Robin Reshard speaks with Escambia County schools Superintendent Malcolm Thomas at a Pensacola Network event in 2014. / Photo by Michael Spooneybarger

The Pensacola Network is celebrating two years and 2,000 connections on Friday evening, but the genesis of the networking events spans 22 years and began on a short drive down U.S. 98.

“I started the networking events over in Fort Walton Beach 22 years ago,” said Lloyd Reshard, who along with his wife Robin, runs the monthly events. “People from Pensacola would come over and ask, ‘Why don’t you start one here (Pensacola)?’”

When Lloyd and Robin were married eight years ago, he moved to Pensacola and the questions about networking events became more plentiful. Lloyd knew the interest for networking within the African-American business community was there, but unfortunately for him, the time never was.

“For me it was always too much of a challenge,” Lloyd said. “Then, when I retired three years ago, I had more time and I started to reach out to folks like Gulf Power to see if they were interested in helping.”

Gulf Power was interested. They sponsored the Pensacola Network’s first networking event in July 2013. And the response from the community was more than the Reshards expected.

“That first crowd was something like 146 people through the evening,” Lloyd said. “It was very successful.”

According the Lloyd, the crowd connected naturally at DeVilliers Square that night.

“What was interesting about that first event was that we really didn’t tell anyone anything about what to expect,” Lloyd said. “They just all came in and started talking to each other.”

Robin Reshard says there was only one word to describe what they saw that night.

“It was amazing,” she said. “It was amazing that we had corporate, community and collegiate people come. I think those sectors of the community really came together and made it work.”

The numbers for the events have stayed consistently over one hundred throughout its two years and that is all do to the people who come, according to Robin.

“The retention rate and word of mouth have been significant,” she said. “People are not only coming, but they are coming back and bringing others.”

The personal touch

The Pensacola Network’s approach is different and that feel makes a difference to those that attend.

“Our events are community based and not organizational, like say the Chamber,” Lloyd said. “Everyone is invited to come and get connected to community leaders, business leaders, politicians – whoever may be at the event.”

And the Pensacola Network has had an impressive list of guests over its two years.

“Our first, since Lloyd was forming this with Gulf Power, was Stan Connally (Gulf Power’s president and CEO),” Robin said. “We had him in to talk about strengthening relationships and the power of connecting business to the community.”

Others who addressed the meetings have been Escambia County Commissioner Lumon May on opportunities with the county and Bentina Terry, who discussed the RESTORE money available to businesses. Community leaders who have participated include State Representative Clay Ingram, Escambia County Sherriff David Morgan, Pensacola Mayor Ashton Hayward, Escambia County School Superintendent Malcolm Thomas, entrepreneur Quint Studer and more.

Unlike other meetings, however, where a speaker would normally address the crowd from a podium, the Pensacola Network approach is much more personal.

“We do an hour and a half of networking, 15 minutes of question and answers and Robin interviews the guest,” Lloyd said. “It’s a conversation. It’s a way for the audience to get to know the guest a lot better.”

Robin believes the connections made are much deeper when the audience can get a better idea of who the guest is and that the guests often have their eyes opened as well.

“I think people start engaging differently,” she said. “When people come to speak to the minority community, they often think the conversation is going to be about problems, but we try to speak to opportunities and possibilities as well.”

A new dynamic

he frank discussion of not only issues, but possible solutions, was something that wasn’t really happening in the minority community before the events began.

“When you think about our African-American community, before the Pensacola Network began there wasn’t really a place for minorities to get together and share ideas together to help the community grow,” Lloyd said. “Ideas come from people talking to each other, but if you don’t ever get together to talk, the community can never move forward.”

Empowerment is also what networking brings to people, according to Lloyd.

“Networking gets the ideas going amongst people,” he said. “Instead of crying out about what can other people do for me, instead asking ‘what can I do for myself?’”

Bringing that level of discourse is important to people, not only in business, but also in their community.

“It’s a way for people to come together and say we want some attention paid to this issue,” Robin said. “It’s saying, ‘I want my idea to be valued and respected. It’s the first step in making progress.”

Celebrating two years

On Friday night, those who have experienced that conversation and empowerment are coming together.

“It’s going to be a celebration,” Robin said. “We are going to celebrate everyone who has made an impact and that’s everyone whose come - our attendees, corporate and community partners, media - everyone.”

The networking on Friday will also be on a different level than a normal event.

“A lot of our corporate and founding sponsors are coming and it’s a perfect opportunity for the layperson in the community to connect with these folks,” Lloyd said. “Beyond that, a half dozen of our sponsors are also going to have vendor tables and there will be some really great door prizes."

But at its heart, the celebration event will stay on mission: connecting people to their community.

“It’s really about recognizing two years of ideas, possibilities and opportunities,” Robin said. “And with around 100 people attending every month, it’s about those 2000 connections having been made.”