This is a story about Regina Twine. A woman who cannot grow facial hair, yet has been seen donning a distinguished mustache (mo) of various shapes and sizes quite a bit lately around town.

I first met Regina briefly on Nov. 15th at the Raleigh (NC) Convention Center during The Internet Summit 2011.* She was wearing her mo when I met her (not sure of what it was made of, or how exactly it was staying on). Being the ever, polite southerner (and coward), I chose to ignore it as one might a piece of extra lint on a stranger’s jacket.

I actually guessed that she was wearing her mo as part of Movember, a campaign held throughout the month of November, in which men (normally) are asked to grow their facial hair boldly and creatively in order to raise awareness and funds to support cures for prostate cancer and other male cancer initiatives. I know some guys who have done this, and had even considered doing it myself the last couple of years. Regina, however, is the first woman that I’d ever met to support the cause in this way. It was some days later before I found out her deeply personal reason for participating.

Presented by TechMedia, Internet Summit supports web oriented entrepreneurial activity, innovation, and the resultant economic development of southeast and mid-atlantic regions.

The Graduation Celebration will be held on Saturday, October, 15th, 6-8 pm at Fellowship of Christ Church in Cary, NC.

Journeymen Raleigh will have 4 boys graduating (3 local, and one long distance from Louisiana).

Please come, invite your family and friends, and anyone wnating to find out more about this mentoring program to come and support these fine young men on their journey to manhood, and honor them for completing this week-end.

Food is covered dish. So come with a covered dish to cover you, your guests plus a few others.

RSVP HERE

DOWNLOAD an event flyer here

There is still time to register for the RITES OF PASSAGE ADVENTURE WEEK-END (ROPAW!)

REGISTER HERE
It’s a wild ride. It will be the most amazing experience you have ever had. We’ll challenge you physically, mentally, and emotionally. We have dozens of activities and mind blowing processes that will open the door to your new world.

The next ROPAW (Rites of Passage Adventure Week-end) is happening soon!: Oct. 7-9 for boys 13-17.

The ROPAW begins Friday afternoon, October 7, 2011, and runs through Sunday afternoon, October 9, 2011 at Camp Arrowhead in Zirconia, NC.

Registration DEADLINE for BOYS has been extended till Oct. 6th, 2011: REGISTER HERE

We are taking a group of boys from Raleigh.

For more info about Journeymen Raleigh (aka Boys to Men Raleigh):

Jeff Bowman
journeymenraleigh (at) gmail.com

Journeymen Raleigh (a chapter of Boys to Men mentoring network):

Please feel free to invite others to this life cahnginf event for teen boys!

Rites of Passage for Teen Boys, 10.7.11 (PDF for download)

Journeymen Raleigh Info Sheet (PDF for download)

On August 31st, 2011, teen boys and mentors from Journeymen Raleigh will be at Pullen Park (in Raleigh) drumming along with the Raleigh Drum Circle’s Drum for the Hoop Jam.

We are inviting everyone interested in mentoring for teen boys to come out and drum with us. We will have fun, get to know new folks, have some literature available about us and upcoming events, and folks there to answer any questions. Plus, if you’re lucky and get there early, we may have a hotdog available to share.

Details:

Time: 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Location: Pullen Park (picnic area)
Street: 408 Ashe Avenue
City: Raleigh, NC

Bring: Your curiosity, drumming fingers, and a folding chair to sit on.

Note for 2011: The amusement and playground areas are still under construction and fenced off. The grassy picnic area where the drumming happens is at the top of the hill are not impacted. Go past the Pullen pool’s parking area at the top of the hill (follow your ears to the drumming).

FREE – Come join us as we drum with the Raleigh Drum Circle!

