Northeast Leadership Forum Newsletter
                                                                                                             February 2017

NLF Elevator Speech
  Whenever someone asks you what NLF does, here is what I like to say. This brief text opens the door for the other person to say, "Tell me more!"

We help build and train leaders and provide valuable connections to help them succeed. We also strive to publicly recognize truly outstanding leaders among us.
Greetings from your NLF Chair -- Bob Golden
  Welcome to our February NLF Newsletter. I hope that you are finding it to be informative and worth your time to read. Please let John Fletcher or me know if you have a topic you would like covered or if you have any ideas on how we might improve its quality and content.
  As I mentioned in last month's Newsletter, I want to emphasize leadership to our membership in 2017. Having previously read Robert M. Gates' book - Duty: Memoirs of a Secretary at War, I was looking forward to reading his most recent book - A Passion for Leadership . It did not disappoint me! 
  This latest book covers Mr. Gates' time as head of the CIA, Texas A&M University, and the Defense Department. These three organizations are significantly larger and more complex than those with which most of us are involved, but Mr. Gates acknowledges those differences and still relates extremely well with his message. 
  Although I would not necessarily classify the book as a leadership primer/textbook, I did find it to be an easy read and he does provide some valuable lessons learned and insightful recommendations for the reader to consider. 
  In his chapter entitled, "It's Always About People," the following two sentences jumped out at me: "A leader who treats his team members with respect and dignity can win the loyalty of subordinates literally for life." And, "The real leader will give credit to those who did the hard work that made success possible." 
  These are just examples of what Mr. Gates offers to the reader. For any of you who are students of leadership, I highly recommend you read this book.    
  Our Chair-Elect Jim Griffin is hard at work, lining up interesting programs for our 2017 calendar.  If any of you has a suggestion for a speaker/program to consider, please contact Jim. 
  Thank you for your support of the Northeast Leadership Forum.
  You can reach me at bgolden@haslet.org or my cell is 817-690-1044.
Bob


NLF Annual Meeting Earns Publicity, Honors Roy Stewart 
   We received some well-deserved recognition that reflects our role in the business community and the accolades we shared with our Distinguished Leadership Award recipient, Roy Stewart, at our Annual Meeting and Awards Luncheon.
  In the photo, 2016 recipient Randy Moresi presents the award to Roy.
  KXAS/NBC5's political/governmental reporter Julie Fine interviewed our guest speaker James Olson with this segment that ran on the 5:00 p.m. newscast that same evening.
  Olson met his future wife during CIA training and they were both undercover as a married couple, and had children, while serving in multiple countries. He spoke in depth about the risks that undercover operatives expose themselves to while serving in covert operations to protect and advance the interests of the United States.
  One of his most surprising statements was how families react once they learn they have been lied to for years about the operatives' identity. According to Olson, "My in-laws were refreshed to learn the actual reason why I really could keep a job. They had been frustrated that we constantly moved and that I changed professions from a baker to a journalist and then to a banker. Our children were proud to know the family was serving our country with such honor and purpose."
  He added that candidates for the CIA undergo rigorous interviews and that a great number never receive an interview due to their poor choices earlier in life -- even in their teens -- as shown on social media. Agents must have the highest possible level of discipline and cannot have placed themselves in potentially compromising positions.
  The Star-Telegram's Faye Reeder mentioned Roy's award in the February 6 edition of the Work Faces section, while the Grapevine Courier-Journal's Marty Sabota wrote this profile on Roy.
 

NLF Annual Meeting Honors Law Enforcement  
  At the recommendation of our retiring President Vicki Truitt, we honored law enforcement at our annual meeting.
  Representatives from every city, as well as from Tarrant County and Tarrant County College, were recognized by department.
  We thank these heroic men and women who place their lives on the line every single day to protect and defend our freedom.



Welcome to Our New Members
   Please welcome the members approved at our September and November 2016 board meetings:
* Taylor Anderson, Birdville ISD Trustee
* Jack Bradshaw, Northeast Tarrant Chamber President
* Ana Erwin, Community Impact News
* Julie Evans, Alliance for Children Executive Director    
* Deborah Mann, Paradise Chamber President
* Ryder Warren, Northwest ISD Superintendent of Schools
* Winnie Wayne, Keller Williams Real
* Susan Young, Senator Kelly Hancock District Director
* Jerry Zumwalt, Tarrant County College Northeast Campus
  If you would like to propose a new member, please contact John Fletcher, Membership Chairman, at 817-205-2334 or john@thefletch.org


April Breakfast Speaker: Economic Development Pro
Prepare to learn insights on how our economic development directors land all sizes of new business when we hear from Mike Rosa, Senior Vice President of Economic Development from the Dallas Regional Chamber of Commerce.
  Before joining the chamber in 2004, Mike was a Senior Vice President with the Buxton Company, a Fort Worth-based consulting firm that selects locations for prominent national and regional retailers and helps cities with retail-oriented economic development programs.
  Prior to Buxton, he was Senior Vice President of Economic Development for the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce.
  Mike leads the DFW Marketing Team, an alliance of economic development organizations in the Fort Worth-Dallas area. The team works with site location consultants and corporate real estate executives examining the region for business locations, relocations and expansions.
  We appreciate our own Craig Hulse, Economic Development Director for the City of North Richland Hills, for arranging this exciting speaker. Please remember we have shifted our breakfast venue and we will meet at the Northeast Tarrant County Courthouse at 645 Grapevine Highway in Hurst (across the street from the Tom Thumb shopping center).

 

Approaching Deadline for Scholarship Program
  Friday, March 31, is the deadline for high school seniors to apply for the Northeast Leadership Forum Scholarship Program.
  We award one scholarship of $1,000 to a deserving student from each of the 20 public high schools in our Northeast Tarrant County school districts: Birdville ISD, Carroll ISD, Grapevine-Colleyville ISD, HEB ISD, Keller ISD, and Northwest ISD.
  This represents a total of $20,000. We will select students per the following criteria:
 
*Academic achievement:
 20%
*Financial Need: 
 30%
*Extracurricular activities:
 20%
*Community service/other activities:
 30%
  Please refer any students, or parents wanting to nominate their students, to the website: http://www.neleadership.org. Or feel free to reach out to Carolyn Sims at csts66@gmail.com .


Mark Your Calendar

* Apr. 11, 7:30 a.m.: Breakfast meeting: Northeast Tarrant County Courthouse, 645 Grapevine Highway, Hurst (New location!) Speaker: Mike Rosa, Dallas Chamber of Commerce.
* June 13, 7:30 a.m.: Breakfast meeting: Hurst Conference Center
* Aug. 8, 7:30 a.m.: Breakfast meeting: Hurst Conference Center
* Oct. 10, 7:30 a.m.: Breakfast meeting: Hurst Conference Center
* Nov. 3, 8:00 a.m.: Heart of North Texas Conference, TCC Northeast Campus

 Fletcher Consulting  | 500 Grapevine Highway, #362, Hurst, TX 76054   john@thefletch.org