Chamber’s Think about Portland gala evokes kids’s ebook
It’s no secret that storytelling is on the core of selling. Even so, few would have guessed that 2024 would go down because the 12 months the Higher Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce would publish a kids’s ebook named after its longtime annual occasion Think about Portland.
“Final 12 months, we made an awesome video with a first-person drone that flew by home windows of companies,” stated Nick Rogacki of BrassBound. “I used to be considering, ‘How are we going to prime that?’ ”
After which he considered one thing: He’d write a rhyming ode to the chamber, have it illustrated and revealed, then movie enterprise and neighborhood leaders studying the ebook to kids.
“Nick got here to us with this loopy thought,” stated Quincy Hentzel, the regional chamber’s president and chief govt officer. “I like the theme of a welcoming neighborhood and a give attention to the way forward for Maine – our workforce and kids.”
The image ebook, commissioned by the chamber and whimsically illustrated by Ally Body, shares a toddler’s-eye view of the eight communities that make up the regional chamber: Scarborough, Westbrook, Gorham, Falmouth, Cumberland, Cape Elizabeth, South Portland and, in fact, Portland.
“Perhaps another cities are larger, richer or heat …” Rogacki writes. “However Portland’s a spot that is aware of the way to remodel.”
That transformation contains continuous efforts to assist financial improvement, sustainable vitality, regional transportation, inexpensive housing, social influence, workforce improvement and welcoming immigrants.
Talking on the Think about Portland gala June 20 at Aura, Hentzel stated, “In an effort to be the neighborhood we think about to be, we actually want all of the voices and neighborhood companions on the desk. That’s the reason we have now invested in robust partnerships with organizations like The Third Place to advance racial fairness {and professional} belonging. It’s why we companion with organizations just like the United Manner of Southern Maine to assist the workforce behind the workforce, our childcare suppliers. And it’s why we partnered with (Higher Portland Council of Governments) as they hosted their first housing summit to carry native leaders collectively to speak about plans to construct 20,000 extra housing models in our area by 2030.”
True to custom, Think about Portland was additionally a time to acknowledge neighborhood leaders.
Adilah Muhammad, president and govt director of The Third Place, was honored for her efforts to advance fairness within the enterprise neighborhood by connections and relationship constructing.
Cullen Ryan, govt director of Neighborhood Housing of Maine, was honored for his work to supply inclusive, protected and inexpensive housing choices.
Northern Mild Mercy Hospital was acknowledged for its dedication to foster workforce improvement and broaden entry to healthcare and inexpensive childcare.
Lastly, Verrill companion Jim Cohen was named the Chamber’s Volunteer of the Yr.
“I’ve spent both 14 or 16 years on boards – I’ve misplaced monitor – and have been on extra committees than I can preserve rely of,” Cohen stated. “It’s actually all as a result of I like Portland and respect the work the chamber does. The chamber convenes individuals, the chamber teaches us, the chamber brings us all collectively and the chamber helps make Portland a greater place.”
Amy Paradysz is a contract author and photographer based mostly in Scarborough. She might be reached at amyparadysz@gmail.com. To order a duplicate of “Think about Portland,” electronic mail chamber@portlandregion.com.
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