New community leaders – Erie residents graduate from ERCGP ambassador program
The Erie ambassador program seeks to teach Erie residents how to be civic leaders in our community.
On Wednesday, the next group of leaders were celebrated at the Erie Club on Peach Street, after finishing up a ten-week course with the Erie Regional Chamber & Growth Partnership.
'The goal of the program is really to not only grow civic leaders but inform them and give them direction so that they can be catalysts in our region for growth, for philanthropy and for civic leadership in general,' said Brandon Mendoza, Erie Regional Chamber & Growth Partnership President.
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The 10-week course gives the ambassadors a behind-the-scenes look at some of Erie's assets, such as the Warner Theatre, Erie Land Lighthouse and other businesses around the area.
After the course, graduates are expected to embody their ambassador title and become diplomats for the work taking place to make Erie a thriving community.
Twenty-five new ambassadors graduated at the Erie Club, and although they all took the same course, everyone got something different out of the program.
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'We got to see all the behind-the-scenes, a little bit more than maybe what the average person gets to see, so we can now go to our communities and talk about what's great about Erie,' said Grant Filbeck, ambassador program graduate.'We all have become very good friends that have gone through this program, and I think that's important to be able to network with other businesses and each other,' said Debbie Swift, another ambassador program graduate.
As some people find it tough to live in Erie sometimes, Filbeck and Swift say there's more to the area that some may not see.
'People always go, 'Oh, dreary Erie.' We have this little cliche, but it's not dreary, it's far from dreary,' said Swift.
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'There's so many opportunities. You're never going to get a place with a beautiful lake, a beautiful downtown, and so many amenities, different parks, forests, things to do,' said Filbeck.
After the ceremony, graduates were invited to put their ambassador skills to the test at a reception with some regional chamber board members.
If you want to learn more about the Erie Ambassador Program, you can head to the Erie Regional Chamber & Growth Partnership's website here.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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