In 2003, a small group of local business owners got together to discuss business issues in the Falcon area. It was the beginning of what is known today as the Falcon Professional Development League.FPDL Vice President Linda Engelman, a Falcon certified public accountant, has been a member of the FPDL for more than two years. She said she became involved with the group for many reasons.”With the FPDL, you are part of a group that knows even more people that own a business,” she said. “You also get general information about the area, and you can refer clients to other businesses.” She said the group also invites other business professionals to speak at the FPDL meetings.”There are a lot of businesses you don’t see when you drive through the parking lot of Safeway or Frankie’s. A lot of people are out here that you wouldn’t even know are out here,” Engelman said.She said a goal of the FPDL is to “bring the business community together.”Engelman said the group has grown over the past three years from about 10 members to about 45 members. Meetings are held at the Falcon Fire Protection District at 7:30 a.m. the first Wednesday of every month. The FPDL also has a social hour every two to three months, she said.The fee to become a member of the FPDL is $60 per year. This money is used, Engelman said, to coordinate activities like the socials or the Falcon Festival.Business professionals are not the only group who benefit from the FPDL. Last year, the FPDL donated $2,000 to the Meadow Lake Airport pilot group to enable them to fly to New Orleans and help with the Hurricane Katrina relief effort.Area kids also benefit. Thomas Cline, FPDL president, said a goal for the group this year is to reinitiate the Jobs for Kids program. He said the program matches kids who want to work with businesses in the area.According to the FPDL Web page, “the vision of FPDL is to introduce and promote the growth and development of Falcon area businesses in a professional and ethical manner.”Edie Fisher, owner of Woolly Works Knit Shop, operates her business out of her home in Latigo Trails and also has a consignment store in Colorado Springs. She joined the FPDL in 2003.”I like to go to meetings to find out what’s going on. New businesses, smaller home-based businesses and older businesses get together and let everyone know who’s here. I think it’s beneficial to know who is in your neighborhood,” she said.Alex Donnell, Colorado Comprehensive Wealth Management president, has worked in financial planning and investments 14 years with executives and executives-in-transition. This is his third year as a member of the FPDL.Donnell said he recommends business owners become involved with the FPDL, “especially for the new people moving into the area because it helps them to know what is going on in the area and about the businesses in Falcon. It’s amazing how many businesses are in the Falcon area.”Cline said the next business professional social is scheduled for March 17 at Espresso at Staffords at 5 p.m.For more information about the FPDL, visit www.fpdl.org.
