Blog

Members from around the country descended on the Second City on January 28 as 62 members from 12 JCI local chambers met for the annual Inspiration Day in Birmingham.

The inspirational theme was particularly fitting as the host city prepares to re-launch its own chamber next month and we were all on hand happy to offer our support and encouragement.

The theme for this day was "Making a difference" in line with the JCI UK 2012 theme of the same name.  We were also joined by Jukka Vainionpaa- JCI Vice President 2012 to the UK from Finland, Lesley Young- 2012 JCI UN Commissioner , Julia Blakey- British Senate Chair 2012 and members of this year's JCI UK National Board.

Keynote speaker for the morning session was Noam Kostucki, an award winning speaker and co-founder of three social enterprises. Noam is no stranger to making a difference and helping others do the same. Noam talked to the group about a number of issues around taking steps to realise your goals, planning and taking the next step each time you achieve something, constantly challenging yourself and not just settling for achieving. Noam also explored the issue of why do we always write down our vision when pictures say so much more. The room was challenged to draw out the visions we all had for 2012 and show them to each other to see if we could understand them. It was surprising how many people could clearly interpret each other's vision pictures despite some abysmal drawing, mine included! Myself and Debbie each drew out JCI Barnsley's vision for 2012 and I've included it below so everyone can see where we are trying to drive JCI Barnsley this year, while also acting as a reminder throughout the year of just what aim we set ourselves in January 2012.

The afternoon session was about spreading the word about JCI Birmingham and we were tasked to take to the streets of the Second City and do exactly that. When set it did seem an easy task but as the afternoon unfolded it was easy to see that just stopping random people in the street was not as easy as we first thought. By the end of the afternoon coffee shops and pubs had been leafleted, numerous photos of JCI had been tweeted, a list of email addresses had been gathered from potential interested parties and a JCI Birmingham LinkedIn group had been created! Not bad for two hours' work. One group even spelt out JCI in human beings and used leaflets on the floor in JCI lettering to attract passers by - never let it be said JCI members are not creative!

The whole day was a fantastic chance to catch up with friends from other chambers, meet new faces, and swap ideas and success stories. It was great to hear other chambers saying how inspired they were by our start to 2012 and for me that was the highlight of the day, seeing JCI Barnsley as an inspiration to other UK chambers.

Over the next 12 months I will be revisiting my picture vision, reminding myself of the goals I have set myself as well as JCI Barnsley and when I am feeling deflated I will certainly think back to the inspirational words of Noam and my fellow JCI members.

2012 is going to be a fantastic year!!

Kirstie Barnett- 2012 JCI Barnsley President

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On Friday 13th 100 of the finest JCI Barnsley members past, present, senators, JCI regional and national members and members of the business community gathered together to see just if superstition existed. Thankfully the bad luck omen was foiled as the night was a fantastic success.

The night was centred on celebrating JCI Barnsley's success over the past 60 years, highlighting how members have achieved their goals and developed their skills thanks to JCI. The University of Huddersfield, Barnsley Campus had created a storyboard of all the photos gathered from the last 60 years to commemorate the anniversary, including newspaper cuttings from the 1960s right through to the present day. This was accompanied by a diamond theme running through created by local University student Michael Steer.

Senators Laura and Nigel Mackfall spoke as a double act, well, Laura was fully prepared with a well thought out speech, Nigel became an off the cuff speaker which I'm sure he learnt the art of through JCI and Extempore! Steve Bailey spoke of his time with fond memories of not only how JCI helped him develop, but how he gained life long friends. A wonderfully delivered impromptu toast to JCI Barnsley was made by Jonathan Stone, past JCI Wakefield member and it was clear that everyone in the room echoed his kind words of support and appreciation of JCI Barnsley.

2012 JCI UK National President Solveig Malvik spoke of her plans to build on the excellent foundations that IPP Allison Cowell had laid in 2011 and build the membership base across the UK. 2011 JCI Barnsley President Vicky Savage spoke of her year, the achievements that had been made and awarded members trophies as part of the formal awards ceremony. 2012 incoming President Kirstie Barnett talked of the challenge the chamber faces in 2012, the need to rebuild the membership base and made a plea to anyone who knows someone in need of all the benefits that JCI can offer, to send them to see us, and we'll help them achieve their goals. Kirstie also talked of the need to support members' developmental needs with a robust and cost effective training programme as well as the fun and social elements that JCI Barnsley is known for. The challenge for 2012 is to have 60 members by the end of the year, some would say, a ridiculous target but never one to shy away from a challenge Kirstie and her council are certainly going to give this their best shot.

The annual Heads & Tails game raised £400 for the 2012 chosen charity, Help for Heroes.

Once all the speeches and the awards were finished it was time for the partying to commence and the band, Rock and Soul Machine who had played at the 2011 National Convention played for several hours and entertained the crowds. The partying continued long into the night and one thing is for sure, JCI Barnsley is well and truly alive and kicking in 2012 and stand back anyone who dares to stand in their way!

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Each year JCI Barnsley recognises those members that have gone above and beyond during the year.  These members are recognised in January of the following year at the JCI Barnsley Annual Dinner.  Congratulations to all the 2011 winners and we hope 2012 will be as successful!

The 1st award of the evening was for contributions to Social Activities and this Barnsley member had organised many social events this year from Comedy nights to the Wharfdale quiz. The winner of the Sarah Ford Trophy went to Richard Grange.

