About the Series
As part of CIVIC’s 30th anniversary, we’re highlighting alumni and exploring the unique connections they share through their CIVIC experiences.
As a member of CIVIC Leadership Institute’s inaugural Class of 1996, George Birdsong helped set the foundation for what would become a 30-year legacy of leadership across Hampton Roads. At the time, he didn’t fully realize he was part of something new, just that it was an opportunity worth saying yes to.
“I was actually asked to be in the class,” he recalled. “I didn’t realize it was the first time it was being done, but I’ve always been interested in civic matters.” That decision, he says, proved to be a defining one. What stood out most wasn’t any single program day, but the relationships formed along the way. “The greatest thing about it was exposing me… to other people who were future leaders,” he said, noting the camaraderie that developed over time and the way it created a lasting sense of connection.
Thirty years later, those connections remain. George describes CIVIC as more than a leadership program: it’s a network that continues to show up. “You keep going back to various events, and you see the people you were with 20, 30 years ago,” he said. “When someone reaches out, and you know them, it makes you more willing to get involved.” That willingness to show up, he explained, is what turns a group into something more meaningful: a community.
For George, CIVIC expanded his perspective beyond his home base of Suffolk to the broader Hampton Roads region. “It broadened my perspective,” he said, reflecting on how the experience shifted his thinking from local to regional impact. That shift carried forward into decades of civic and charitable involvement, opening doors to new opportunities and strengthening his commitment to service.
He describes one of CIVIC’s greatest strengths not just as developing leaders, but as building something larger. “Programs like CIVIC help create a community of leaders,” he said. “That community calls on each other and builds upon each other and expands year after year.”
When asked what CIVIC taught him about leadership, his answer was grounded in purpose. “Leadership is getting involved in good causes,” he said. “If people don’t get involved, we’re probably headed in the wrong direction.”
Looking back, George sees CIVIC’s growth over the past three decades as a testament to its impact. From an inaugural class stepping into the unknown to a well-established regional institution, the program has continued to evolve while staying true to its core purpose. His advice to future participants is simple: say yes. “If you have an opportunity to participate, I don’t think there’s any way possible it could not be beneficial to you.”
