DENVER — John Dill is originally from Oklahoma, the home of the former U.S. Ambassador to Luxembourg Perle Mesta, who was dubbed "the hostess with the mostest."
Those shared Sooner roots and hospitality skills came in handy last week for Dill, the president of the Credit Union Association of Colorado and Wyoming. He maintained a full schedule entertaining visitors and networking, playing the role of emissary of credit unions.
"It was a good chance to show off this city as a world class place and to make the case for credit unions," he said in an interview in his association's new headquarters near the State Capitol here; the new digs were dedicated the week before the convention. "We're a place that reaches high and performs well," he said.
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Dill wore several hats during the convention. He was his association's public face at events, such as the handing over of keys to the new house credit unions helped build for Travis Strong, an injured Iraq War veteran. That was the culmination of the work that the association did in coordinating much of the project, along with CUNA and Homes For Our Troops. His days often began at 8 a.m. and lasted until almost midnight.
"This social stuff is fun, but the pace is better suited for younger folks," said the gray-haired 56-year-old.
The Credit Union Association of Colorado also hosted several social and political-related events throughout the week. His staff also provided logistical support for convention attendees from other credit union leagues. This took the form of providing shuttle service between events and also letting visitors set up camp in their offices to check email and get other work done.
Dill, who was the top economic development official under former Colorado Gov. Roy Romer, was involved in putting together the convention from the time Denver beat out New York City for the rights to host the event.
He was on the city's host committee that helped raise about $100 million to put on the convention. There were some tough times, and the mayor was quoted once as having second thoughts because of the difficulties involved in raising some of the funds.
Dill, who saw to it that his association gave $10,000, said the key to fundraising on a large scale is devising and implementing a strategic plan that wastes as little time as possible when contacting prospective donors.
"The key is knowing who to talk to, and who not to bother with," he said.
Though Dill was involved in other large-scale events–such as the G-8 Summit that took place in Denver in 1995–it was nothing compared to the Democratic National Convention, the first political convention held in the Mile High City since 1908.
"The costs and logistics of security are incredible. And the G-8 Summit was a fairly large operation, but this is even bigger," he said.
Dill, who has been in his current position since March 2004, was new to the credit union movement at the time. He had his own lobbying practice and before that worked for Romer and in Washington for former U.S. Rep. James Jones (D-Okla.),
Dill's work at the convention gave a boost to his association's stepped-up political activities. It hired a former labor organizer to beef up its grassroots efforts and has worked on several high-profile races. There are 55 credit union members, executives and volunteers among the state's delegations to the two national party conventions.
"We never oppose people, we just back our friends," he said. "And that takes the form of phone banks and other get-out-the-vote efforts and raising money."
Dill said the political activity has been rewarding though tiring at times. While there is always the risk of losing–whether an election or a convention bid–the prospect of not accepting a formidable challenge is unappealing to him.
"You can't win if you don't play," he said.
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