Club Meeting Notes: 2/2/2021

Posted by Art Bukowski

President Mack Beers called the meeting to order and administered the pledge.

Sid Lammers offered some excellent thoughts of gratitude and reflection sometimes attributed to the late Anthony Bourdain:

You can always tell when a person has worked in a restaurant. There's an empathy that can only be cultivated by those who've stood between a hungry mouth and a $28 pork chop, a special understanding of the way a bunch of motley misfits can be a family. Service industry work develops the "soft skills" recruiters talk about on LinkedIn — discipline, promptness, the ability to absorb criticism, and most important, how to read people like a book. The work is thankless and fun and messy, and the world would be a kinder place if more people tried it. With all due respect to my former professors, I've long believed I gained more knowledge in kitchens, bars, and dining rooms than any college could even hold.

Awesome Allison Beers spoke on behalf of her husband, Sunrise clubber Adam Beers, regarding that club's Superbowl Squares fundraiser. It is their main fundraiser for the entire year, so please be sure to help out!! Squares are $35 or two for $60. For more information on how the game played, see the attached document. Visit www.tcsunriserotary.com to buy squares.

Ramona Pleva reminded everyone about the Feb. 12 blood drive. Schedule by clicking the following link and get with Ramona for any questions. https://donate.michigan.versiti.org/donor/schedules/drive_schedule/135644

George Powell invited everyone to a virtual wine tasting of O'Brien wine on Feb 18. Participants can go buy the wine at Blue Goat, then join a Zoom meeting hosted by the winemakers to taste the wine with other participants and learn more. Send Kathy an email if you are interested and she'll supply the Zoom link.

Traverse Connect CEO Warren Call introduced the speaker, Camille Hoisington. Camille is Director of Strategic Projects at Traverse Connect, where she leads the charge on talent attraction initiatives, the Scale-Up North awards and efforts to enhance the creative and cultural economy in our area. Prior to joining Traverse Connect, she worked on programs for startups at 20Fathoms and Boomerang Catapult.

Camille gave a detailed presentation on the Creative Coast initiative, which is designed to attract talented, creative people in the prime of their careers (ages 35-49ish) to the Traverse City region. The region has seen a decline in that demographic for many years, and the goal is to shore it up by showcasing the region's offerings and attracting high quality workers. Studies have shown that many younger people put an extremely high emphasis on quality of life, and many times seek out vibrant, beautiful places to live first and foremost before worrying about their careers (where before what, so to speak).

Creative Coast is focusing on the "low hanging fruit" - people who already work remotely and aren't tied down to any particular place. The Covid-19 pandemic has created additional opportunities, as it has spurred an even greater migration of people from populated urban areas to less-populated, rural ones. One study showed Michigan number 5 on the top 10 list of inbound states for Covid-driven moves.

The website (https://michiganscreativecoast.com/) has a job board and tons of information about moving to and living in Traverse City. Visitors to the site can even connect with so-called "Northern Navigators" (local professionals who can answer questions and provide guidance about living and working here).

Head to the website and use the coupon code "greatcreative" for a free copy of the initiative's Creative Coast Guide.