Exploring Life & Business with Kayleigh Gratz of JCI Michigan

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kayleigh Gratz

Hi Kayleigh, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I had grown up with the Jaycees, with parents who were very active in the organization since I was two years old. A significant portion of my childhood was spent attending Jaycee events around the state with my parents- everything from Easter Egg Hunts, Haunted Houses, camping weekends, Christmas Caroling at nursing homes, building playgrounds, gathering donations for a family who lost everything in a house fire, Hometown Idol (a local version of American Idol), etc. I officially joined the Allegan Jaycees in June of 2017, upon moving home after college.

I became very involved in my home chapter and participated in events such as our community’s annual Easter Egg Hunt, a fundraiser selling beer at a Renaissance Faire in Galesburg/Augusta, providing the manpower for the beer sales at the Allegan County Fair concerts, an Oktoberfest celebration, a Christmas Adopt-a-Family program working with a local elementary school to provide Christmas gifts to families in need, and holiday parties for individuals with disabilities. As I became more involved, I started chairing projects, and coming up with new projects to run for our members- including a dairy farm tour, an 80th Anniversary party for the chapter, and more socials. The dairy farm tour and 80th Anniversary Party were both projects that got submitted and received national recognition- the first time my chapter had achieved that in at least 15 years.

When my chapter was in danger of folding, I was able to recruit enough members to retain our charter, and have helped lead my chapter to becoming a force within the Allegan community once again.

As I got more involved, I also joined the JCI South Kent chapter in 2018 as a dual member, and began getting involved in projects there. In 2022, I joined the JCI Michigan Board of Directors as a District Director- serving as the connection between the chapters in my district and the state board. During that year, I developed more networking skills, and got the opportunity to travel to other chapters and assist them. I also attended JCI USA North American Academy during this time- which was an incredible experience, meeting and working alongside members from all across the country in different walks of life, who all shared in the same passion for the work we do as Jaycees. It was also a great experience in boosting my confidence in my ability to be a leader. That year, my college friend and I went on a vacation in Switzerland- while I was there, I reached out to Swiss JCI chapters and told them I was a JCI Michigan member who would be in their city. One chapter met up with me at the train station, and spent the afternoon with me- they gave me a little tour of the city, and they took me to a raclette restaurant for lunch. It was an incredible opportunity I wouldn’t have had if it weren’t for being a Jaycee.

In 2023, I served as the JCI Michigan Membership Vice President. I began to transition into a larger state role, maintaining relationships with all chapters in Michigan and helping guide them through whatever struggles they were facing. I also attended JCI World Congress in Zurich, Switzerland that year (where I got to meet up with those members I met the year prior). World Congress enabled me to connect with members from multiple countries, but also provided unique experiences to learn about Swiss culture.

Last year, I served as the 2024 Programming Vice President. In this role, I oversaw our statewide programming. Including awarding projects for their impact on the community or chapter, and professional skills competitions (public speaking, writing, art, etc).

In September, I was elected to serve as the 101st JCI Michigan President for 2025- being the first member from the Allegan Jaycees to hold that role. As State President, I also sit on the JCI USA Board of Directors. I am so excited, yet nervous for this role. I have a lot of ideas to continue to provide opportunities for our members, and help them develop their own leadership skills. My theme for the year is Spark Your Legacy, My goals for the year include reintroducing Outstanding Young Michigander, a program designed to recognized Michigan individuals between the ages of 18-40 who are doing incredible work in their communities and secure more partnerships for JCI Michigan.

Professionally, my career has nothing to do with nonprofit management, I have a Bachelor’s in Animal Science, and when I started as a Jaycee I was working on a large pig farm. Now, I am a senior pathology services technician in a biopharmaceutical research lab. I also am one of 5 registered chinchilla breeders in Michigan, and occasionally take in rescues/surrendered chinchillas.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No, but growth never is. When I first joined, we had some individuals in my chapter who were in it for their own gain, and were behaving rather poorly at events. It negatively reflected on the chapter as a whole, and we had to remove the members and reset. We also lost one of our largest fundraisers, the beer sales at a renaissance faire, due to the faire closing. In 2020, I went through our roster and cut out all the “paper members”- members who weren’t attending anything, yet the chapter was still paying dues for. Then COVID hit, and we couldn’t replace those members. In fact, we couldn’t do anything at all that year- all of our major programming could not happen due to public safety. It was a hard transition, and during that time we lost many more members. A chapter needs a minimum of 10 members to retain their charter. The following year, once the world had opened back up, I recruited and got us to a safe number of members again. Since then, there’s been interpersonal conflicts within my home chapter and the state to navigate and challenges surrounding running various projects to face. But all of these challenges have given me valuable lessons in effective leadership, and have helped shaped who I am today.

Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about JCI Michigan?
Junior Chamber International (JCI, also known as Jaycees), is a non-profit membership organization for individuals between the ages of 18-40. Our mission is to provide development opportunities to young people to create positive change. JCI is present in 144 nations, and has a focus of 3 main areas- community service, personal skills development, and networking.

JCI was founded in 1920, with the idea to bridge the gap between needing a job to get experience, but experience to get a job. By getting involved in community-based projects, members gain experience and skills that they can take to their careers. However, JCI isn’t just limited to professionals. Our members come from all walks of life, and find different reasons to stay.

We provide the tools to members to make whatever event/project/etc they want to see in their community happen. One of the projects I chaired was a craft beer festival. I work in a lab, so learning how to go about applying for a liquor license, obtaining liquor liability insurance, marketing, booking bands, a sound guy, setting up a website to sell tickets, going on the news to promote it- all things that I would not have known how to do, would have had no clue how to start on my own, had I not been a Jaycee.

Chapters also allow members to share their passions. JCI Kalamazoo has a skill series- previous projects have included “how to play D&D” and “how to make bratwurst”. They have also hosted a K-pop Bash- just an event to celebrate K-pop. JCI South Kent hosted their first Fantasy Gala this year, a gala event with entertainment, where guests were encouraged to imagine their favorite character to cosplay in formal attire.

There are always community service initiatives going on around the state. The Mount Pleasant Jaycees provided over $22,000 this year in grants to various local organizations, all from money they raised at the Mount Pleasant Craft Beer Festival. the Frankenmuth Jaycees do the same with money raised at World Expo of Beer. The Ludington Area Jaycees have Putt Putt for a Purpose- they own a mini-golf course and the money they raise at the course goes to grants to local causes. The Ludington Jaycees also organize and run Ludington’s Freedom Festival- the parade and fireworks for 4th of July. The Livonia Jaycees host an annual Murder Mystery dinner, each year picking a different cause to donate the funds to. JCI Greater Muskegon organizes an annual Veterans Resource Deployment Stand Down and Job Fair, providing veterans and their families with a way to learn about resources and services available to them. The Allegan Jaycees, JCI South Kent, Westland Jaycees, JCI Lansing, Great Lakes Bay Jaycees, and many more offer Easter events for their communities. The Ann Arbor Jaycees do an annual Bountiful Baskets project to provide Thanksgiving meals to those in need. The Redford Jaycees and JCI South Kent both host Cookies with Santa events for children. The Grand Rapids Junior Chamber utilized a fashion show to raise funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Every chapter has a different culture and different values- which is incredible! The Wyandotte Jaycees has more of a focus on community service type projects, The Grand Rapids Junior Chamber has more professional development/training opportunities to help advance your career.

The Junior Chamber has a deep history. The Gerald R. Ford International Airport began as a Grand Rapids Junior Chamber project. 6 US Presidents were Jaycees. JCI USA played an integral part in granting Alaska and Hawaii statehood, passing seatbelt legislation, and the creation of US Air Mail and US Wildlife Federation. Junior Chamber International is the only other organization allowed to use the UN logo.

JCI sets itself apart from other volunteer organizations and young professionals groups by providing opportunities in multiple areas, and doing so with a international network. This organization has built fences at a donkey rescue near Lansing, but also have given a member the chance to travel to 8 other countries in their role as Assistant to the Junior Chamber International President. We have hosted trivia socials but also have advocated on Capitol Hill for United to Beat Malaria with the United Nations Foundation.

JCI chapters, no matter the location, create a positive change in their area. At the 2019 Asia-Pacific Conference, the 2nd place project reduced infant mortality rates in their area by 33%. The first place project that year ousted a terrorist ring affecting 5 nations. Those incredible projects were run by JCI chapters, who had the same training and resources available as we do in JCI Michigan. When you connect with the chapter that reduced infant mortality and ask how they achieved it? They fundraised to provide better ultrasound equipment for their local hospital. Similar to how Michigan chapters fundraise to provide grants to causes in their areas.

Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
Being a Jaycee is the classic “you get out of it what you put in”.

Find a chapter local to you, and attend one of their meetings or events. Someone that’s already there will welcome you. Have an open mind, participate in things, and get to know people in the chapter.

Stay involved- you don’t have to attend EVERYTHING, but the more involved you are, the more you’ll get out of it. Join a committee for a project. Don’t be afraid of failure- that’s the beauty of Junior Chamber, there is safety in failing. We won’t fire you because the project you chaired didn’t meet it’s break even point. What’s more important is learning from that, what would you do differently next time?

And most importantly, have fun. You will meet incredible people and have some great opportunities handed to you through the JCI.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://jcimi.org
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/jcimichigan
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/JCIMichigan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/jcimichigan/
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@mijaycees