Spooky season is over. Now it is time for the start of the festive season. I am loving the temperatures we have been getting recently! Long may they continue.

October was yet another busy month for MPIGNY. We kicked off events with CSR and a visit to God’s Love We Deliver with a full group of volunteers, which was great to see, and very much appreciated by the team at GLWD. Be on the lookout for the next activity at God's Love; giving back to the community is not only important but very fulfilling.

Followed shortly after our visit to GLWD, our Education Committee held a very engaging event titled “The Unicorn Effect: Creating Legendary Connections” at Hill Country BBQ. Our speaker, Sean Bott, taught our attendees how to engage with people by “Interrupting, Introducing and Inquiring.” Some of our attendees experienced Sean's mentalist talents first-hand, which was amazing and scary at the same time!

As I mentioned in my last message and will continue to all year 😊, it takes a big team of volunteers to execute these outstanding events. We need YOU, our members, to jump in and assist where you can. How can you help? What are your interests or skills? It doesn’t need to take a large amount of your time. It can be as little or as much as you would like to dedicate. We will work with you and your schedule. Please reach out to me or any of our Board Members if you want to or are able to get more involved with the Chapter. We would love to have you! You should have received an email from the Chapter with a survey titled “Find Your Fit.” Please complete the survey if you are interested in volunteering.

We kick off November with another great CSR opportunity at GMHC on November 9th. If you are interested in joining this effort, please email Director of CSR, Marisa Wilkes, CMP, at marisawilkes922@gmail.com by November 2.

We will close the month with one of our signature events, in partnership with Kalahari Resorts & Conventions, MPIGNY’s Auction & Mixology Madness at the Hard Rock Hotel on November 22. Be sure to register for an evening of Networking, Mixology and the chance to win some amazing prizes that have been donated by our incredible partners. If you would like to participate in the mixology event, we still have a few tables left. You can register as a competitor or as an attendee here.

Hope to see you there or at some of other upcoming events!

Best,
Andrew

Andrew Barnes
President
MPI Greater New York Chapter

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MPIGNY will be returning to GMHC in November to assist in the preparation and distribution of groceries to members of the community. Please join us!

GMHC’s Grab and Go Food Distribution Program was created in response to both the building and the GMHC dining room closing in March 2020 due to COVID-19. We will distribute locally sourced fresh produce, dairy, eggs, shelf stable foods, and hygiene kits from the lobby of the GMHC building. We will be serving GMHC clients as well as the general public.

Prior to distribution, we will be tasked with packing fresh produce and dairy items and packing shelf stable pantry bags. This volunteer day is especially important as more help than usual will be needed as the organization will be packaging for the Thanksgiving distribution the following week.

To register for this event, interested volunteers should email the Director of CSR, Marisa Wilkes, CMP, at marisawilkes922@gmail.com by November 2 with your name and email address.

MPI Greater New York will once again form a team in support of God's Love We Deliver's Race to Deliver to be held Sunday, November 20, in Central Park.

The Race to Deliver is one of the largest annual fundraisers for God’s Love We Deliver. The race is a symbol of our own daily race to ensure no one person has to face the unthinkable combination of illness and hunger. This is the 29th year of the race, and we are excited to join you in-person for our run/walk in Central Park, New York!

Join the MPIGNY team today as we walk to support GLWD. As a chapter we have participated in this walk since 2019. We welcome members, family, and friends to join us on this walk rain or shine. Get to know your colleagues over a walk in the park while supporting a great cause. Our team goal is $1,000.

HOW TO REGISTER FOR THE RACE:

Step 1: Start registration by clicking here and Join Team MPIGNY. (Pay the $25 registration fee & create your own fundraising page.) Registration fee is put toward the team fundraising goal.

Step 2: You will receive an email from NYRR with an invitation code. You should receive this within 24-48 hours. Complete the race registration on the New York Road Runners website.

Contact Jennifer Rondinelli, CMP, for registration questions at jerondin@maccosmetics.com.

Check out MPIGNY's team fundraising page for God's Love We Deliver (glwd.org)

Kick off the season of giving and celebration with MPI Greater New York at the 36th Annual Auction & Mixology Madness!

Taste creative cocktails and fancy feasts while checking off your gift list at the silent auction tables.
 
Are you a Master Mixologist and enjoy crafting killer cocktails? Sponsor a mixology table! Reach out to Carri Clemens for more information: carri@acloserlookevent.com

Help make this event a huge success while showcasing your company and services by donating to our auction here. 

MPI Greater New York will join forces with MPI Tennessee for our final education event of 2022.

More details coming soon but we promise this will be one event you will not want to miss, so mark your calendars and stay tuned!

SAVE THE DATE!

HSMAIGNY / MPIGNY ANNUAL HOLIDAY PARTY

Monday, December 19

Manhattan Center
311 W 34th St.
New York, NY 10001

MORE DETAILS COMING SOON!

On October 20, MPIGNY volunteered at God's Love We Deliver for our monthly kitchen shift, prepping and preparing meals for our city's most vulnerable. We had a nearly full group with seven MPI volunteers joining the effort helping to package a variety of different meals for GLWD clients. 

If you have not yet had an opportunity to volunteer with us at God's Love, we encourage you to join us next time. This organization holds a special place in our hearts, and we will continue to return on a regular basis to support their mission to feed the ill and homebound in our community.

