Torchbearers was founded in 2003 to strengthen the connection between Akron-area nonprofits and young people, as well as to further efforts to attract and retain young people in Greater Akron. The organization is a bridge between established leadership of the community and leaders of the future. Since 2009, Torchbearers has collaborated with Leadership Akron in efforts to advance community leadership in the Akron area, and in early 2013, the two organizations signed a newly drafted affiliation agreement to collaborate more closely on an ongoing basis. The agreement will strengthen the two organizations’ affiliation through coordinated fundraising, ex-officio board representatives and collaboration on marketing efforts. Both organizations will retain independent governance and distinct identities, and Torchbearers will continue to identify as an independent affiliate of Leadership Akron. Torchbearers takes pride in the fact that members contributed more than 1,500 service hours throughout the Akron community in 2014! Organizations that were helped in 2014 by Torchbearers include St. Bernard - St. Mary Hot Meal Program, DECA District XI competition, the Portage Lakes Polar Bear Jump, the Akron Children's Hospital “Have a Heart Do Your Part” Radiothon, Keep Akron Beautiful’s Clean up Akron Month, Earth Day at the Akron Art Museum, Downtown Akron Partnership Green and Clean Day, March of Dimes March for Babies, United Way Day of Action, PAWSibilities Humane Society of Greater Akron-Hudson Wine Festival, the Akron Rotary Camp Cornhole Tournament, the 2014 Gay Games, LeBron James Family Foundation, the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank, and the 3rd Porch Rokr Festival. Twelve years later, Torchbearers membership is over 100 strong and reflects the diversity found across the Greater Akron young professional’s community. With the addition of 42 new members in 2015, Torchbearers plans to be able to accomplish even more in the years ahead.