In June 2025, the Flint & Genesee Chamber brought together over 90 local nonprofit professionals for the first Mid-Michigan Nonprofit Professionals meeting hosted at ELGA Credit Union’s headquarters in Grand Blanc.
“We have had a huge amount of interest in forming a nonprofit affinity committee,” says Andy Younger, executive director of the Flint & Genesee Chamber. “With such a large nonprofit community in Genesee County and the surrounding region, we wanted to form a group that was inclusive and expansive to foster collaboration and growth throughout mid-Michigan.”
The purpose of the group is to bring nonprofit executives and development leaders together to support the sustainability and impact of nonprofit organizations that service the needs and culture of our region’s residents. The group will accomplish this through engaging and interactive networking and educational sessions centered around professional development and collaboration.
The group is a brainchild of local nonprofit leaders in the community including Elizabeth Williams from United Way of Genesee and Shiawassee Counties, Cathy Gentry from the Sloan Museum of Discovery and Longway Planetarium, Theresa Hurley from the YWCA of Greater Flint, Michelle Valkoun from the Gloria Coles Flint Public Library, and Cheryl Sclater from ELGA Credit Union Foundation for Impact.
“While we grow individually as nonprofit leaders, collectively this will impact our community,” says Sclater. “We have so many nonprofits here, both large and small, that when we work collectively, it is only for the benefit of our community.”
To help achieve this collective work, the group sent out a survey to attendees from the first meeting in June to see what professionals want out of a group like this and what expertise they might be able to share. To Sclater, this Genesee County community and the surrounding area can benefit from the collaborative nature of this new group.
“I belong to several national nonprofit associations, and they’ll hear only negative things about our area, and what they don’t know is how resilient and philanthropic this community is,” says Sclater. “Mid-Michigan as a whole is a philanthropic community that truly lends itself to the nonprofit space.”
The Mid-Michigan Nonprofit Professionals will meet monthly with a mixture of networking opportunities and professional development. The next meeting will be a networking roundtable set up like speed dating, where each table will convene on a topic for 15 minutes before switching tables. This will lead to more conversation and connections that could lead to collaboration amongst local nonprofit leaders.
For a listing of events or to get involved with the Mid-Michigan Nonprofit Professionals, check out the Flint & Genesee Chamber’s calendar at FlintandGeneseeChamber.org/Events/Calendar.