Brew City HDI

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The HDI Local Chapter Officers summit was held June 6-8 in Colorado Springs this year.  Six of the Seven Brew City Officers attended.  The benefit the officers receive from this type of gathering is amazing!   We asked each of the officers to think about their time at summit and tell us what they learned to help the chapter grow and what summit does for them personally.  Here is what we received:
What Summit taught me to help grow our chapter

President - Phil Gerbyshak
• The chapter is only as strong as the officers that run the chapter, so it’s important that officers learn how to run meetings and run the chapters as a business.
• To keep our chapter strong, we need every member to step up and help out.

VP of Programs – Jill Albrecht
• Meetings need to be FUN!  People need to be engaged in the meetings to get the most out of them.
• Connections, this helped me personally and for the chapter, just reaching out to more people and learning more about them and their strengths will help us to bring in more new ideas to our chapter.  All chapters do things differently, connecting with more individuals has helped to trigger ideas for our upcoming meetings and events.  We are not alone and we have many resources to tap into.

Webmaster – Sonia Zilvitis
• Reach out to our members using any media they are comfortable using. *side note: meeting reminders via calendar appointments or text message?
• Every officer is responsible for making the meeting run smoothly.
• Every officer should help recruit new members.

Newsletter Editor/Librarian – Theresa Weinkauf
• The library doesn’t have to be a collection you haul around with you all the time, it can simply be a list of recommended reading.
• Work together.  Every office is important and we must work together to get the job done.  We at Brew City do that fantastically!!  We are truly a team…. NO, a family!

How HDI is helping me to grow

President - Phil Gerbyshak
• It’s even more apparent to me that we have a lot of great resources around the country for me to learn how to run my Help Desk (and our chapter) even better.
• Going to LCO Summit this year reinforced something I’ve known for a while: Being an officer in HDI is the best thing I have ever done for myself. The people I have met and the things I have learned have changed my world in so many ways. I’ve made some great friends that will be with me the rest of my life, I’ve learned to be a better leader, and I have access to experts from around the world that can help me have a better Help Desk and a better life.

VP of Programs – Jill Albrecht
• I tried to meet more people and create more contacts - participated in the Big Brother/Big Sister program and connected with a first time attendee.  I still communicate with a few of the individuals today.
• I accepted the challenge of leading one of the break-out groups, this was something that will help me to speak in front of others and also helped me to create more connections.

Webmaster – Sonia Zilvitis
• Be likeable. Make people want to come to the meetings, because you’re there.
• Don’t be afraid to open your mouth and contribute, even if it isn’t your area of expertise.
• Don’t squeeze just one more person into an overcrowded elevator, it may not be a quick ride.

Newsletter Editor/Librarian – Theresa Weinkauf
• I love being a part of this organization.  Summit was the perfect example of it.  I met people for the first time and felt they had been my friends for years.  This organization molds you into a Hugger! 
• HDI has taught me to be more outspoken and to get out there and network!  Nothing more important in what we do than networking because you never know who is going to give you, your next big break!