The Holiday Heritage Faire is a celebration of Christmas traditions and Michigan-made gift marketplace at the picturesque Packard Proving Grounds Historic Site in Shelby Twp. It will offer a family-friendly and fun alternative to Black Friday frustrations. Enjoy both indoor and outdoor activities, including visits with Santa & Mrs. Claus, historic buildings and vehicle tours, an enhanced lights display with animated light show, Christmas music, marshmallow and chestnut roasting, and kids’ gift craft-making, all included with admission. Michigan artisans and vendors will offer hundreds of handmade gifts and products for sale. Along with these, horse-drawn wagon rides through a lighted tunnel, and delicious holiday treats and drink concessions, are available for purchase. The second annual event will expand to two days, Friday and Saturday, November 29th and 30th, and will be held later in the day to better enjoy the lights. Parking and admission to the decorated grounds and historic buildings is $20 per family/group arriving together in one passenger vehicle. Wagon rides are $5 each. Details, directions, pass purchase and ride reservations are available at www.HHF19.com.
Comms Lindsay will be out most of this week for various meetings.Jarrett will be in California Monday through Wednesday. Graphics is working on a video for the Overton Window.
Events Lunch Bunch on December 2 will be gourmet salads catered by Northwood. -Southwest Chicken Salad w / Cilantro Lime Dressing -Chicken Caesar -Smoked Turkey, Havarti and Bacon Salad -MI Salad with Grilled Chicken and Apple Cider Vinaigrette -Brownies Staff Holiday party will be on December 2 at 5:30 pm, The H Hotel in Midland. Don’t forget to remind your guest of the date.I & I with Grover Norquist on December 10at the Radisson in Lansing.
Advancement Caleb has secured the Mackinac Center’s first charitable gift annuity, after months of careful stewardship with a married couple who are long-time donors. In this case, the donors will set up a $50,000 account with our partners, the Dechomai Foundation, and will receive a monthly income stream during their lifetimes. After their deaths, any money remaining in the account will come to the Mackinac Center. CGAs are a very popular giving vehicle but also come with complex documentation, and Caleb did a masterful job of being a liaison with our donors and with Dechomai.
Executive There will be an off-site Executive Team Meeting on Friday afternoon, November 22nd.Joe has various travel for events and advancement visits this week. He is on vacation the week of Thanksgiving.Mike will travel to Lansing on Tuesday and to Detroit of Wednesday for a donor related event with Joe Milligan. Strategic Planning information went out to team leads this week – get your planning meeting on the calendar as soon as possible.
Operations Ops team vacation days for week of November 18:Pat: 11/18 – 11/20 Staff potluck on Friday, 11/22/19 – email your dish choice to Christine.Lori Schumann’s last day is November 29. Wish Lori well as she returns closer to home as a branch manager at the local credit union. She’ll be sorely missed by the Ops team!
Policy Updates
Education Most of this week (Nov. 18-22) I will be in San Diego for the Excel in Ed Summit. We have a record number of Michigan legislators and legislative policy staffers coming to hear from and circulate among the best ideas for education reform. This should provide some great opportunities to share with them our education policy goals and vision in a little more depth. Oral arguments for the Espinoza case before SCOTUS have been set for January 22, mere days before National School Choice Week begins. We are planning to be on site and coordinate with partner groups, all with an eye on maximizing the impact from this case for Michigan families who need more education options.As she continues reaching out to school leaders and others, our new PACE director had her first official meeting with a Flint parent – from little connections great movements grow!
Environment Jason is at an energy summit Monday – Wednesday this week.
Fiscal LaFaive leaves for Tarapoto, Peru this Friday, November 22 and returns December 6. He will try to stay in contact but access to internet may be intermittent.Working on a smuggling op-ed and last minute corporate welfare-related work.
Labor We have several more states interested in partnering on Janus. Americans for Prosperity/State Together are hosting a call for us to present on this week. Lindsay and Jarrett will be traveling to meet with our partner groups in November and December.
Criminal Justice While in New Orleans, I had a chat with Jenna Moll from the Justice Action Network. She is on the review committee for the $100,000 CPS grant and I left the conversation very encouraged about our chances.The Senate passed to third reading SB 341 by Sen. Peter Lucido, which would prohibit warrantless searches of electronic data. We submitted a letter of support in committee and sent a bill alert before the second-reading floor vote.The task force on jails and pre-trial incarceration meets in Lansing tomorrow. I am meeting with Shelli Weisberg from ACLU afterwards.
