YPJ topic at Kiwanis meeting

Kenrad Pederson introduced Quincy Backen, president of the Young Professionals of James-town, along with Lisa Hicks, liaison for the group, who works at the Jamestown Area Chamber of Commerce, at the recent Kiwanis meeting.

Backen has been in Jamestown since 2008, is married and has two sons. He is also president of the Rotary Club.

The purpose of Young Professionals of Jamestown is to attract and retain young people in the community. Many people from the area want to go to other places and the group hopes to keep some of them here. YPJ also would like to keep a good share of the college students in Jamestown, Backen said.

The focus of the group is 1) community service 2) professional development 3) social 4) health and wellness. YPJ had its first annual 5K run and had 58 registered on a 28-degree day. The group’s signature project is to show community needs, what Jamestown offers and to develop and retain younger members.

Sandy Franke led the meeting with 24 members attending as well as nine members from the Valley City Kiwanis Club. Chuck Axtman led the group singing accompanied by Sharon Caine. Sandy Wilhelm collected “Happy Dollars” for the Salvation Army.

Dr. Alyssa Hanson was inducted into the Kiwanis Club. Hanson is a dentist and is an associate of Dr. Ken McDougall in Jamestown. She is married and has two children. In high school, she was a Key Club member of Kiwanis.

Katie Ryan-Anderson will introduce Salvation Army Lts. Mitch and Teresa Brecto at the Oct. 29 noon luncheon meeting at the Lantern Room. They will speak about the needs of the Salvation Army during the coming Christmas season.

Tags: community, clubs