Building Community, Transformation, and Strategic Focus for What’s Next
Posted by Sue - Admin on Sep. 17, 2025 / Subscribe 0
On September 11, 2025, the ICF New Jersey Charter Chapter hosted its third-quarter Town Hall. Members had the opportunity to hear what is happening in the chapter by President Kelli Kombat and attending board members. If you missed this quarterly town hall, no worries. Below find highlights of the focus on transparency, celebrating member wins, and looking ahead together as a community.
Welcome Message
President Kelli Kombat welcomed everyone and set the tone:
“The whole purpose of a Town Hall is to have members join and be able to listen to the state of the state, basically what’s happening in our chapter, recognitions, all the wins, all the things, and give you an opportunity to know really what’s going on behind the scenes.”
Kelli then introduced the attending board. Each member spoke briefly about their role and what they are working on:
- John De Palm (also known as JDP), VP of Technology: “We’re doing a lot of really good and targeted things in support of not only our chapter, but of you, our members, who are number one in everything we do.” If you’re interested in joining the Technology Committee, email me: [email protected].
- Kathleen Cashman Walter, Past President: “I started in membership and kind of worked my way to a number of different places. Happy to be here.”
- Debbie Godfrey, VP of Strategic Partnerships: “Our goal is to really reach out to external audiences…creating various kind of marketing materials that might be of interest to our current clients.”
- Dorisse Shakir-Ullah, Co-VP of Member Engagement: “We do look forward to seeing you next week for Coffee with Coaches and our best kept secret of Fishbowl Coaching at noon is next Thursday.”
- Joyce Heckman, VP of Credentialing: “I am here to support you on your credentialing journey…we have built on our webpage a resource library Credentialing.”
- Heather Peterson, Board Secretary: “My role is to maintain the organization’s legal and historical records…I’m very behind the scenes, but I’m constantly working to support all the board of directors.” Interested in volunteering: https://icf-nj.org/get_involved_icf_nj.
- Mindy Gewirtz, VP of DEIB/IDEAS: “Read the most recent Coach Connect to get an idea of the focus of the DEIB/IDEAS group. Reach out to me if you are interested in joining DEIB/IDEAS, email [email protected].”
These introductions reminded everyone that the chapter is led by coaches who volunteer their time and energy to support the membership. Shout out given to Malina Poshtova Delamere as Chapter Programs' Wild Thoughts on Friday! (WTF!) facilitator.
Celebrating Chapter Growth and Member Wins
Kelli shared exciting membership numbers:
“Did you know that we have 694 members? 631 of them are in New Jersey. 50 are out of state, seven are out of country. Six no location."
Kelli noted that Essex County has the largest representation and invited members to guess the next 4 counties. (Bergen, Morris, Monmouth, Somerset). The chapter is diverse in geography, background, and coaching focus, which adds strength to our community.
Member wins were also highlighted ranging from new coaching businesses launched to those achieving ICF credentials and other advanced certifications. Sharing success stories is encouraged, as they lift and inspire others.
Programs that Deliver Member Value and Keep Us Connected
Programs like Coffee with Coaches, the Business Development Series, and Fishbowl Coaching were recognized as central to member connection and learning. In the chat, members described Fishbowl as “our secret sauce” and Coffee with Coaches as “a shot in the arm every single time.”
Dorisse explained the format of Coffee with Coaches. “It is really open to anyone. We’ve been going throughout the state of New Jersey. A member will reach out to us and say, hey, I’d like to be a host. You always walk away with some type of magic.”
These programs are shaped by member input and keep growing because members step forward to host, volunteer, and propose new ideas.
Transformation and Strategic Focus: Our Guiding Theme
Kelli reminded members that the theme for year 2025 is “Transformation.”
“The theme that we have is called transformation. And the reason why we picked that theme is because we have so many things that are shifting because shift happens. Our coaching landscape is changing, and so are we.” Everything that’s supporting the work that we do is IDEAS.”
IDEAS (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, Solidarity) continues to guide the board’s work and ensure that the chapter evolves with its members.
Partnerships, Outreach and Expanding the Circle
Debbie Godfrey shared the ongoing progress on outreach efforts to promote coaching and ICF New Jersey, both within the state and to wider external audiences:
“The goal of the committee is to get out there and spread the word in New Jersey… We’ve started developing a relationship with NJ BIZ and have had the opportunity to nominate a couple of our coaches who have received the award for leading women in business in the State of New Jersey.”
Debbie also announced that a professionally produced video is underway to showcase the value of coaching and the chapter’s mission.
Forward Focused: Leadership Continuity
Membership growth, bylaw updates, and succession planning were also covered. Kelli emphasized the importance of preparing for leadership continuity. “As a board, in looking at succession planning, we really want to feed into succession planning and build from within.”
Board titles will be updated in bylaws changing Director to VP. Look for an email about bylaw updates and make your voice count through voting by Wednesday, September 24, 2025.
A Culture of Kindness
Past President Kathleen Cashman Walter spoke about community groups and issued a heartfelt challenge:
“We’ve got several of them and they’re all on our website, but they are focus Communities…Coaches are kind. It’s in our competencies. We’re looking to change this world. This world needs more kindness.”
The Random Acts of Kindness challenge was extended as a way for members to live out the values of coaching in everyday life.
Kelli closed with this encouragement:
“Thank you so much, everybody for joining us. Be kind to yourselves. Start with yourselves and take that challenge… You’ll get your energy back. You’ll be able to help so many more people through coaching or whatever work that you work in. Until next time, be kind.”
What’s Next
The September Town Hall reminded us that transformation does not happen all at once, it happens through people showing up, sharing, and choosing to get involved. As a member-driven organization, the chapter’s strength is empowered by each of our members.
Ready to get involved and “get in where you fit in”? Members are encouraged to find upcoming events, volunteer opportunities, share their wins, and take part in shaping what comes next.
For more details of chapter offerings, visit the ICF New Jersey website - www.icf-nj.org. Be sure to vote on the pending bylaw updates and join us for Coachesgiving on November 12 at Maggiano’s in Bridgewater.
Town Hall recording link: https://vimeo.com/icfnj/sept25townhall?share=copy
Dorisse Shakir-Ullah
Source: September 2025 Town Hall Zoom recording and transcript notes.
0 Comments