Category Archives: Valerie F. Leonard.com

Thanks for Voting for Valeriefleonard.com!!!

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I just want to take the time to thank you all for the tremendous support you’ve shown me since I announced my intent to compete in the Chase/Living Social Mission: Small Business competition. You have voted for Valeriefleonard.com, prayed for me, encouraged me, shared my vote requests in your social networks, and encouraged others to do the same. I am truly amazed at the level of participation in such short notice. Within about 13 days, you have given me a total of 294 votes, which is 44 votes more than necessary to have the judges read my essays. If my business is selected as one of the grantees, I will use proceeds to hire staff, secure office space, upgrade my technology and invest in new product and service development.

The voting and application deadlines have passed as of midnight June 30, 2012, and I am waiting to hear whether I made it to the finals. The judges will announce 12 winners of the $250,000 small business grants on or before September 15, 2012. Regardless of the outcome, this process has given me an opportunity to re-visit my business plan and make critical adjustments moving forward. I also got a chance to gauge the level of support for my business and test various messages for effectiveness for securing votes. Most importantly, I got a chance to “hear” the home crowd cheering me on every step of the way. That, my friends, is priceless!

I thank God for you all, and pray that He blesses you as you have been a blessing to me. I’ll keep you posted of the latest developments. Please forward this message to people that you encouraged to support me. Your assistance is most appreciated.

Take care,

Valerie F. Leonard
Expert in Community and Organizational Development
Phone: 773-521-3137
Fax: 773-522-1832
E-mail: consulting@valeriefleonard.com
Website: http://www.valeriefleonard.com
Weblog: http://valeriefleonard.com/StayingintheLoop/nfblog/ (Staying In the Loop)

Helping organizations build sustainable communities.

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North Lawndale African American Heritage Quilting Project Update

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Words cannot express the gratitude we feel for your ongoing support of this project. We thank you all from the bottom of our hearts.

Bethune School of Excellence Graduation

We will be presenting 7 quilts to the Bethune School of Excellence on behalf of City Year and the Class of 2012 during their graduation on Monday,June 11, 2012. We thank Lisa Wilcoxen, Reneau Diallo and Jacquelyn Gipson for making quilts and donating fabric and materials to the cause. I thank Lisa Wilcoxen for doing the quilting and binding for one of the quilts I was working on. We thank Kelsey Krzyton and City Year for providing leadership on the Bethune project. We thank Darren Tillis, a local State Farm Agent, for providing the funding to buy materials to complete this project. Here is a link to pictures of the Bethune project.

 

LEARN Charter School African American History Project

We are working with LEARN Charter School to help the children translate their African American History projects into quilt form. To date, the children have developed quilt blocks and presented them to their parents during a biography fair at the school. We thank Ms. Lucille Tomlinson, a second grade teacher at the school, for her leadership on the project. Here is a link to pictures for the LEARN Charter School
project.

        

After these projects are done, we will be going into an hiatus to devote more time to researching the African American experience in North Lawndale.

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Help Me Get on the February Ballot in 3 Hours!

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As you may have heard, there are a lot of people in the race for Alderman of the 24th Ward. Depending on who you believe, there could be anywhere from 13 to 25 candidates on the ballot in February. Because there are so many people in the race, there’s a good chance that people have signed for more than one candidate.  When people sign petitions for more than one candidate, their signatures can be disqualified.  If enough signatures are disqualified, then the candidate gets kicked off the ballot.  We can’t take that chance. 

I NEED YOUR HELP!! Join us on Saturday, October 30, 2010 from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon, for Walkers and Talkers, an event for circulating petitions and phone banking. We will meet at Carey Tercentenary AME Church, 1448 South Homan Avenue.

Each session will include an overview of the issues, an update on our campaign, training for petitions and phone banking, followed by 2 hours of gathering signatures and making phone calls.  I will bring donuts & coffee.

Optional: Bring a copy of your resume to be included in the Job Exchange bulletin board immediately (no strings attached), and to be considered for community development committees when I am elected. Contact me if you have questions about the bulletin board.

For Further Information: I have attached a flyer for the event and background information about me and the campaign. You can also contact me  773-521-3137, or valeriefleonard@msn.com.

Visit my Online Candidate Profile at http://onlinecandidatelinks.com/citizens-to-elect-valerie-f.-leonard.html.
Visit the campaign website at http://vote4valerie.voterspace.com/.

Visit the campaign blog at http://vote4valerie.blogspot.com/.

Follow me on Facebook, MySpace, Scribd, Twitter, and Every Block Chicago-24th Ward.

 This message was approved by Citizens to Elect Valerie F. Leonard.

