Joe Ethier has led the local Boys & Girls Clubs well — so well he's been promoted to a position in Atlanta.
On June 27, Ethier, chief professional officer at the Hall County clubs for the past three years, will begin serving the Boys & Girls Clubs of America as a regional service director, serving Mississippi and based in Atlanta.
"I'm excited about the opportunity to work with some great professionals in the state of Mississippi and to hopefully gain some personal experiences from playing a role in that," Ethier said Thursday.
"But it's also somewhat bittersweet in that the community here is amazing and the leadership of our organization is a benchmark for any nonprofit in the state of Georgia."
Ethier will serve as a liaison between the national group and the locations in Mississippi, and his experience leading the Hall County clubs should come in handy. There, he has overseen three units that serve 5,000 children each year and provide activities including after-school programs and athletics.
"Joe's done an excellent job," said Michele Piucci, president of the board of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Hall County.
"It's been some tough economic times as everyone knows in the last three years ... and he's kept the club running well. We're actually in a good financial position right now, and we just wish him the best of luck in his promotion to Boys & Girls Clubs of America."
Ethier started with the organization 20 years ago and has embraced its mission to provide young people with opportunities they may not otherwise have.
"Every time we come to work we essentially have the opportunity to not only have change in a young person's life immediately," he said, "but potentially create generational change for future family members and strengthen our communities."
His move leaves the local clubs looking for a new leader, and Piucci said that process has already begun.
The job has been posted on the national organizations's website and a search committee made up of local board members will sift through resumes. She said they hope to narrow down that field of applicants in a couple of weeks.
The position is an important one, though, and there are a number of characteristics they're looking for.
"Somebody who's good with funds development for the clubs. I mean, that's always with a nonprofit - be able to have good relationships with business partners in the community and within the Boys & Girls clubs organization," Piucci said. "And just someone also who gets to know the people in the community."
Connecting with the community is something Ethier did and something he said he'll miss.
"They've been a phenomenal group of volunteers to work with," he said.
"And because of their leadership and because of the amazing staff that we have on hand here, we've been able to do some extraordinary things for young people within our clubs and within Hall County."