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| Greetings!
Welcome to this issue of the Flint Diaspora. It's hard to believe that summer is finally just around the corner. Remember all the invitations to participate in Flint Club functions that you received over the past couple of months? Well, that rush of spring activity has passed so in this issue we take time to reflect.
Also, we share information about our next fundraising event - a beer tasting! See details below.
Happy Reading... |
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Beer Tasting Fundraiser
Come experience brewery fresh beer samples and delectable delicacies by Redwood Lodge restaurant & micro-brewery on June 22 at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are $30.00 and can be purchased by calling Flint Club at (810) 233-5468 or Redwood Lodge at (810) 233-8000. Half of the proceeds from this event will benefit Flint Club. Support a good cause and have a great time! Hope to see you there.
Location:Redwood Lodge
5304 Gateway Centre Dr.
Flint, MI 48507
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Live It, Love It Reception-the Made In Flint Awards
The Greater Flint Arts Council was bursting with art, music and Flint pride the last Friday night in April when Flint Club supporters gathered for the Flint: Live it, Love it Reception featuring our annual Made in Flint Awards. With Gregory Ellis and the Whisky Brothers Band playing on stage, folks enjoyed good food and a gallery of art by students at Alpha Montessori. People caught up with old friends and met new individuals who were shared the same passion for the community as they did.
The evening progressed with a formal program to honor some of the extraordinary people in and from Flint. With Leonard Jones, a local business owner and Flint Club Board Member, as the Master of Ceremony, our program started with honoring five outstanding Pen Pal Program Mentors. All mentors commit to writing one letter a week to a student in the Flint Community Schools but these individuals went above and beyond by visiting the classroom and sending treats on a regular basis. Their dedication was appreciated by Flint Club but more importantly by the student whose lives they touched.
Next we recognized Ladel Lewis with a Made in Flint Award in the Community Servant category for her selfless volunteerism and dedication to youth in our community. Our evening was concluded with our Made in Flint Industry Expert Awards. This year Flint Club honored three Flint natives with expertise in the film industry. Ben Cain, Alex Grossman, and Michael Ramsdell all returned to their hometown to share film industry insight at our "Quiet on the Set" Symposium (see recap below). We were honored to have them back in our community and would like thank them for their willingness to give back.
Special thanks goes to our volunteers, Flint Club staff and Board Members, the GFAC, Gregory Ellis and the Whisky Brothers Band, the honorees, and of course the individuals who came out to support such a wonderful event.
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"Quiet on the Set" Flint Club Film Symposium
"Scene One, Take One!" and "Shhh... roll cameras," are just a few phrases that were heard throughout the day during Flint Club's Inaugural Symposium - "Quiet on the Set". This symposium was hosted by Flint Club on Saturday, April 25.
Our all-star, expert line up included Ben Cain - actor (recently starred in Heroes and CSI: Miami www.bencain.net), Alex Grossman - Director (just launched a new web series called "Chunky Apples" www.menonthestreet.com), Michael Ramsdell - Producer (received numerous awards for "Montclair" www.underthehoodproductions.com) and Sultan Sharief - Director/script writer (works in the Michigan Film Industry www.bilalstand.com).
Flint Club welcomed almost 100 people into the Durant -Dort Office building for this occasion. The range of ages in attendance was phenomenal and included middle school students from around the county all the way up to senior citizens.
Sessions ranged from an overview of the industry (Hollywood 101), discussion about the functions of producers (Behind the Scenes: What Producers really do), information and a walk through of the director's role (Are you the Next Steven Spielberg? Ins & Outs of Directing), how to craft your script (From Concept to Reality: Getting your story ready for the big screen), to honing your acting skills (Break a Leg: Entering the world of acting & improvisation) and so much more.
We watched as participants dissected their scripts to create something the industry would deem acceptable. And upstairs, there was laughter, awe, and tears as aspiring actors/actresses participated in the "mock" audition process.
Kudos to all of the participants who were willing to try the scenes and submit their current "works in progress" for professional scrutiny.
The day was a phenomenal success in that every participant left with some practical working knowledge that could benefit their personal endeavors. We have received several requests about the next symposium. Please share your thoughts, comments and suggestions with us.
