything the convention has to offer.

Piggybacking on another post

This upcoming weekend, beginning tomorrow, is the Year-End Convention for the NY Jaycees, being held in East Syracuse, NY. There will be an assortment of trainings, competitions with a chance to win a trip to Florida to represent the state organization, as well as wonderful opportunities to meet people from throughout the state and the country. Not to mention partying. I mean, it's not like the Jaycees like to party. Perish the thought.

Need info, let me know! Hope to see as many as I can at the convention!

Year-End Convention
January 23-25
Embassy Suites
East Syracuse, NY

Coming Soon:

To a Blog near you-

-posts on the Jaycees as an organization
-links and pictures regarding the history of New York Region Central
-New designs, more posts, and more!

The first real post...

With an update from the Liverpool Jaycees. The chapter will be hosting an informal informational meeting this upcoming Saturday at the Retreat in Liverpool, NY starting at 2 pm. People from all around the area have been invited, and anyone interested in attending can feel free to stop by. Let me know by email or phone if you have any questions, or want to inform me that you are coming.

Region Central enters the blogosphere