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Handouts from the Breakin’ it Down Conference-Workshop on Federal Funding

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Here is a copy of the Power Point presentation I did on federal funding for the Breakin’ it Down conference.

In the Public Domain 2010

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Learn How to Get Federal Contracts

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I received the following e-mail this morning.

View as webpage

Fedmarket wants to give you a last opportunity to sign up for Fedmarket’s most popular federal sales training seminars.Fedmarket’s back-to-back courses for government sales are coming to Chicago, IL on October 25 and 26, 2010.

  • Federal Sales 101: “Winning Government Business” will teach you the secrets to successfully winning the deal and the keys to (i) following the protocols of the contracting officers, and (ii) determining the needs of your government customers. 
  • Writing & Managing Winning Proposals A properly-prepared proposal is THE document the government will use to defend WHY they CHOSE YOU. This class is for those managers who want to write fewer proposals and win more.You may sign up for the seminars at Fedmarket’s website. Or call 301 652 9504, Ext. 2, to secure your place immediately.

    Look forward to hosting you,

    Fedmarket

    P.S. Read the rave reviews of these two seminars on our seminar testimonials webpage.

    Need more information? Contact me.

    • Visit Fedmarket
    For inquiries, call 301 652 9504. Press 2.


    Please do not reply to this email. This mailbox is not monitored and you will not receive a response.

    It is our policy never to send unwanted email messages. You were sent this message because you previously registered at fedmarket.com or expressed an interest in receiving information on public sector business opportunities. If you wish to be removed from this email list, please send your request and a copy of the original email to P.O. Box 6639, Ketchum, ID 83340 or for immediate removal follow this link:
    http://www.fedmarket.com/remove/remove.php?remEmail=consulting@valeriefleonard.com

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    GSB Entrepreneurial Roundtable Leadership Seminar

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    CHICAGO BOOTH SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
    ENTREPRENEURIAL ROUNDTABLE

    GOOD LEADER, BAD LEADER:
    WHAT MAKES THE DIFFERENCE?
    An Interactive, Participatory Seminar
    featuring Al Ritter, leadership expert and author
    with his team of top leadership coaches

    Saturday, November 6, 2010
    8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
    Room 621, Gleacher Center
    450 North Cityfront Plaza Drive
    Chicago, Illinois 60611

    Breakfast and Lunch from Wolfgang Puck included

    Price:  $120.00 for general public
     $95.00 for Roundtable members and alumni/students of
    Chicago Booth, IIT, Kellogg, NIU
    SAVE AN ADDITIONAL $30.00 IF REGISTER BY OCT. 30TH
    (THAT IS, ROUNDTABLE MEMBERS WHO SIGN UP BY 10/30 PAY ONLY $65.00)
    You are a Roundtable Member if you received this e-mail.

    Click Here to Register

    What are the qualities of good leaders?  According to Al Ritter, the key attributes of a leader are very different from what most of us would expect.  The outstanding leaders are:

    • Committed to developing positive relationships with those around them, and
    • Able to create a discipline to accomplish results
    In this seminar, Al and his team will help us to understand several of the key qualities of true leadership through interactive exercises.  This seminar is thus not simply a classroom explanation of leadership but a hands-on learning and participation experience.  You will learn leadership skills by participating and interacting with others.

    Your Leadership Coaches

    Al Ritter is a leadership coach, professional speaker and the author of two best-selling books on leadership.  He has consulted for the past 22 years with thousands of business leaders.  He formerly worked with Accenture where he was recognized as the firm’s resident expert on leadership and team building.  Al has his MBA from Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business.

    Christina Dyer is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor.  She has counseled leaders in both for-profit and nonprofit organizations, focusing on their improvement, both personally and profession-ally. Combining her education and training with her diverse career and travel experiences, Christina inspires clients to lead a creative,full and passionate life.

    Randy Roach brings over twenty years of experience working as a change agent transforming organizations and enhancing individual leadership and team performance.  She has been employed at the senior level by two of the leading global consulting firms and has a proven track record of delivering organization and leadership development solutions that support business strategy.