Our film industry experts are still more than willing to share their knowledge and answer questions so submit your comments and inquiries to sonyita@flintclub.org. |
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Pamper in the Office
Downtown employees and residents from across Genesee County gathered at the Durant-Dort Building for the 3rd Annual Flint Club Pamper event.
Ken VanWagoner from Good Beans Café personally provided Italian sodas. Wonderfully relaxing massages came from both Cyril Salon & Spa and Gynesis Therapeutic Massage. Vacation Giveaways by James Travel Agency included a 7-night condominium stay and a 3 day - 2 night hotel stay in locations selected by the lucky winners.
Several brave women tried out new spring and summer colors with Mary Kay representatives. Onlookers learned about total health and wellness with associates from Young Living Essential Oils and the royal treatment was capped off with eyebrow waxes and paraffin wax manicures also provided by Cyril.
"We understand that everyone needs to take a moment to relax, refresh and rejuvenate their minds, bodies and spirits in order to continually give their best in all endeavors." says Shantell Read. Many of the women who attended expressed the need to have another Pamper event soon and the desire to stay for longer than a lunch period. Kudos to all participants for another successful Flint Club event and next time, we hope that some guys will join the party!
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 Drive: Flint Area Professionals in Motion
Speed Networking Event
On April 29th, Robin Riddell facilitated an exciting networking workshop for member of Drive. She shared networking and communication tips and then participants put her advice into action during a speed networking activity. It was a great opportunity for Drive members to expand their professional knowledge free of charge. A few participants have even been spotted in the community applying their new learned skills in their everyday activities. Thank you Robin for such an enjoyable and informative evening!
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Dr. Michael Cross Memorial Golf Outing
On May 9th, a little rain didn't stop 116 golfers from teeing off in the first annual Dr. Michael Cross Memorial Golf Outing. Friends, family, Flint Club and community members alike gathered for the fun-filled day in memory of the late Dr. Cross and to help raise money for two scholarship funds. Last year, Flint Club's annual service scholarship was renamed the Dr. Michael Cross Service Scholarship and is awarded to a local high school senior who completes 100 hours of community service. A new scholarship will be awarded by Cross Family Services this year to a deserving student planning to enter a human service field. Both scholarships honor Michael's dedication to community and youth.
During the Outing, golfers braved their way through the soggy course encountering rain and wind, fun surprises like the popular Birthday Cake table (Happy Birthday Mr. Cross and Kim), and the Maxie's Million Dollar Hole. The winning team was from Faithful Companions who shot a thirteen under par. Congratulations Jason Santeiu, Joel Cheesman, Jason Dembny, Chaz Kornegay! Chaz Kornegay was given the chance to shoot for a million dollars. Although he only walked away with a t-shirt and not the million dollars, he has a great story to tell. Special thanks to Maxie's for sponsoring the million dollar hole!
Around 3:30, the golfers moved inside to join others who had gathered inside for dinner. There was delicious food, drinks, raffles, door prizes, a live action and lots of laughs inside of IMA/Brookwood that evening. The evening continued to an after party at Maxie's for late evening pizza and drinks. We look forward to an even bigger and better event next year!
Flint Club and Cross Family Services would like to thank the participants, sponsors, IMA/Brookwood, volunteers, Zodiac printing, the staff at Cross Veterinary Clinic, and the Cross family for helping make this day so successful.
Special thanks to Wesley Cross. Your dedication and enthusiasm for this event was amazing, thank you for all of your hard work!
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Baker College of Flint
Brings Good News
Who said all the talent has left Flint? Students from Baker College of Flint just recently defended their championship title for the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition Championship - and won!
The contest was hosted by The University of Texas at San Antonio's Center for Infrastructure Assurance and Security (CIAS), and held in San Antonio, TX. There were eight eight member teams that had to operate and maintain a business network all while being under cyber attack.
The 2009 national competition featured Baker College of Flint, Michigan, California State Polytechnic University at Pomona, Dakota State University, Northeastern University, Texas A&M University, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, University of Pittsburgh, and University of Washington.
Each teams' task was to make an "operational" network from a fictional business complete with e-mail, Web sites, data files, and users. Each team had to correct problems on their network, perform typical business tasks, and defend their networks from a red team that generated live, hostile activity throughout the competition.
Once again, congratulations on a job well done!
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