For more info: journeymenraleigh@gmail.com, 919-412-1070

Say YES to Facebook event

Journeymen Raleigh Info Sheet (PDF for download)

Rites of Passage for Teen Boys, 10.7.11 (PDF for download)

Say YES to Facebook event

Journeymen Raleigh Info Sheet (PDF for download)

Rites of Passage for Teen Boys, 10.7.11 (PDF for download)

ComeUnityNow happened Saturday, July 30, 2011 from 10 am to 10 pm and was a huge success. Here one picture I took from my  iPhone of my friend Dan painting. Also go to the Facebook page to see some of the great photography from the day by Dianne McKinney.

Dan Nelson at the main stage

This is a grassroots event, replacing “Raleigh Wide Open,” and is filled with artists, musicians and family fun.

My good, friend Dan Nelson, one of the organizers, will be there painting and maybe even playing some music. My small contribution was the typography, and ideas, for the logo that he illustrated (seen above).

I hope to see you there (I’m waiting for the sun to go down to beat the heat. If you can’t come, then at least contribute to the tornado relief fund here).

What/Why:

This is the new event that is Replacing Raleigh Downtown Live. There will be music, artist, performers, dancers, auctions and more. Right now, people are gathering together to help the victims of the tornadoes that touched down in April and destroyed so many peoples lives.

The arts festival is free, and open to everybody. The music festival is $10 per person. They are also looking for volunteers, and performers too. So if you have a talent, craft, or anything you want to show off, then sign up.

WHO:
We are a gathering of non-profits, individuals, corporations and communities of faith coming together to celebrate the uniqueness of our city, identifying how we can grow by serving each other when a disaster strikes and to encourage this spirit to remain in place.

WHAT WE ARE DOING:
We are organizing and hosting an event to recognize those individuals and groups who have been instrumental in providing assistance to recent tornado victims, as well as making donations to two local organizations (Wake Interfaith Disaster and The Green Chair Project) who will provide assistance in moving those impacted from short-term relief to long-term recovery.

WHEN:
Saturday, July 30 2011 10am-10pm.

WHERE:
The Heart of Raleigh, the City Plaza on Fayetteville Street.
A tornado relief fund-raiser called ComeUnity Now is under way in downtown Raleigh.

PRESS:

NBC-17 had this to say about the event (go here to read the full story):

In announcing the festival, Mayor Charles Meeker said, ”The reality is that much work remains to be done.”

“As a community,” said Meeker, “we need to finish the job to aid in long-term tornado disaster recovery efforts for the hundreds of families, individuals and business who were deeply affected by the April 16, 2011 tornadoes.”

The festival is divided into two events, a music festival costing $10 per person and a free arts festival on Fayetteville Street and City Plaza.

“A lot of energy is put into crises when it first happens,” said organizer Jim Bailey. “Then whenFEMA leaves town, what happens to the folks that are left behind?”

Bailey said the group’s goal is to raise $100,000 for victims, which will help them purchase furniture, buy building supplies and for other needs not covered by insurance.

ComeUnityNow is an organization of non-profits, corporations and communities that help victims after a disaster strikes. You can read more about the group

https://www.google.com/calendar/embed?title=Boys%20to%20Men%20Raleigh%20Event%20Calendar&height=480&wkst=1&bgcolor=%23ffcc66&src=boystomenraleigh%40gmail.com&color=%23754916&ctz=America%2FNew_York

A FREE benefit concert, featuring Raleigh, N.C, band, “Flowers for Faye” will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2011 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Hope Cafe in Raleigh. It will benefit “Grow Haiti“: an initiative to help Haiti feed Haiti.

A silent auction of original artwork by Haitian natives and other local opening bands will be on hand.

An example of the type of original art by Haitian artists that will be available via silent auction at "Grow Haiti: 1.11.11," the Benefit Concert at Hope Cafe in Raleigh, N.C. to benefit Haiti's farmers.

“Grow Haiti” is an North Carolina Agribusiness Council initiative, in partnership with Harvest Connection Disaster Relief and Mt. Olive College.
This initiative will apply North Carolina agribusiness knowledge in animal and crop agriculture, focusing on livestock, grains and vegetables as well as aquaculture in Haiti.

Please support this worthy and timely effort.

