EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first in a series of features on young professionals in the Ashland business community.
ASHLAND – Young people in Ashland crave connection and purpose, and the area needs the vision and energy of the next generation in order to move forward.
That’s why a team of eight Ashland-area residents, all under the age of 30, have set out to create a group that will connect, educate, inspire, attract and retain young people in Ashland County.
Ashland Young Professionals officially launches Feb. 22. In the meantime, the team is developing its mission, building a base of young people and starting to turn heads.
Talk to any millennial, AYP president Jake Coffy said, and you’re likely to hear them express a desire to make an impact.
“That is so important to us, but if you’re not educated on how you can actually do that, you can get frustrated. You can get burned out,” Coffy said. “My biggest passion for this group is to help educate younger people, ages 21 to 40, and to say, ‘Here’s what’s going on, here’s how you can actually have an impact here.'”
“We have the enthusiasm. We have the drive. We have the passion, and even the talent and skills that we’re learning. We just need to know how to use them.”
Coffy said he walks away from AYP leadership meetings feeling inspired.
“I’ve never seen a group of such energized, enthusiastic, community-driven people that want to stay and change Ashland for the better,” Coffy said.
In addition to Coffy, the leadership team includes Angela Ringler, Melanie Fitch, Beau Carpenter, Kelly Cooke, Ben Schnell, Zane Stepp and Sarah Rader.
AYP isn’t the first group designed for young professionals to hit Ashland. Another such group started about five years ago but just never seemed to get the traction it needed to be sustainable, Ashland Area Chamber of Commerce President Barbie Lange said.
But Lange said she feels confident this group can develop because the organizers are committed to building something that will be more than a social club.
The hope is to add educational and community service opportunities to help young people not only get and stay connected to their peers but also grow personally and professionally into the leaders Ashland needs.
“Nothing happens without the formation of relationships,” Lange said. “It gives them a purpose to stay in Ashland and serve their community, and it will also help in attracting and retaining young professionals.”
AYP Vice President Angela Ringler has joined Ashland’s Rotary Club, but as a young woman in the group, she is an anomaly.
“A lot of the groups in town have a larger base that’s older, for no reason other than that’s just the way it’s been,” Ringler said. “Younger people might not be aware of the groups they can join. So I think to have a group specifically for the young people, directed towards them and marketed towards them, can get them started being more involved.”
“We need to have more young people serving our community and connecting with our community to feel that connection and keep them in the area and keep growing and improving Ashland.”
In addition to support from the Chamber, AYP received a $4,300 grant from the Ashland County Community Foundation. The grant is intended to serve as seed money as the organization gets up and running, but the goal is for AYP to become self-sustaining. Down the road, Ringler said, the group may collect membership fees.
Jim Cutright, executive director at the foundation, sees AYP as an important piece of the efforts to move Ashland forward.
“From a community aspect, we just feel it’s really important to have a viable young professionals group that those coming into the community can plug into,” Cutright said.
Cutright also sees AYP as an opportunity for the foundation to build relationships with and to mentor the younger generation that will one day inherit the foundation’s funds.
Coffy and the rest of the team are embracing opportunities to learn from the older generations.
“This group is going to turn Ashland on it’s head, and I’m excited for that, but it starts with connecting people, and it really comes to fulfillment when you educate,” Coffy said. “Education is the biggest tool we have to actually do something to change and build this future for ourselves.
“My goodness, it’s going to be awesome for ourselves, but imagine our kids if we can build this and do it right.”
AYP is open to anyone living or working in Ashland County between the ages of 21 and 40. You don’t have to hold a “traditional professional” position to join, the group emphasizes. Find AYP on Facebook or sign up for updates at www.ashlandyoungprofessionals.com.
