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Welcome New Board of Directors Chairperson – Sean Byrne

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North Star Reach Welcomes Sean Byrne as the Board of Directors Chairperson

All of us at North Star Reach want to take a moment to give a warm camp welcome to Sean Byrne, our new Board of Directors Chairperson.  Mr. Byrne brings to our team years of experience supporting camps and campers, and he has a clear perspective of the powerful impact it has on children. We were able to catch up with him at the recent FrenchieSkate event and asked a few questions about his role and North Star Reach.

How did you get involved with North Star Reach?

I spent six years on the Board of Directors of Flying Horse Farms, a SeriousFun Children’s Network sister camp outside of Columbus, Ohio. During that time I worked with Patrick Smith (North Star Reach Operations Director), so when we both ended up in Michigan, I reached out to him. This was an easy decision – it is a great opportunity to be involved with such a wonderful organization.

Can you talk about the progress you’ve seen North Star Reach make in the last year?

The progress has been truly incredible – we’ve really turned the corner.  As you can imagine, it takes a long time to build the infrastructure for a camp like North Star Reach. In the last year it seems like everything has come together. There was a lot of progress and success with the capital campaign, and now we will be breaking ground this summer.  I’m very confident we will be open for camp in the fall of 2015.

Speak a little about the impact camp has on kids and why you are involved:

There is a wonderful Paul Newman quotation that speaks about the impact camp has on kids: “It’s not that these children say, ‘Thanks for a wonderful time.’ It’s that they say, ‘Thank you for changing my life.’” To be involved in such a powerful mission, seeking to positively impact the lives of kids, is an incredible thing. Seeing the commitment of people coming together to provide camp experiences to kids who wouldn’t otherwise be able to go is an amazing thing. I feel very lucky to be a part of that.  Another important thing to note is that we have a great team. That is how we’ve gotten where we are. We have a fantastic team, the best volunteers and incredible support from the community.

Mr. Byrne is an attorney and business advisor from Grosse Pointe Woods.  He previously served on the Board of Directors of Professional Bank in Coral Gables, FL, and also served as President and General Counsel of a firm managing portfolio companies in manufacturing, retail, real estate development and transportation. Mr. Byrne is a graduate of University of Michigan Law School and the University of Richmond, where he played tennis.