Leadership Henry’s Class of 2020 hosted a ribbon cutting unveiling their legacy project on Saturday, June 27, at Alexander Park West in McDonough.

  “Big Games” of Chess, Checkers, Jenga, and Connect-4 were donated to each of the four cities in Henry County, for use as each city chooses.

  The legacy project is a gift to Henry County from the most recent graduates of the Leadership Henry program. 

  Taylor Welch, Chair of the “Big Games” project, states that the legacy project is one of the final requirements of the Leadership Henry program and is meant to make an impact on the local community. 

  “With the legacy project, you are leaving a legacy of your class behind for the community,” said Welch.

  For their legacy project, the Class of 2020 chose to give something that families could enjoy together. 

  “Our class really had the desire to do something that the entire community, all of Henry County, would be able to witness,” said Welch. “It was going to be something that was available to the public for families to utilize.”

  After months of trying to decide what legacy they would like to leave behind, the Leadership Henry Class of 2020 decided to bring “Big Games” to Henry County, which are “life-size games for the community to play.”

  Pieces of the games are customized with “Leadership Henry Class of 2020,” so that the community would know who provided the games. 

  The Leadership Henry Class of 2020 also made a special version of Jenga for the City of McDonough.

    “We chose the City of McDonough to have that one that stands out because the Henry County Chamber of Commerce puts on Leadership Henry and the Chamber is located in McDonough, so we wanted them to be a little special,” said Welch.

  The Jenga blocks were hand painted by each of the 30 members of the Leadership Henry Class of 2020 with their names and a decoration of their choice.

  “We wanted our entire class to have a hand in this so they can feel like they did something,” said Welch. “So, for the City of McDonough, we ended up customizing a Jenga set. We bought the wood and we hosted a painting party at Connecting Henry, where all the teammates came and they painted a Jenga piece however they wanted to.”

  Run by the Henry County Chamber of Commerce, the 10-month long Leadership Henry course includes an overnight retreat and one full-day meeting session each month. 

  According to their website, Leadership Henry “seeks to prepare, involve, and sustain leaders from diverse backgrounds who are committed and competent to address community challenges and improve the quality of life in Henry County.” 

  The program is “dedicated to providing participants with an understanding of our county’s history, diversity, justice system, politics, government, economy, education, human services, and healthcare.  Participants are also involved in addressing the needs of our community through a legacy project chosen by the class.”

  For more information about Leadership Henry, visit leadershiphenry.com.