The “Jacksonville Legacy Series” from Leadership Jacksonville will record for posterity conversations with the city’s most significant leaders and make the recordings available to the community as a resource.
Isabelle Spence, Leadership Jacksonville executive director, and Kent Lindsey, co-founder of Lindsey Films, were the guests Monday at the Rotary Club of Jacksonville and spoke about the series.
Lindsey’s company has produced a 30-minute “video conversation” with Frances Bartlett Kinne, chancellor emeritus of Jacksonville University. It is the first installment in the series and is scheduled to be broadcast at 8 p.m. Nov. 15 on WJCT Channel 7.
“We are very proud to be able to share this series with the community,” Spence said.
Lindsey said the video series was inspired by the “National Visionary Leadership Project,” a collection of documentaries that showcase the contributions of African-American community leaders who have helped shape history.
Lindsey described the format as “a first-person account of what makes a person tick.” He said eight hours of conversation with Kinne was recorded and then edited to the half-hour documentary.
In addition to producing a lasting record, there also is an educational aspect to the project.
“We hope this series will inspire and motivate future leaders who will learn from those who are true leaders,” said Lindsey.
The goal is to produce up to six documentaries in the series each year. Candidates are nominated by a committee and then Leadership Jacksonville’s board of directors selects the subjects.
Lindsey said a documentary about civil rights pioneer Alton Yates will be the second in the series and former Mayor Jake Godbold also will be interviewed for the project.
The programs will be available at Leadership Jacksonville’s website, leadershipjax.org, and on YouTube.
“The series highlights our city’s human capital. We also believe the series can be used by the chamber of commerce to market Jacksonville,” Lindsey said.
Leadership Jacksonville was founded in 1976. Spence said the organization’s flagship program is a nine-month class through which adults who are established as leaders spend one day each month learning about the community.
“The graduates serve as community trustees and work to improve the quality of life,” she said.
The not-for-profit organization also offers programs for youth leaders, college students and corporate executives. Spence said the two-day corporate program is designed to help executives who are new to North Florida become more connected with the area.
“They will know where to place their corporate and personal energy to better serve the community,” she said.
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