Meetings: Minnesota's Hospitality Journal

Tomorrow: Earth Hour 2009

Special Events has a nice article on some venues in Toronto and Arizona that plan to participate in Earth Hour 2009 by shutting off their lights tomorrow, March 28, between 8:30 and 9:30 p.m. 

Begun in Sydney in 2007, Earth Hour is organized by the World Wildlife Fund to raise awareness for global warming. Last year, 50 million people switched off their lights in support, and world landmarks like the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Rome’s Colosseum, the Sydney Opera House and the Coca Cola billboard in Times Square all went dark. This year, lights at the Acropolis in Athens, the pyramids in Giza and the Empire State Building will also participate. Will you?

--Marni Ginther
Assistant Editor

Jonathan Tisch on MSNBC

Tired of seeing the media and government officials bash the hospitality industry, Jonathan Tisch, CEO of Loews Hotels, and other hotel executives took their message directly to the president: Stop bad-mouthing the industry.

Tisch was a guest on MSNBC's Morning Joe to talk about what he said to President Obama, and what the hospitality industry means to the country's economic health. Watch the video here. Also, if you want to listen to our podcast interview with Jonathan Tisch, about his book Chocolates on the Pillow Aren't Enough, click here.

--Joel Schettler

Editor

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Rock the Cause Campus

In our winter issue, I wrote a profile on Scott Herold, founder of local organization Rock the Cause. At the end of the article, I made mention that Herold was thinking about bringing Rock the Cause chapters to different college campuses - to spread the philanthropic bug to the next generation. Turns out Herold has made some headway in that area. From the press release I just received:

With the help of University of St. Thomas Students and the MEC of St. Olaf we have created a program called Rock the Cause Campus that we believe will make a significant impact on a new generation of giving.

Rock the Cause Campus has many benefits. It will help Rock the cause and the non-profits we partner with become part of campus life. The students learn how to produce and promote a philanthropic music event and a volunteer drive. They will also learn about new opportunities to give and the social issues that are facing young people. Rock the Cause works with the students in choosing the causes, the bands and the event theme. The students also learn about the history of Rock and Roll.

We realize that many student groups already exist that have great philanthropic traditions. We have also discovered that there are many young people who are hungry to learn about the numerous ways they can impact their communities.   

Rock the Cause Campus also helps to support emerging musical artists by performing at the campus concerts. The musicians are paid for their performances. They also receive a hot meal, fuel, and tour support. This allows young artists to bring their music to a music buying audience and become a voice for their generation.

The first Rock the Cause Campus event will take place on April 17, 2009 at St. Olaf in Northfield, Minn. Great news! For more on this event and all things Rock the Cause, visit its Web site.

--Amanda Fretheim Gates
Managing Editor

ISES Star Awards, Part II

I had the good fortune to attend the 2009 ISES Minnesota Star Awards on Friday. Managing Editor Amanda Fretheim Gates wrote about her impressions of the awards ceremony, and I agree that it was done very nicely, with a great mix of audiovisual components and short performances to break up the speeches. But let’s face it. The real reason for being there was the party, right?

OK, that’s not true. It was a very special night for all the deserving nominees and award winners. But when you throw a special event planned by people who, you know, plan special events for a living, it’s got to be pretty top-notch. And was it ever!The party, themed “Surreality: Behind Closed Eyes,” led guests through nine different “dreams,” each one a room with a different theme, designed by a different event design company. This was a great way to showcase the services offered by different companies while giving guests something new to look forward to around every corner. I kept saying it felt like nine parties in one. A few of my favorites:

And the James Beard Nominees Are...

I must be old-fashioned. Here I am, hitting “refresh” every two seconds on the James Beard Awards site, waiting anxiously for the nominees, when all the while the foundation was announcing them on Twitter!

Anyway, of the 12 Minnesota restaurants and chefs who made it to the semifinals, three made the cut as nominees. Not surprisingly, for the second year in a row, we have Tim McKee of La Belle Vie, Isaac Becker of 112 Eatery and Alex Roberts of Restaurant Alma representing Minneapolis in the “Best Chef Midwest” category. Lenny Russo of Heartland in St. Paul, Scott Pampuch of Corner Table and Stuart Woodman of Heidi’s were also semifinalists in this category but didn’t make today’s cut.

Also left behind were Larry and Richard D’Amico of D’Amico & Partners, semifinalists for Outstanding Restaurateur, Lucia’s for Outstanding Restaurant, Khanh Tran of Cosmos for Outstanding Pastry Chef and La Belle Vie for Outstanding Wine Service. I was also particularly interested in the fact that Justin Schoville of Söntés in Rochester was a semifinalist in the Rising Star category—the only out-state semifinalist. Sameh Wadi of Saffron was also a Rising Star semifinalist.

Even though only three of our 12 made it through, the McKee-Roberts-Becker trifecta is a great lineup for “Team Minneapolis.” Let’s hope they take home some awards on May 4!