Research Only thing I’ve been working on is finishing the Admin-Overcrim study. It’s being reviewed, fact-checked and edited, and I expect to release it Nov 26.
Gov. Affairs Last Monday and Tuesday, I hosted Emily Wismer from SPN for a site visit. She was very impressed with our government affairs program and it informed a lot of her thinking about how to mentor newer think tanks and government affairs staff. While she was here, we met with Sens. Jim Runestad and Stephanie Chang, Rep. Graham Filler, Craig Ryan, and Chris Fisher.I spent the rest of the week at the Americans for Tax Reform Coalition Leaders Summit in New Orleans. The sessions provided a couple of good ideas for our strategic planning process. Grover Norquist and I also discussed priorities for his trip to Lansing next month.We are postponing the introduction of the corporate welfare bill package until January to focus our year-end energy on allowing GJFM to expire, and to allow our coalition more time to come together. On the latter point, I am meeting tomorrow with the For Our Future people, and on Wednesday with Andy Leavitt from Khoury Johnson Leavitt and Gilda Jacobs of the Michigan League for Public Policy. I’m also meeting Thursday with Josiah Kissling in the Speaker’s office.I am working to schedule a year-end lunch with senior staff for legislative leadership to thank them for their work with us this year and to discuss 2020 policy possibilities.The Legislature has a tentative session day set for Wednesday in the unlikely event that an agreement is reached on the Governor’s Admin Board actions. Otherwise, they will only be in session the first two weeks of December.
Let’s face it, whether you’ve stayed in Detroit your whole life, or you’re from the burbs and are just now discovering the meaning of urban existence, there’s excitement in the air. It’s always been here – I believe it’s the spirit of the city – and it has always been driving change. But for a Baby Boomer who grew-up to become the quintessential “corporate man”, this excitement – the entrepreneurial energy – is pointing to a revolution in the way we practice business.
Recently GreeningMichigan.com and 313 Believe LLC have entered into a partnership in order to inspire the metro Detroit audience with the news and impact of local metro Detroit businesses and nonprofits. Greening Michigan is a PR and media company that helps to promote “green” and economic development in the local metro Detroit area through their digital presence, press releases, event sponsorships, and unique marketing capabilities. Their latest plan is to forge strategic partnerships with metro Detroit business to enhance the synergy and visibility of their platforms. They continue their presence as GreeningDetroit.com, and their partnership with 313 Believe and the 313 Believe Podcast at the Detroit Foundation Hotel will offer an expansion to their event sponsorships in ways that offer more to the current opportunities they offer as event sponsors.
The collaborative workspace for the Interior Designers Coalition For Change, (IDCFC), District 2030 Detroit Chapter, and the American Society of Interior Designers held its Grand Opening Wednesday, November 13th, celebrating and recognizing it’s contributing members and volunteers. The new office space was decked out by companies such as Office Furniture Solutions, Divide By Design, and award winning Designer, Harrell Scarcello, among others. The expansion of the services to both clients and students alike will bring new and exciting concepts to the area.
On January 30th, SMSBF is hosting our third annual Sustainable Resolutions event at the Charles H. Wright Museum. Join us in getting the New Year off to a great start by celebrating Detroit’s sustainable business movement! The evening will be filled with opportunities to reconnect with familiar faces and meet new faces. Best of all, we will be recognizing what’s being done to make the Triple Bottom Line a reality in our community.
This year, we are seeking public nominations for our “Triple Bottom Line Business Leader Award,” which will be presented at the event. Do you know someone who’s made an impact in 2019? Has someone in your network made a difference advancing sustainable, 3BL business strategy and practice?
Left: Attendees tour a PACE project site; Right: Members talk with MPSC Chairman Sally Talberg.
As a nonprofit trade association, MEECA is required by law to conduct an annual membership meeting to elect new board members and officers. This is also a time to review recent accomplishments and set new goals for the coming year. The 2019 Annual Meeting was held on October 29th in downtown Lansing. More than 30 people participated. After organizational business was finished, MPSC Chairman Sally Talberg shared her current priorities and answered questions from our members. In particular, she described the MPSC’s recently announced MI Power Grid stakeholder initiative. She encouraged MEECA to actively participate in this multi-year effort focused on Michgian’s clean energy transition.
