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Every Student Needs a Champion


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As the school year begins, we recommend a TED Talk by Rita Pierson, who suggests the importance in building relations with students. She shares candidly that some students and classes are very difficult, but that with encouragement and support, even the most academically challenged can improve and know success.

Following the example of her mother, she shares that, “Kids don’t learn from people they don’t like” and so she has spent her career finding ways to connect to students. She also passes on advise from Stephen Covey, to throw in a few simple things, like seeking first to understand, as opposed to being understood. Simple things, like apologizing. Rita asks “How powerful would our world be if we had kids who were not afraid to take risks, who were not afraid to think, and who had a champion?” Find the full talk here: bit.ly/TED-Rita

This article was published in the Future Leaders & Entrepreneurs Exchange’s (FLEX) September 2019 edition of the FLEX Your Ideas (FYI) Newsletter.

September 2019 Young Professional Profiles: Deborah Thompson & Randy Arnold


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Deborah Thompson recently moved to the area with her family and is excited to find a career and get more involved here. She is from New Hampshire and loves where she grew up, but has always been drawn to Pennsylvania, as her parents grew up in Hydetown and Oil City.

Deb attended Edinboro University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Sport and Recreation Administration and graduated summa cum laude. She has also completed courses through the Life Office Management Association (LOMA).

For her career, Deb most recently worked as a Claims Associate for Loyal Christian Benefit Association (LCBA), a life insurance company. She is currently looking for a job in our area and would like something with structure and a predictable work schedule. She is open to many different career paths but hopes to use her strengths in communication, interpersonal skills, and leadership, and she has also been described as friendly, dedicated, and a versatile worker.

With her husband Eric (who was featured in our June FYI), Deb is raising two children—Carter (7) and Peyton (4). She also spends time exercising, participating in sports and lawn games, playing board games, and listening to music. In our area, some of her favorite amenities include the trails along the Allegheny River, Wanango, Clarks Donuts, and Hasson Pool.

“In the next 5 to 10 years, I hope to be in a place that my family and I can vacation yearly, the kids are in sports and whatever activity they desire and I have a stable career which I enjoy,” Deb told us.

We look forward to getting to know Deb more and to help her become connected in our region!

Although he lives just outside Venango County in Grove City, Randy Arnold works here and has become involved in our community.

At Pioneer Energy Products (PEPRO), located on Colbert Avenue in Oil City, Randy is employed as Senior Mechanical Engineer. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Grove City College and is a Licensed Professional Engineer.

Randy grew up in Bradford County, but stayed in Western Pennsylvania after accepting a job at Joy Mining right out of college. He has had the opportunity to travel the world, in which he spent a semester in France and traveled nationally and internationally since college, including Australia, India, China, England, Zambia, Canada, and all around the continental U.S.

Randy is a graduate of the 2019 graduating class of Leadership Venango, where he spent nine months learning about our region and gaining leadership skills. Looking towards the future, he told us he would like to “see the products built in Western PA thrive by creating value in places all over the United States.” He appreciates the business opportunities in Venango County, which have provided his source of income for over 10 years and he believes our area is “primed very well for business.”

In any free time he has, Randy focuses on family—his wife, Joy, and two children, Hailey and Blake. He enjoys camping and going to local fairs with them, and occasional dates with Joy.

“I have always found great people to work with in Venango County,” he told us. “You can count on people to be down to earth, wholesome, and hard working.”

Thanks for your commitment to our region, Randy!

These articles were published in the Future Leaders & Entrepreneurs Exchange’s (FLEX) September 2019 edition of the FLEX Your Ideas (FYI) Newsletter.

Tech Tip: Photography


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Photography is everywhere. Photography is art, a fun hobby, and a business tool, and useful for advertising, entertainment, and personal life. Pictures can communicate many messages through their different uses. As a business, knowing how to take a good picture can greatly aid the messaging and overall look of the media you produce.

An easy tip for good photography is to avoid camera shake or blurry photos. Camera shake happens when the camera user doesn’t stabilize the camera well enough. One of the best ways to ensure that camera shake doesn’t happen is to use a tripod, but since this is not always possible another tip is to make you body stable by holding the camera with arms tucked close to your sides. Keeping the cameral still helps to ensure images are clean and crisp, which further aids in making business photography look professional.

Another way to make your business photography pop is to be mindful of the type of images used and the message they send. Making sure that pictures are in line with the mission of a business is key to the overall brand. One way to do this is by using pictures of real people, places, and things around the business area.

Stock photography can be helpful at times, but taking pictures for your business rather than using stock photos will humanize the images and help draw customers into your business.

We discussed photography at our Tech Talk in July, and we invite you to join us on August 16 when we will discuss “Online Crisis Management.” Tech Talks are on the third Friday of each month from 8-9 a.m. at the Chamber.

This article was published in the Future Leaders & Entrepreneurs Exchange’s (FLEX) August 2019 edition of the FLEX Your Ideas (FYI) Newsletter.

Young Professionals in the Community


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We very much appreciate the help of young professionals through FLEX committees and events, including the Bike ‘n Brew and Ice Cream Social during Oil Heritage Festival. We also love seeing our members out in the community involved with other organizations!

We often hear “we need more young people involved,” which can be frustrating, because we see young professionals out and about all the time. Some organizations where FLEX members volunteer and serve as board members include the Oil City Arts Council, Barrow-Civic Theatre, Venango County Humane Society, Oil City Main Street Program, United Way of Venango County, and the Oil City and Franklin Rotary Clubs.

As longtime volunteers begin to retire and move out of their positions, there are many opportunities for young people to fill their shoes and take leadership roles. While it can be hard work and sometimes intimidating, it just takes a willingness to step up and help organizations continue to run and serve our community.

Community involvement is a learning process and new volunteers aren’t expected to know everything immediately. It takes time to learn how meetings are run, events are planned, and volunteers work together, but don’t let that keep you from playing a part.

Are you a young professional looking to get more involved in the community? Or are you a seasoned professional interested in having more young people participate in your organization? Join us at the FLEX Mixer on August 22, where all professionals are invited to network with FLEX members (see more information). If you’d like to get more involved with FLEX, don’t hesitate to reach out to any of our officers and committee chairs.

Thanks again to all the young professionals who volunteered at our recent events! See more photos on the back of the newsletter.

This article was published in the Future Leaders & Entrepreneurs Exchange’s (FLEX) August 2019 edition of the FLEX Your Ideas (FYI) Newsletter.