The October 26 education program “The Unicorn Effect: Creating Legendary Connections” featured an extraordinary speaker, Sean Bott, a renowned mentalist using his psychic entertainment skills to train us how to build relationships intentionally, one person at a time, with simple everyday methods that are often overlooked. To name one, a genuine compliment can short-circuit the “threat mode” when making new connections. He showed us how this simple act is key to both planners and suppliers to awaken our “people skills” that may have gone dormant during the pandemic.

It was an intriguing and impactful session. Attendees left realizing that they already possess connectivity skills, they just need to put them into action! The evening closed with great networking complete with delicious Texas-style food and drink provided by our venue host Hill Country BBQ!

Thank you to Kalahari Resorts & Conventions our education partner, Wind Creek Bethlehem our supporting education partner, and SimonProPhoto for capturing the evening's great moments. 

At our October Education Event we added a CSR component in recognition of Veteran's Day. We partnered with Soldiers' Angels and asked the participants of the education event to fill out thank you cards to members of the armed forces as well as veterans. Each card was filled out along with a $1 donation. In the end we had 50 thank you cards and raised $100 in support of Soldiers' Angels.

One of MPIGNY's Past Presidents, Dan Paradiso, tragically lost his house and all of his family's possessions in an electrical fire on October 25th. Thankfully, no one was home at the time, and Dan, his wife, Tara, and their four children are all safe. Sadly, their two dogs, Pancake and Pepper, were in the house, and both perished.

A GoFundMe page has been started on behalf of the family to provide aid in securing housing and to replace some of their belongings. If you wish to make a donation in support of Dan and his family, you may do so here.

This year’s EI event will be held at the newly renovated Sea Crest Hotel in Falmouth, MA. Falmouth is a beautiful coastal town on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. It is known for its beaches and traditional New England flare. 

If you are not familiar with EI, it is the New England chapter’s premier educational conference offering engaging keynotes from speakers such as Johnny Earle, founder of Johnny Cupcakes, and innovative educational sessions. The conference is designed to provide professional development (including CMP credits) and create ample opportunities to network with event professionals and suppliers. All meeting and event professionals are welcome, whether you are a corporate planner, sales professional, or university faculty member.

MPI Greater New York members are invited to attend this year's EI at MPI New England member rates. Click the link below to register, and use code MPIEastRegionMembers at check out.

Applications are now being accepted for the
2023-2024 MPI Greater New York Board of Directors! 

Are you looking for ways to develop your leadership skills? Do you want to be part of a team that will support your growth? Would you like to contribute your talents to keep the upward momentum of our chapter on track? Do you want to show your boss how the success you build outside of the workplace compliments your position and shows an ROI for your MPI membership? 

Then JOIN US! For more information on specific roles available for 2023-2024, please review the attached job descriptions. To apply, please click here to access the online application. If you prefer, a hard copy application is available to download here. *PLEASE NOTE: The document will open in Google Docs. You will need to download it into Microsoft Word on your personal computer in order to complete the form.

The deadline for submissions is Friday, November 18.

If you have any questions about the application process, please contact Kathie Stapleton at kstapleton@mpigny.org.

Volunteering with a committee is a great way to meet new clients and industry partners. Are you interested in getting more involved with MPI Greater New York but don’t know where to start?
 
Take our quick “Find Your Fit” survey so that we can help match you with the perfect volunteer opportunities with MPIGNY.
 
Click the link below to access the survey, which will help guide our conversation with you as you take the first step toward engaging with our MPIGNY community. Thank you in advance for your contributions. We look forward to welcoming you to the team!

Find Your Fit!

Are you a new venue looking for an opportunity to showcase your space for event planners and industry leaders? Do you have a restaurant with the capability of hosting groups? Has your space undergone a renovation that you want the industry to see? Are you looking to boost your bookings in 2022? If you answered yes to any of these questions, become an MPIGNY Venue Partner!

MPIGNY hosts a number of events each year, ranging from education and networking events to our larger cross-industry Holiday Party to our annual signature fundraising Auction & Mixology event in the fall. Partnering with us means increased visibility and new business leads. We have a total reach to more than 3,000 meeting and event professionals within the New York tri-state area and would provide you with a tailor-made list of sponsor benefits that would touch each of these professionals not only at our partnered event, but through our MPIGNY network of social media, web presence, event marketing and beyond.

For more information, please see this snapshot of opportunities here. You can also reach out directly to our board members John Sklencar or Annie Kojundzija.

It is with great pleasure that the Board of Directors would like to announce the MPI Greater New York Chapter was named a Top Performing Chapter for the 2021-22 Board year!

We share this honor with you, our members, who do so much to support the Chapter through your partnerships, donations, volunteerism, and attendance at our events. We could not have done this without you!

THANK YOU!

Please join us in welcoming the following new members to our chapter!

Liz Coin, Empire NYC Tours and Productions LLC

Susan Fitzgerald, Huddle Agency

Cheyenne Johnson, CMP, KPMG

Vladimir Kalman, BASI, Printing on Main Street

Leonardo Lorenzo, Pier Sixty, LLC

Jason Ring, Dataodg

Lindsey Spierer, CBRE

Leslie Spillman, CMM. AIG

Marissa Tejeda, Oliver Wyman

Samia Tirado, CTE, Choice Hotels International

 Thank you for your membership! We are glad you're here!

We are pleased to share the following Membership Milestone Anniversaries. Thank you all for your dedication and commitment to our Chapter. We are grateful for your membership.