During the summer of 2006, Midland was facing numerous challenges regarding its young professional population. At a time when national unemployment levels were low and hiring talented employees was highly competitive throughout the nation and in all industries, Midland employers were finding it very difficult to recruit and retain young people to Midland. In addition, the city seemed to have little appeal to young adults compared to other places, and once they were here they found it very difficult to meet other peers for social networking and community relations.

In 2006 with the help of the City of Midland and the Midland Chamber of Commerce a group of highly motivated young professionals started the Young Professionals of Midland (YPM) here in Midland, TX with the hope of providing its members with social and business contacts thus building relationships and giving members a sense of belonging in the community.

Going on its 4^th year, YPM has accepted over 196 members and has become a well respected community resource and a recruitment tool for the City of Midland. We host numerous social, leadership, and community service events throughout the community and have reached out to over 10 organizations in the last year. 2009 also brought new technological advancements for the group with a new webpage and the use of social media.

For 2010 we have even more events planned and will be reaching out to local community sponsors. We feel this will be our biggest year for growth as an organization. Our recent efforts have contributed to us being recognized in the 2010 Midland’s State of the City address by mayor Wes Perry as well as being featured in the February 2010 article of Southwest Airlines’ Spirit Magazine.

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about the Young Professionals of Midland and our successes in 2009. We look forward to working with you, serving with you and leading the Midland community with you together in 2010.