--Marni Ginther
Assistant Editor

(Logo taken from James Beard Awards site)

ISES Star Awards, Part I

Marni and I attended the ISES Minnesota Star Awards on Friday evening. The event was held at the Children's Theatre Company, which I found to be a very pleasant venue for this type of event. After registering in the main foyer of the CTC and MIA, we went upstairs for a pre-ceremony reception of passed hors d'oeuvres and champagne. The expected crowd was 300 people (up 100 from last year!), and in this space you could really tell. But the mood was sunny and bright, with many fun, glam outfits, which definitely made up for the rainy weather outside.

The ceremony was held on the main stage of the CTC, with the first several rows completely filled with attendees. Comfortable, roomy seating with great sightlines of the stage. The ceremony opened with a video montage of ISES members talking about the importance of and the beginnings of the Star Awards. This was very interesting, I thought, to learn how many years the committee talked about doing an awards show before it actually came to fruition. The video was played on a long narrow screen that dropped down behind the presenter podiums. This is also where the nominees were listed before each winner was announced. A very nice touch.

Hooray for MSP International Airport

In a complete turnaround from the dismal last-place ranking our airport received last May from J.D. Power and Associates, the Air Service Quality survey ranked MSP International as the best in North America and third-best worldwide compared to other airports its size, according to a Star Tribune article.

In our fall 2008 issue, Managing Editor Amanda Fretheim Gates interviewed Metropolitan Airports Commission's Executive Director, Jeff Hamiel and they spoke about that ugly ranking last May. I'm sure this recognition is very gratifying for MAC, Hamiel, and everyone who works at the airport. Congratulations, folks!

--Marni Ginther
Assistant Editor

In Lean Times, Museums Think Outside the Frame

The New York Times offers an interesting article on what art museums have been doing to attract audiences in these tough economic times: yoga classes, bike nights, reorganizing permanent collections, changing hours, new ad campaigns, utilizing social media, and much more. Our local papers have been spattered lately with news of budget cuts, staff downsizing and more at many of our arts organizations, so it was interesting to see the Walker Art Center mentioned specifically in this article.

According to the article, our contemporary art museum is in the midst of a big reorganization of its collections, and has plans to change it up several times each year. Assuming many families will be staying in town this summer, the Walker plans to stay open on July 4 and offer up family-friendly activities. The article also mentions the Walker's efforts to draw younger audiences via social media like YouTube.

While times like these call for tough decisions to be made, I think if there's a positive spin it's that we all must take a step back and look at things a bit differently. Whether you're a vendor, a planner, a museum, a store owner, a parent, etc., being forced to reevaluate the way you do things isn't all bad. It may help you save money, try something new, gain a fresh perspective, and maybe even make money. I think the changes at the Walker sound very exciting, and perhaps overdue. Like this article says, maybe with these new initiatives, art museums will lose the reputation of being quiet, stodgy places and become places at which the community can gather to learn and have fun.

What do you think?

--Amanda Fretheim Gates
Managing Editor

Designated Driver: A Meeting Planner's Friend

I just received an e-mail about the Top 5 reasons why I should attend the ISES Star Awards on Friday. Marni and I are already attending, but I read the list anyway to find out more of what we're in for (mammoth disco ball, swag bag, etc.). But one of the coolest things about the Star Awards is ReliaDrive. Have you heard of these guys? Attendees can really live it up at the event because one member of ReliaDrive's two-driver team will drive guests home in their own car while the other team member follows in ReliaDrive's car. This idea must go on my long-running list titled: "Why didn't I think of that?" Seriously brilliant.

If you're going to the Star Awards and end up taking advantage of this service, come back here and let me know about it. Or, if you've already had the pleasure of working with ReliaDrive - tell me about it! See you Friday!

[UPDATE (same day): I received a nice e-mail from Adam Mahmud at ReliaDrive who mentioned to me that they will have five teams at the Star Awards on Friday, which means plenty of people will be able to take part in this service. He mentions that his services are quite cost-effective for planners, and it's FREE for attendees!]

-- Amanda Fretheim Gates
Managing Editor

Intermedia Arts Wants to Host Your Event

I've been doing some research on Intermedia Arts for another magazine I'm working on and stumbled across some information I thought I'd throw out there for anyone looking at event venues. If you're not familiar, Intermedia is a very cool organization on Lyndale Avenue and 28th Street that's been a part of the community for 35 years. They act not only as a venue for performing, visual, digital and literary arts but have programs providing education, resources and workshops in each of those areas and at all levels--from literary grants to summer camps. They host and cosponsor well-known events like the ArtCar Parade and the B-Girl Be celebration of women in hip-hop. The organization has always used the arts as a way to bring diverse community voices together in dialogue around social issues.

Sadly, Intermedia had to close its gallery and lay off all its full time staff in December. No--they're not closing but they're hurting, like many small nonprofit organizations are. One of the the things the Intermedia folks are doing to raise money though, is promoting their Lyndale facility as a rental venue. Apparently they've hosted weddings, corporate trainings and yoga classes.  They've got a link to their technical equipment inventory and an RFP form of sorts right on their Web site.

I've never attended an event there, but it could be a cool way to shake up an event with a funky venue and help the local arts scene.

--Marni Ginther
Assistant Editor

Photos from Intermedia Arts Web site