The 2nd Award of the evening was for contribution to community activities and the winner of this award as not only contributed to JCI Barnsley 2011 chosen charity BIADS but also on a National Level she took on the role as National Community Director and achieved many success one being the national penny wars . The Bernard Walk den Trophy went to Gemma Fletcher.

The 3rd Award of the evening was the Catherine Berry Above and beyond award, the winner of that award had not only dedicated her time to JCI Barnsley but has also had a National Board role as Administration Director. She has been responsible for many roles but the award is for the above and beyond support during Regional and National Award evenings. The Catherine Berry Award went to Debbie Tills.

The 4th Award of the evening was the JCI Aberdeen Friendship Quaich for contributions to International Activities, The award went to a JCI Barnsley member who is not only happy to travel up and down the UK to attend events but also jumps on a plane to attend international events. The JCI Aberdeen Friendship Quaich award went to Gemma Fletcher.

The 5th Award of the evening was to recognise one of our long standing Patrons as we all know good patrons are vital to the success of any chamber. This Patron is patient and flexible and always supportive the winner was Ardsley House Hotel as the 2011 Patron of the year.

The final award was the Keith Lax Trophy, This JCI Barnsley member has been a driving force in creating a long term action plan for JCI Barnsley. But at one eventful local leaders weekend she was inspired to become the 2012 JCI Barnsley President. The Keith Lax Trophy went to Kirstie Barnett.

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Read all about President, Kirstie Barnett's plans for 2012!

Socials

Regular social events will be introduced on the first Thursday of every month. Ideas so far include clay pigeon shooting, Old No 7 beer festival, fencing & self defence lessons, annual summer pub train crawl and an Easter themed event! Any other ideas please let us know and we'll see what we can do!

Personal Development

Introduce a regular training session, third Thursday of every month starting in April covering a variety of topics including setting objectives and having a positive mindset, top 10 tips on confidence, how to network, public speaking and many more

Business Tours

We have already arranged a business tour of Acorn Brewery in Wombwell for Thursday 23rd February. We are just confirming the arrangements but the plan will be to have a tour and talk about the brewery at 7pm and then move into the Old No7 pub which the brewery owns in the town centre for a bit of sampling! Anyone interested in reserving a place should email jcibarnsley@hotmail.co.uk as soon as possible as places will be limited.

If anyone has any other local businesses they think would make an interesting business tour, please let us know and we'll see if we can make it happen.

PR & Marketing

We want to raise the profile of JCI Barnsley throughout the town, using various methods and means. We are developing strong links with the University of Huddersfield Barnsley Campus to work with their students to help prepare and support them when they eventually leave university and step into the world of working.

Membership

We have set a target of having 60 members by the end of 2012 so the PR and marketing is going to be key to developing this.

Fundraising and Community Work

Our chosen charity for 2012 is Help for Heroes. On the 9th November 2011 Private Matthew Thornton sadly lost his life in a conflict in Helmand. He was out on patrol at a checkpoint when he and his fellow compatriots were attacked and Private Thornton was caught in a road side IED explosion and unfortunately lost his life.

Private Thornton was a member of the 4th Battalion Yorkshire Regiment and just 28 years old when his life was cut short. On the day of his funeral in late November the streets of Darton in Barnsley were lined with hundreds of locals paying their respects.
Private Thornton's family have set out to raise £100,000 for Help for Heroes, the charity which provides practical support for our injured servicemen and women.

I know with the support of our members and the local community we can pull together to be able to look back this time next year and feel proud that we did our little bit to support the Thornton family and Help for Heroes.

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Each year JCI Barnsley chooses one charity to support through donations and the giving of their time,  This year President, Kirstie Barnett, has choosen Help For Heroes as JCI Barnsley's charity in their Diamond Anniversary Year.

On the 9th November 2011 Private Matthew Thornton sadly lost his life in a conflict in Helmand. He was out on patrol at a checkpoint when he and his fellow compatriots were attacked and Private Thornton was caught in a road side IED explosion and unfortunately lost his life.

Private Thornton was a member of the 4th Battalion Yorkshire Regiment and just 28 years old when his life was cut short. On the day of his funeral in late November the streets of Darton in Barnsley were lined with hundreds of locals paying their respects.
Private Thornton's family have set out to raise £100,000 for Help for Heroes, the charity which provides practical support for our injured servicemen and women.

President Kirstie Barnett says about the charity "I know the local community can pull together to be able to look back this time next year and feel proud that we did our bit to support the Thorton family and Help for Heroes."

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Meet JCI Barnsley's Immediate Past President, Vicky Savage:

What made you join JCI?

The Vice Principle of Barnsley College encouraged me to contact the then President Debbie Tills to arrange a meeting and find out all about JCI and the rest is history. 

Personal development is a key area of JCI, what sort of development opportunities have you been involved with during your time as a member?

During my time I've had the privilege to attend a variety of training sessions across the UK. The thing about JCI is if you suggest or voice a particular interest to your Chamber you can arrange and organise that training.

What is your favourite area of JCI opportunity?

The best thing about JCI is meeting people who you would never normally meet in your day to day life as your paths would never cross. 

What is your favourite JCI memory?

I have far too many but a memorable trip to Edinburgh, for the JCI Edinburgh Burns Supper, with falling down tights springs to mind.

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