Yesterday morning I attended the public memorial service for one of Boise's most well-known and respected leaders, Steve Appleton.  Several thousand Mircon employees, community leaders, members of the Appleton family and friends attended the ceremony to honor and pay tribute to the life he lived.  

The memorial event featured several speakers and videos highlighting stories and pictures of Steve's life.  Attendees were given a glimpse into the personal life of Steve as a beloved family man at home and a fierce competitor and adventure seeker at work and at play.  

He was described as a giver, leader, loving husband and father, competitor, pilot, philanropist, loyal friend, athlete, visionary, BSU Bronco and remarkable human being.  As told by the speakers at the event, his impact on his family, our community, his industry and Boise State University was immense.  

I only met Steve Appleton a few times, but I will never forget how important he made me feel.  He taught me a few lessons on leadership; personal habits that I will strive to replicate and teach others: to be present in a conversation and to stick with your commitments.  

In April of 2008, Steve was the featured guest speaker at a special event with the Boise Young Professionals -- a group I founded and helped create through the Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce.  Thanks to my friend and event co-creator, Jason Crawforth, I was able to connect with Steve by phone and email prior to the event -- providing Steve with context regarding timing, purpose and format.

As Steve arrived at our event, the room was packed full of people vying for his attention -- hoping to meet the CEO of Idaho's largest company.  I quickly walked up and introduced myself, hoping to make Steve feel welcomed and to put a face to a name (we had only met by phone and email).  

What happend next surprised me.  Instead of a quick handshake and dash attempt to work the room, Steve focused on the conversation between us -- as if I was the most important person in the room.  This was a unique experience for me.  

Over the years I've met with hundreds of CEOs, elected officials and community leaders, and rarely have I felt as important as when I spoke with Steve.  He made me feel like a peer, a person of value -- someone worth his time.  Here was the top executive, of arguably the most important business in our state, treating me -- a 28-year-old emerging leader -- like I was the only person in the room.  He didn't look around to see who else was waiting for him or see who else he should talk to.  He gave me his full attention and asked me questions.  He listened and showed genuine interest in who I was.  He shared a few stories with me and found a way for us to connect.  I will never forget that experience.

Last week I attended the Idaho Association of Cities luncheon event: City Officials Day at the Capitol.  I quickly noticed something about the crowd that made me feel a bit disappointed (more of a reminder, not an epiphany).  At 33 years of age, I was one of the youngest elected officials out of 200 elected leaders in the room.  This is a problem.  

I would like to see a younger, more diverse mix of elected leaders representing our citizens in local and state government.

What's the average age and diversity of Idaho's elected officials and how do we stack up to other states?  

On the state level (in Idaho), only two to three legislators (out of 105) are under the age of 40.  According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 48% of Idaho's legislators are over 65 years of age -- topped only by New Hampshire at 50%.  

Regarding sex, Idaho sits at 73% male and 27% female legislators, which seems to be improving over the years.  In the relatively near future, as Generation Y/Millenials age, these numbers will move closer to 50/50.    

At the city and county level, many smaller communities have elected leaders (mainly on City Councils) under 40; a handful, in fact, are in their early 20s and 30s.  In Boise, our state's largest city, a dramatic shift has taken place over the past two years.  

In 2009, TJ Thomson, a good personal friend of mine, was elected as the youngest member --35 at the time-- of the Boise City Council.  A year later, Lauren McLean, who is the same age as Council Member Thomson, was appointed to the Council, then was elected (after running unopposed) for a full term in 2011 (beginning her term in 2012).  

After being elected on November 8, 2011 and taking the oath of office on January 10, 2012, I joined the Council as its newest and youngest member.  At this time, 50% of our City Council is under 40, and 50% are female (Council President Jordan and Council Members McLean and Clegg).  

Should all elected leaders be in their 20s and 30s?

Not necessarily.  Our citizens befenefit from the knowledge, wisdom and experience provided by our local and state leaders over 40.  But, as a community, we must also tap into the creativity, ideas and talents from a cross section of our population. 

I have tremendous respect for those who serve as elected officials.  I've seen, as an insider, how hard many of our elected officials work on behalf of our citizens.  Many are incredibly smart, dedicated and driven to deliver the best results for the people they represent.  

For instance, I'm incredibly grateful to serve with Boise City Council President Maryanne Jordan, Council Pro-Tem David Eberle and Council Member Elanie Clegg.  Each has served on Council for eight to nine years and add an exceptional amount of knowledge, wisdom and expertise to the Council.  

What's my recommendation?

Balance, similar to what we currently have in Boise, is needed to compliment the current makeup of our elected officials.  To reach this desired balance, Idaho needs more young and diverse leaders to step up.  This outcome would lead to innovative and creative new solutions to our state's challenges (i.e., job creation, health care, transportation, air quality, quality of life, etc).

Suggestions for experienced leaders:

• Encourage promising and potential community leaders to get involved.  Help them along the way.  Be encouraging and offer suggestions as needed.  Make it a point to seek out younger, diverse talent and invite them to participate.  
• Mentor younger leaders and help them prepare for increased levels of responsibility.  Give them opportunities to grow and develop their decision making and leadership abilities.  Provide them with tools to make decisions, but don't just show them how to do it.  Learning is best accomplished by doing.  

Suggestions for emerging leaders:

• Get involved in your community.  Volunteer for a campaign, civic group or local charity.  Learn as much as possible along the way and look for ways to add value.
• Talk to current and former elected officials and community leaders.  Learn from them.  They have so much to offer.  Ask them what they learned and look for ways to build on what they started.
• Start building connections, partnerships and trust in your community.  You must do this immediately and with only the right intentions.  
• Join a young professionals group (Boise Young Professsionals - www.boiseyp.org, Young Democrats, Young Republicans, Rotaract, etc.).  Take on a leadership role within the organization.
• Look for community leadership programs and find out how to sign up.  Programs like Leadership Boise (www.leadershipboise.org) are terrific ways to take your leadership goals to the next level.  
• Start now.  Plan for the future, but don't wait for it.  Know when you're ready and start as soon as possible.  Take a risk and lead now.