BELMONT — A man who served Eastern Ohio at the community, state and national levels left a legacy that is still making a positive impact on young people.

Union Local and Harrison Central high school students heard and spoke with experienced community leaders Friday during the inaugural Ohio Eastern Charlie Wilson Leadership Program inside the Union Local Middle School Auditorium, organized by Ohio University Eastern.

OUE Dean David Rohall said the program was made possible through the generosity of the Wilson family following the death of Charles A. Wilson Jr., a former state representative, state senator, congressman and local businessman. The Democrat died in 2013 after suffering a stroke.

His son Jason Wilson, who worked with OUE to establish the program, could not be reached by phone Friday for comment.

“They provided some funding for our campus to provide leadership training for young people in the community,” Rohall said, adding that Friday’s event was the inaugural program activity.

“We’ve got a lot of high school students, but also some college students to learn a little bit about leadership skills, resume writing and other things to help be successful in the community,” Rohall said. “We’ve been working with our partners at Harrison Central and Union Local to select a number of students to come up and hopefully learn some important skills and become leaders of the community.”

He said there were more than 20 Union Local students and more than 10 Harrison Central students taking part. The talks included activities and discussions with the speakers.

Audrey Brahler, owner of Giacinta’s Gelato and Caffe, spoke about entrepreneurism and her steps in starting a business.

Ohio Rep. Don Jones, R-Freeport, is also a business leader and educator from Harrison County. He spoke about the early groundwork he laid in the area before pursuing his political career. He also talked about his experiences wrestling in high school and as a teacher of agriculture, pointing out that both sports and clubs such as Future Farmers of America provide valuable opportunities to build character and skills.

“I look at myself as a servant leader because I serve others,” he said, adding that when he was in his high school FFA, he took on duties he found less than ideal. “It’s a job that had to be done.”

Jones also emphasized the importance of putting the team first.

“You need people around you to support you in different aspects of your life,” he said. “Nobody wins anything by themselves.”

Johna Metcalf, Americorps program manager with the nonprofit Rural Action, said her talk focused on leadership in a community setting, with pointers for “asset mapping,” or determining the most valuable and marketable parts of one’s community.

“Hoping they think about their communities in a nurturing way and want to step into those leadership roles,” she said.

Metcalf also touched on subjects such as resume writing and how to give an “elevator pitch.”

“What today is about is not only getting the students energized and thinking about leading in the communities and their future, but also about those building blocks,” she said.

OUE professor emeritus Michael McTeague also spoke.

Rohall said organizers sought variety in selecting speakers.

“We wanted to get people who are leaders in private industry, government, nonprofit,” he said. “It’s a broad range of people to give them ideas, because there are different ways you can be leaders. We also discussed ways to be a leader without even being a leader – that is, to have integrity.”

Participating students included Ava Carson of Hopedale and Jillian Foreman of Cadiz who attend Harrison Central High School. They said they looked forward to expanding their skills and leadership abilities. Foreman said they received many insights.

“What I found really interesting was not just the talk about leadership, but also the talk about being a follower, which is equally as important,” she said.

Carson commented about the variety of community leaders.

“I think it was nice we got to speak to entrepreneurs from around the community and different members who brought different assets,” she said, adding that she looked forward to hearing from Jones as a former educator and graduate of Cadiz High School with roots in the area. “He is one of us, and we’re excited to hear what he has to say.”

Foreman agreed.

“Hearing a personal perspective from someone who’s so influential in the community,” she said was important.

Foreman is considering a career as a pilot and looking into joining the U.S. Air Force. Carson would like to pursue a degree in the medical field.

John McFarland of Martins Ferry who attends Ohio University Eastern majoring in political science and journalism also participated.

“I just think it’s a great opportunity, especially for the younger people in our community, to see what it’s like to be not only a leader but a pillar of our community,” he said. “It’s a different kind of a world today, and people like Ms. Metcalf coming out and teaching people how to create resumes and stuff like that is really building a lot of life skills for young people.”

He added that he is also inspired by the example set by his father, retired Martins Ferry police chief John McFarland, and his leadership role in the community.

“Leadership really needs to be mutual respect between a leader and their followers and members of their team,” the younger McFarland said. “This is also a great opportunity for people to see the overall greatness that they have with Ohio University Eastern right down the road. I feel that’s an untapped resource that a lot of people don’t think about.”