Jeff

Follow Grow Haiti on: Twitter, FaceBook

When I first got an email to support a fundraising walk to benefit my local Hospice chapter from a couple of advertising colleagues of mine, Josh Fraimow and Cheryl Case, I was a bit confused. I thought they just wanted me to donate money to this cause for which they had rendered professional services (strategy, writing, design, advertising, marketing, etc.). Reading further, I was surprised to find that they were literally putting their feet to the pavement for this walk, not just virtually. This makes them heroic, (m)ad men and women making change, in my book. Thus, here is their story, as told by Josh Fraimow:

The Dream Team came together a few years ago to help with a capital campaign for Hospice of Wake County, which was in the process of raising money for the first freestanding hospice facility in the Triangle. (In addition to the current lineup of freelance advertising professionals, the initial effort was spearheaded by Greg Duell of TheLiveBrand and also included Herb Campbell of Big Fat Films.)

Several members of that group subsequently got involved with the marketing for a new fundraiser: a two-mile walk to and from Hospice’s campus near the RBC Center, taking place on November 6th.

It wasn’t until we were a little ways into hashing out the details, developing the creative and planning the media for Step Lively: A Walk For Hospice that the light bulb went off: we should probably walk in this thing, shouldn’t we? Which meant we would be going from behind-the-scenes players to participants. And actually asking people directly for money.

Nothing like a little stage fright to clarify one’s thinking: why exactly were we supporting this cause? Here are our thoughts:

Josh Fraimow, copywriter, creative director, strategist:
I got involved at first because I was asked. (Sorry – no great story of altruism there.) I’ve stuck with it for three reasons: They’re really fun people to work with, they do really important work, and they do it really well. Actually, four reasons – Hospice works in an area that, in our society, is typically pretty difficult to talk about. I think bringing end-of-life issues more into the light, and helping patients and families face them with a sense of dignity and control, is a good thing for all concerned.

Cheryl Case, creative director, copywriter, strategist:
When I got involved, I had all the common misconceptions about hospice – it’s only for cancer patients, it’s only for the final week or so in a person’s life, it provided a nurse to come sit with you. What I learned in reading and, more important, in interviewing volunteers, grief counselors, nurses, social workers and the like, blew me away. I’m fond of saying that if I had the opportunity to spend 15 minutes with every American to explain what hospice is and does, no terminal patient would ever again have to die alone, frightened and in pain.

Rick Binger, art director, creative director, strategist:
Much like Josh, I initially got involved because I was asked, and it was an opportunity to be part of a great team. But I also thought it would be nice to raise awareness for a very under-rated cause. Until someone is in the situation where a family member is nearing the end, it’s hard to appreciate the care, compassion and comfort Hospice can bring. Unfortunately, my family has been in that situation. Fortunately, we could rely on Hospice to help during this tough time.

Kristin Upchurch, media planner and buyer:
I happened upon HOWC and the cause by chance when I got pulled into the project as a freelancer. The process of helping to facilitate the Capital Campaign fundraising, learning about HOWC’s mission and watching the new buildings come to life gave me a well-rounded appreciation for end-of-life care – an area I previously had only peripheral knowledge of. Experiencing individual’s stories and the healing power of HOWC firsthand through working with them is extremely satisfying and comforting at the same time. It’s not a cause that will ever be far from my heart or mind even after our work (not theirs!) is done.

The Step Lively, Walk for Hospice, Dream Team, Rick Binger, Cheryl Case, Josh Fraimow, and Kristin Upchurch.

Sound like something you’d be interested in supporting? Or at least finding out more about? Check out the Dream Team’s page at the Step Lively site.

If you’re interested in finding out more about Hospice, about the payback that comes from working with nonprofits, or about working with any of these freelancers, drop them a line: Josh Fraimow: joshfrai@earthlink dot net; Cheryl Case: case-franko@earthlink dot net; Rick Binger: rbinger@nc.rr dot com; Kristin Upchurch: kristin@indigomediaonline dot com.

Jeff Bowman, madmanbowman@gmail dot com