CLASSROOM REFLECTION

Program Reflection, Cohort 1

Jess Melin, Livingston

We just finished our third session for this year’s Leadership Montana course.  We had the great privilege of learning more about our neighbors in Great Falls, Montana’s Electric City.  The tours and topics this time around were as varied as the weather (which started out at 67 degrees and finished at a balmy 16 degrees).  We got to learn about what makes Great Falls tick, from farming and processing hemp, to the inner workings of a hydroelectric dam, to the amazing team that runs the Air Force’s largest nuclear missile field.

We enjoyed seeing a great collection of Western Art and made a large donation to the local economy at the home of the mermaids.  We found a community where the leaders are excited for the future and are seeing a bit of a revitalization of the downtown area of Great Falls.  And of course we spent a good amount of time learning about critical leadership issues with the phenomenal Leadership Montana team (this month’s leadership entrée was how to build trust).

I was pondering why I enjoy these sessions so much and have decided that they provide a ray of light in a world that is growing increasingly dark.  Society seems to be distancing itself from the very principles that are taught in this course.  I don’t know how to save the world, but I have learned how I can bring Gracious Space to my family, my work, and my community.  Maybe that’s how it starts.