The Detroit Chinese Business Association working with US China Innovation Alliance and InnoSTARS program were honored to be guests to governmental and business leaders in: Beijing(Capital PRC) Shenyang (Capital) Liaoning Province Jinan (Capital) & Zibo in Shandong Province Yongchuan in Chongqing Changsha (Capital) in Hunan Province Highlights include DCBA member Nobel Prize winner David Gross and Jim Cook were guests of honor and the two keynotes of invite only 1st annual US China “Think Tank” hosted by Mr. Zhiijian HU President of the Academy of Science and Technology ford Development (CASTED) and Mr. Zhigang WANG the Minister of Science & Technology for the PRC. DCBA travelled extensively throughout China with over 50 entrepreneurs and world class mentors from across North America for road shows and InnoSTARS 2019 Finals competition. The Grand Prize Winner of InnoSTARS 2019 finals was a 20 year old CEO from Mexico living in Texas who developed the 1stt wearable breakthrough for blind persons since the walking cane in 90 years. DCBA presented Michigan assets and opportunities to leaders in four key provinces (population of about 200 million) with commitments from several of them to visit our Great Lakes State in 2020… For start-ups and or existing companies interested in learning more about the above and other cities in China in regards to setting up offices, expanding into China, please connect with DCBA and or our sponsors to help inform you of the pros, the cons, & which cities and markets may make best sense for your firm to enter and do business in China.
DCBA & University of Michigan
On November 19th DCBA working with University of Michigan’s Bruce Belzowski, managing director of Automotive Futures produced “Inside China: Understanding China’s Current and Future Automotive Industry”Presenters included Chaozhuo Chen, DCBA member Bob X. Bao and Director of UM Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies Mary Gallagher ..
NEWS FROM ICAT LOGISTICS
Congratulation for Bromberg & Associates 20th Anniversary
HAMTRAMCK, MI: Bromberg & Associates celebrated the company’s 20th Anniversary of improving language access and promoting cultural awareness in Michigan and beyond! Their 20th Anniversary Celebration event, “A Toast to the Language Access Champions” was held at TechTown Detroit on Thursday 11/14. The event was attended by clients, friends, and other champions of language access who they’ve worked with over the last 20 years. As part of the celebration, Bromberg & Associates held a fundraiser to support the following non-profit organizations whom they’ve partnered with over the last 20 years:
Wayne County Safe, an organization that inspires healing and empowerment for those affected by sexual violence through free and immediate comprehensive services; promotes public awareness; and advances social change.
Global Detroit, a regional economic and community development organization that develops and implements immigrant-inclusive strategies to drive the growth, revitalization and broadly shared prosperity of Detroit and Southeast Michigan.
Michigan Immigrant Rights Center (MIRC), a statewide community resource and hub for immigration and immigrant-related legal services, advocacy, training, and more for low-income and vulnerable immigrants.
ProsperUS Detroit, a place-based economic development initiative that builds and sustains neighborhood entrepreneurs and small businesses. The initiative infuses neighborhoods in Detroit with services and capital that support local entrepreneurs, help stabilize neighborhood economies, and inspire the local community.
In total, Bromberg & Associates was able to raise $200 for the four non-profit partners. All proceeds will go towards supporting our partners’ diverse humanitarian initiatives that provide resources and enrich communities throughout Southeast Michigan; making our communities inclusive for all! This event comes after recently named as a Salute to Diversity award recipient by Corp! Magazine for the company’s diversity initiatives and achievements both in-house and within the community of which they serve. https://brombergtranslations.com/bromberg-language-access-20th-anniversary/
October 11, 2019, DeCarlos Convention Center, Warren, MI. Inactive for 15 months, super-middleweight Anthony Barnes, supported by Kara Ro in his corner, returned with a credible and un clear-cut six-round split decision duke over Kenneth Council. It was clear-cut, though one judge had him losing, not unreasonable, but the margin of that score clearly made it into the “ridiculous” category.
We Americans are an interesting lot: for all of the great qualities of our “anything is possible” culture, there are some that defy imagination. The reaction to the most recent United States Business Roundtable (USBR) statement is a case in point.
As we read in this month’s lead story, the USBR statement is certainly a good sign for those of us committed to the sustainable, triple bottom line business movement. On the other hand, to go from a good sign to the complete conversion of our entire economic system is a bit of stretch. Yet, some seem to think the USBR statement has brought the US to the precipice of becoming a northern European style social-democracy overnight!
by Lindy Lindell