SERVING UP HOPE LUNCHEON AT THE DENVER MERCHANDISE MART
On Tuesday, November 8, 2011, thirteen Colorado hospitality organizations joined forces for the 18th Annual Serving Up Hope Luncheon (formerly Network for the Needy Luncheon) and raised $22,000 for Food Bank of the Rockies' Denver's Table program.
Serving Up Hope is sponsored by the Meetings Industry Council of Colorado (www.mic-colorado.org). MIC is a coalition of professional meetings industry-related organizations. Incorporated in 2000, MIC is a partnership between 13 national and local member organizations either founded in Colorado or within state chapters. Its underlying purpose is to strengthen the relationships among participating organizations through increased communication.
This year's event set a record attendance with 640 industry professional attending! The luncheon featured emcee Reggie Rivers, former Denver Bronco, media personality, motivational speaker, author and respected community advocate who took time from his busy schedule to be part of this important cause for the second year in a row.
Chefs from local hotels, restaurants and catering companies put their best 'food' forward, tempting attendees with their appealing appetizers, exquisite entrées and delectable desserts. Local food critics and fellow chefs awarded prizes in four categories (appetizer/salad, entrée, dessert, and presentation) to the best entries. Culinary awards were given to the Hilton Garden Inn Zink Bar & Patio for Best Appetizer, Le Grand Bistro for Best Entrée, two time winner Metropolitan State College of Denver for Best Dessert, and the best culinary station presentation went to the Hilton Garden Inn Zink Bar & Patio. Winners received an award tile with artwork designed by Alondra Zamora, age 11. Alondra is a participant in the Denver Rustlers Kid's Café, a program sponsored by The Food Bank of the Rockies. She was also present at the event and was honored on stage by Reggie.
The special Serving Up Hope committee is a group of dedicated and compassionate individuals from the hospitality industry who work together to create a wonderful event with delicious food and fun for a great cause. Everything is donated, so 100% of the proceeds benefit Food Bank of the Rockies and its Denver's Table program. This year the final check written to Food Bank of the Rockies was for $22,000!
Food Bank of the Rockies distributed over 39.4 million pounds of food to more than 1,100 hunger-relief programs in Fiscal Year 2011. Its Denver's Table program collects donations of prepared food from restaurants and caterers, as well as perishable foods from local grocers, and delivers it to agencies serving meals to the needy. Last year, Denver's Table safely picked up 5.2 million pounds of food and their agencies served more than 4 million meals to less fortunate children, seniors and families; food that otherwise would have been thrown away.
An additional element of the Serving Up Hope event is the annual food drive competition between the 13 MIC organizations. This year, over 12,000 pounds of food was donated by attendees - this food is in addition to the $22,000 raised by the luncheon. Awards for the most food donated per member were given to two organizations - Christian Meetings and Conventions Association (CMCA) for the organization with less than 125 members and Meeting Professionals International Rocky Mountain Chapter (MPIRMC) for the organization with more than 125 members.
Colorado Meetings + Events Magazine
Best of 2012 Event
Tuesday, March 6th -
5:30 - 8 pm
Kevin Taylor's at the Opera House
14th and Curtis Street (at the DPAC - Lower Level of the Ellie Caulkin's Opera House) Vote for your favorite Hospitality Businesses and Organizations here.
Deadline to vote: November 23, 2011
CONFERENCE AND TRADESHOW WRAPUP
The 11th annual Meetings Industry Council (MIC) of Colorado Educational Conference and Trade Show was held at the Colorado Convention Center on March 16, 2011. Over 700 professionals from the meeting and event planning industry were in attendance for a day of education with break out sessions, workshops and lunch with Keynote Speaker Robin Crow. In addition, there was a tradeshow bustling with suppliers and vendors from across North America and Canada. This year's post-event evaluations have declared the 2011 Conference a resounding success and the best MIC Conference ever!
The 2011 MIC Leadership Award was presented during the lunch program. Nominees for the award were: Dawn Abbott - Fun Productions, Inc. ReBecca Dillahunty, CMP - Visit Denver, Terri L Fisher - 5-Star Talent & Entertainment, Inc., Gracy Goodwin - Destination Services, Tera Hammonds - Catering By Design, Kristin House - ConferenceDirect, Kathy Reak - Visit Colorado Springs, Rudy R Wright, CMP - Author and Consultant
MIC 2011 Chair Ken Williams and Leadership Award Winner ReBecca Dillahunty, CMP
The winner of the 2011 MIC Leadership award was ReBecca Dillahunty, CMP from Visit Denver. ReBecca V. Dillahunty, CMP began her hospitality career in 1979 and has been with VISIT DENVER, the Convention and Visitors Bureau, since 1990 and is currently the Senior Convention Sales Manager-Western Region. ReBecca is a University of Northern Colorado graduate and earned her CMP in 1998. ReBecca is the Immediate Past Chair of MIC after serving as Chair from 2007-2009.
The Meetings Industry Council of Colorado, incorporated in 2000, is a partnership between 13 national and local member organizations either founded in Colorado or with chapters in Colorado. Rather than each association hosting its own annual conference and trade show, leaders from each of the organizations gathered to create one event in which all of their individual members would attend one large conference in order to maximize attendance and their return on investment.
Eleven years later the Conference had record attendance, national caliber speakers and educational sessions, and over 110 exhibitors. The MIC Conference is a unique opportunity for industry peers to gather to reconnect with one another and to capitalize on the educational content from the best in the meeting and events industry. The MIC of Colorado has become an important regional show that allows Convention & Visitors Bureaus, hotels and suppliers to reach a growing number of meeting professionals based in Denver and the Rocky Mountain region. Denver continues to grow as a meeting destination and now competes regularly with tier one cities.
Mark your calendar for the 12th Annual MIC Conference on March 8th, 2012.
Media Contact: Ms. Freddie Templeton
Meetings Industry Council of Colorado
8155 Briar Cliff Drive, Castle Rock, CO 80108 • Phone: 720-733-8000 • Fax: 720-733-8999
Email: MIC@RMECLLC.COM • Website: www.mic-colorado.org
CSAE NEWS
The DBJ reports that Tim Jackson, president of the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association (CADA), was named Colorado's "Association Professional of the Year" by the Colorado Society of Association Executives (CSAE).
Jackson has been president of CADA since 2004.
"The Association Professional of the Year award is only given to a chief executive officer or association management executive for outstanding service and accomplishments in association management and
Tim is more than deserving of this award," Linda Farrell, CSAE's president, said in a statement.
"I was not only very pleased but very surprised to be honored with this award because there are so many deserving members," Jackson said. "I am proud to support CSAE's role in improving our association's leadership skills."
CSAE also named Linda Schafer of GL Specialties its "Associate Member of the Year." The award goes to an associate member "in recognition of exemplary service," the group said.
CSAE represents more than 250 executives of Colorado nonprofit organizations and associations managing business, industrial, professional and membership organizations.
Mary Williams is A Good Neighbor
MIC-Colorado's Rep from Society of Government Meeting Professionals (SGMP) was recently honored
in the Summer 2011 Issue
of Colorado Meetings + Events in an article written by Susan Rust.
