|
Laura Young, the 103rd president of the Portland Rotary Club, will give her inaugural speech this Friday titled, “Why Rotary.”
Laura was born in San Diego, California to “the two greatest parents ever.” Her dad was in the Navy at the time and, today, her mom is notably an avid reader of our Windjammer newsletter. Laura’s childhood was spent in Norfolk, Virginia and she appreciated the experience of being bussed into inner city schools during the integration efforts of the 70s and 80s. Her family moved to Laconia, New Hampshire for her senior year of high school and she attended Bates College in Lewiston, Maine.
Laura caught the political bug during a junior year semester at American University in Washington, D.C. after hearing Senator Joe Biden speak. She worked on his presidential campaign in New Hampshire during the summer and decided to return to the nation’s capital upon graduating.
In 1989, she landed her first “dream job” working in Senator George Mitchell’s Majority Leader’s office in the Capitol Building. From there she moved to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee raising funds to elect Democratic Senators which allowed her to attend the Convention and three Super Bowl games. In 1995 she moved back to New England and landed her third “dream job” as a fundraising consultant to nonprofit organizations throughout New England, raised two wonderful daughters Katie and Megan, and joined the Maine Community Foundation as vice president of philanthropy in 2005.
In 2007, Alan Cartwright recruited Laura to speak to the Portland Rotary Club and she has been an active member ever since, serving as a board member, chair of the Windjammer, chair of Member Orientation and chair of Youth Services. Laura has also served as a Trustee of her alma mater Bates College, board member of the Center for Grieving Children, currently on the board of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Portland and enjoys her Monday Rotary tennis league.
Laura is honored to be the president of the Portland Rotary Club and is looking forward to another great year!
|
