The conference committee held a press conference at 9:30 am on October 22nd to kickoff the 2008 ImPAct Conference fundraising campaign. Rich Hudic, President and CEO of Team Pennsylvania Foundation presented the committee with a $10,000 check for next year's conference. The committee has set a goal of raising $150,000 and attracting 500 attendees to the Erie area for the 2008 ImPAct Conference. A link to the official press release can be found below.
Represented in the check presentation photo are from left to right Mayor of Erie Joe Sinnott, Thomas B. Hagen, Owner / Chairman Custom Group Industries and Team Pennsylvania Foundation Board Member, Matt Wiertel, 2008 ImPAct Conference Co-Chair, Rich Hudic, President / CEO Team Pennsylvania Foundation, and Fasy Greevy, President of Young Erie Professionals.
Conference Date Announced
The 2008 ImPAct Conference date has been selected. The conference will be held at Erie's new Bayfront Convention center from September 12th - 14th 2008. Additional details about the conference will be released as they become available. For the latest updates and news about the conference, please sign up for our newsletter.
Information about the 2008 ImPAct Conference
Erie and the surrounding region have a multitude of distinctive characteristics that make it the perfect place to bring the young professionals of Pennsylvania together for a weekend of education, opportunity and enjoyment. Over the past decade, our community has worked diligently to transform the Erie landscape into a hub of activity. Our beautiful Bayfront Parkway, overlooking Pennsylvania’s only GreatLake port, features fabulous restaurants, exciting attractions and our new BayfrontConvention Center. When the ImPAct 2008 guests stay at the Convention Center Hotel and attend workshops in the Center’s state of the art, Bay view meeting facilities, they will begin to realize that there is far more to Erie than meets the eye.
As you can see from a rendering of the new BayfrontConvention Center located directly on Lake Erie’s beautiful Bay, the facility is unmatched in Pennsylvania. Adjacent to the Bayfront Convention Center Hotel and connected by a sky bridge over the bay, the Convention Center offers state of the art facilities, a spectacular view and the perfect environment in which to enjoy all that Erie has to offer.
The fun won’t stop when the daily convention activities come to a close. Within a 10-minute walk from the Convention Center, guests can enjoy vibrant Erie nightlife with a stretch of restaurants and taverns offering big city-style cuisine, ranging from steaks and seafood to Thai and sushi, from draft beer and gourmet hot dogs to martinis and live jazz. Also within walking distance, guests will find the opportunity to play miniature golf, rent a jet ski, hire a fishing charter, watch a minor league Seawolves baseball game at spectacular JerryUhtPark, take a ferry to PresqueIsleState Park, or watch the sunset aboard the majestic Victorian Princess paddleboat. Downtown Erie also offers a wide array of cultural activities, including the Erie Playhouse, ErieHistoricalCenter, the ErieArt Museum, the WarnerTheater, a spectacular Philharmonic, and much, much more.
The transformation of downtown Erie and the Bayfront district have also provided a vibrant and exciting venue for a diverse events. The summer event schedule, which lasts into our beautiful fall season, includes jazz walks, block parties, the Eight Great Tuesday Concert Series at Liberty Park Amphitheater and sunset concerts on the beach at Presque Isle.
And PresqueIsleState Park offers far more than concerts. Sandy beaches, volleyball games, kayaking and cookouts are among the many activities available at the Park. At the entrance to Presque Isle, the TomRidgeEnvironmentalCenter’s “green” facility offers interactive educational exhibits, an observation tower, public education programs and a nature shop andgallery.
A twenty-minute drive from the Convention Center will bring guests to the Pennsylvania Wine Trail – a grouping of various award winning wineries all of which offer tastings and tours. Nearby, the Presque Isle Downs offers a brand new slots casino and horse racing track.
Young professionals will find a wealth of opportunities and possibilities through the resources at GannonUniversity (especially through the faculty in the new Ph.D. program in Organizational Learning and Leadership), MercyhurstCollege, Leadership Erie, the Technology Council of Northwest PA, the Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership and through the resources brought about by positive relationships yep! has formed with Erie’s local elected officials, such as Mayor Joe Sinnott, County Executive Mark DiVecchio, Congressman Phil English, State Senator Jane Earll and many others.
Conference attendees will be welcomed by the people of Erie, offered exciting educational and beneficial conference sessions, and engage in social and cultural activities. The Erie region is ripe with possibility – offering the Pennsylvania young professional a chance to experience all that the Erie region has to offer will open up an exciting section of Pennsylvania to a population which may not otherwise have the opportunity to experience it.
and connected by a sky bridge over the bay, the Convention Center offers state of the art facilities, a spectacular view and the perfect environment in which to enjoy all that 
The transformation of downtown 