    Agenda

     

    8:30   Continental Breakfast

    9:00   Introduction

    9:15   Overview of the Day

    -         Domains of leadership

    -         Relationships & results   

                         10:35  The 100/0 Principle

            -      Keys to relationships

            -      Listening exercise      

    10:30 Break

    10:45 Taking Responsibility for Relationships

    -         Responsibility exercise

    -     The Difficult Boss

    12:00  Q&A

    12:15   Lunch/Networking

     1:00    Discipline of Execution

    -       Discussion

            -       Clear, coordinated

                       execution exercise

     2:00    Acknowledgement

    -           Showing gratitude

    -           Appreciation exercise

                                 2:30    Q&A, Wrap Up

     

     
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    Illinois Senior Internet Adoption Coalition and Congressman Danny K. Davis to Announce Federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and Illinois Jobs Now! Grants for Broadband Adoption Project

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    I am very pleased to announce that a project for whom I provided technical assistance through the Illinois ResourceNet has received state and federal funding to provide computer training, equipment and high speed internet service for seniors in 23 publicly-funded senior buildings throughout northern Illinois.  Illinois Senior Internet Adoption Coalition Congressman Danny K. Davis will be holding a press conference on Monday, October 4, 2010, at 10:00 a.m. at Habilitative Systems, Inc. (HSI), 425 South Kilpatrick, in Chicago.  More details are found in the press release below.  I hope to see you there.

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
    September 30, 2010

    Contact: Ira Cohen (office of Rep. Danny K. Davis)
    773-533-7520

    The Illinois Senior Internet Adoption Coalition and Congressman Danny K. Davis will announce federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and Illinois Jobs Now! grants for broadband adoption project to help Illinois low income seniors and people with disabilities cross the digital divide

    Press Conference
    10:00 a.m.
    Monday, October 4, 2010
    HSI
    415 South Kilpatrick
    Chicago, Illinois 60644

    The Illinois Senior Internet Adoption Coalition and Congressman Danny K. Davis — a group of nine Illinois public housing authorities, five private providers of affordable housing and other partners — will announce that its program to get Illinois low income seniors and people with disabilities across the Digital Divide has won awards worth $5.9 million from the federal and Illinois governments. MyWay Village, Inc., the grant awardee, will be responsible for the implementation of the program at 23 rural, suburban and inner-city sites in Illinois over the next 24 months.  

    “Senior citizens and people with disabilities need adequate, affordable access to the tools of the 21st century,” said U.S. Congressman Danny K. Davis. “This project represents a powerful way to close the digital divide by increasing computer training and high-speed Internet availability in our Illinois communities.”

    The program will fund new computer equipment, Internet access and Connected Livingr training programs to over 3,000 residents of low income housing in Northern Illinois as well as to residents in surrounding neighborhoods.  Connected Living by MyWay Village is a comprehensive technology adoption program that combines simplified technology with engaging training content and curriculum delivered by Ambassadors who are expert at getting first-time users online. 

    Low Income seniors and people with disabilities will gain new computer skills, improved communications with family and friends and better access to valuable information, education and health services.  Trainees who pass a basic computer proficiency test will receive a highly discounted computer and Internet service.  The program will collect adoption data, evaluate best practices and disseminate learning to affordable housing managers through a series of conferences and online tools.

    “Low income seniors and affordable housing communities in Illinois deserve equal access to technologies that can deliver better health and economic opportunity,” said Sarah Hoit, CEO and Co-Founder of MyWay Village. “Over the last three years, we have connected thousands of seniors with our `high-tech and high-touch’ approach which has proven to be a winning combination.”

    The partners in the Illinois Senior Internet Adoption Coalition include:

    o    Atmosphere Communications
    o    The Benton Foundation
    o    Bethel New Life (Chicago)
    o    BMA Management
    o    Housing Authority of the County of DeKalb
    o    DSSA Strategies
    o    Grundy County Housing Authority
    o    Habilitative Systems (Chicago)
    o    Housing Authority of Henry County
    o    Housing Authority of Joliet
    o    Kankakee County Housing Authority
    o    Moline Housing Authority
    o    MyWay Village, Inc.
    o    Oak Park Housing Authority
    o    Rockford Housing Authority
    o    Rock Island Housing Authority
    o    Sankofa Safe Child Initiative (Chicago)
    o    Senior Lifestyle Corporation

    More than $4.7 million in federal funding was awarded competitively through the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).  More than $1.2 million in Illinois Jobs Now! public works funding provided the financial support needed to secure the federal award for Illinois, and coalition partners are contributing and additional $0.9 million in matching funds to bring the total project value to $6.8 million. 

    About MyWay Village, Inc.

    MyWay Village, Inc. is a Quincy, MA based social impact company.  The Connected Livingr program currently serves thousands of seniors residing in communities managed by such thought-leading organizations as Brookdale Senior Living, Emeritus Senior Living, Benchmark Senior Living, Beacon Communities and the Atlanta Housing Authority.  For more information, visit www.connectedliving.com, call the Connected Living Center at 800.223.5080, or view our YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/connectedliving)

    –
    Ira Cohen
    Director of Issues and Communication
    Representative Danny K. Davis (IL07)

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