The Reinvention of Me: What Comes Next

Last year, for the first time, I participated in Luke’s Wings Fashion Takes Flight – a fundraising fashion show that included real members of the military, modeling the latest collections from Saks Fifth Avenue (Tysons Galleria), Aram, Ella Rue and more.   (Video below and recap can be found here.)

I also wrote about why this organization matters so much to not just me, but the soldiers and their families as well.

This year, we have even more reason to celebrate, as Luke’s Wings has hit some major milestones, not just making this an annual must-attend event, but also a celebration.  In the last year, Luke’s Wings has had some major accomplishments, including (but not limited to):

• Raising $32,000 at the 3rd annual Fashion Takes Flight
• Receiving a $300,000 grant
• Partnering with the Rumsfeld Organization
• Receiving a donation from Arnold Schwarzenegger
• Receiving countless donations and accolades from generous donors and sponsors for their tireless work
• Having brought hundreds of families and soldiers together

This is no longer just a local charity – it has gone national.  It has gained the interest of politicians, other military organizations, military leaders, government leaders and many many troops across the world.  While you may hear of some of the glitzier things, what you don’t see is the hard work the supporters of Luke’s Wings put in behind the scenes, including many trips to military hospitals, fundraising meetings, meet and greets, attending countless networking events, as well as making sure some of these soldiers are reconnected to their loved ones.

You see, it’s no longer about the “who’s who” in the DC social scene supporting a local charity -  it’s the “who’s who” in the national military, government and political scenes that are gaining traction – and fast.  Luke’s Wings is a fantastic “connector” that allows these two worlds to collide for a common goal: to make sure that those that are protecting our freedom are taken care of, giving us all an opportunity to thank them for allowing us to continue to live in a country where freedom is what we stand for.

As such, a veteran volunteer to the organization, Kristen Murdock (USNA), will be walking the runway her final time, before she heads back to Afghanistan for a year.  If for any reason to attend Fashion Takes Flight this year, give her a proper send off – thank her for her hard work, both in protecting us, as well as giving back to soldiers that are less fortunate.  Details below:

This Year’s Fashion Takes Flight (Official Press Release)

Luke’s Wings is pleased to announce its 4th annual runway fundraiser, Fashion Takes Flight, on February 4th, 2012 at Nationals Park! Join us for cocktails, and an exhibition of some of the District’s finest threads modeled by our servicemen and women as part of our fourth anniversary celebration and 2012 kick-off campaign.

With sweeping panoramic views of the stadium on one side and two story windows overlooking the river and monuments on the other, in the Stars and Stripes VIP Lounge, Luke’s Wings supporters will enjoy Peroni beer, specialty cocktails by Van Gogh Imports crafted specifically for Fashion Takes Flight and gourmet hors d’oeuvres. Come mix and mingle among DC’s most fashionable, in one of the most unique venues in our nation’s capital- Nationals Park! A private tour of the dugout and batting cages will also be available to all attendees.

Over the years, the popularity of Fashion Takes Flight has grown, as attendees watch models and military service men and women ‘take flight’ in a swank, high energy runway exhibition highlighting cutting edge fashion by some of the District’s freshest new talent. Philanthropists and fashionistas alike come together to support an organization that aims to assist the families of those who serve.

Special guests include Deejay Neekola and our fabulous MC Natasha Barrett! Amazing styling by PR@Partners, Megan Riddle Make-Up, Blend, and the runway collections of some of the best local runway talent DC has to offer, including Nam Nguyen and Walish Gooshe!

After an amazing evening of supporting our wounded warriors overlooking the baseball field from the Stars and Stripes VIP Lounge, you are invited to join us at Lincoln for an Americana After Party.

Event Hosted by: Charlotte Jarrett, Kristen Murdock, Nichole Devolites, Mackenzie Miles, Lindsay Kin and Fletcher Gill.

Event Details:
February 4, 2012
VIP Reception (includes reserved seating) 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Open Reception – 8:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Fashion Takes Flight – 9:00 pm – 11:00 pm
After Party at Lincoln – 11:00 pm – 2:00 am

Step Right Up, and get your tickets HERE

TICKETS:
VIP: $135
Includes:
·         VIP cocktail reception with event hosts, models, honored guests, government leadership, sponsors
·         Exclusive access to the VIP Lounge. Lounge includes private, heated balconies overlooking the baseball stadium
·         Reserved Seat for runway show
·         Gourmet fare
·         Passed Champagne
·         VIP gift bag
·         Free Parking
·         Invitation to our exclusive after-party at Lincoln

General Admission: $85
Includes:
·         Open bars
·         Gourmet fare
·         Access to fashion show
·         Free Parking
·         Invitation to our exclusive after-party at Lincoln

MEDIA NOTE: All media attendees who are interested in covering the event must register by Thursday, February 2, 2012.  Please register by emailing our Public Relations Director, Mackenzie Miles at publicrelations@lukeswings.org with your name, title, and publication.

Last Thursday I was invited to attend the Activism, Media, Policy (AMP) Summit at the Newseum in Washington, D.C.  According to their website, “People, empowered by technology, are changing everything — everywhere, all the time. The evolution of activism, media and policy never stops, and we must keep pace. The year-round AMP Summit Series will bring together leaders from around the world to address the most important topics of the day and continuing this important conversation.”

The agenda was comprised of a panel of keynotes and then a day of three different tracks: Persuasion, Activation and Empowerment.  These tracks allowed attendees to focus their attention on what was most important to them and their career or what piqued their interest, in regards to how social media is changing the face of the planet.  Since there was so much information to take in, I took to tweeting, instead of taking notes.  See my Tweeted notes below on each of the keynotes and sessions I attended.  What’s important to note is that these tracks are launch pads for continuing the conversation and fostering new ideas.

Keynote – Marc Ecko – President and Founder of Ecko Unlimited

Marc Ecko is a powerhouse in the world of urban fashion and now, he’s also a philanthropist, taking on a platform that has plagued children in inner city schools for decades: paddling.  Now, before you laugh, understand that kids that are routinely spanked, or “paddled” are far less likely to continue their schooling and thus, taking to abusing others.  It’s a serious issue that Marc has single-handedly taken on was there to talk about.  Below are my tweets and re-tweets from his keynote:

• “It’s not what you make, it’s how you make people feel” – Marc Ecko
• His new philanthropy is called Unlimited Justice
• Unlimited Justice has gotten three states to stop allowing paddling kids in school through the UnlimitedJustice app that was created
• “Young people want product.  They want relevant curriculum” – Marc Ecko

Why what he is doing is important: Through his app, as well as his social media strategy, he created an online movement to get the general population of cities and states to get a law passed, stating that paddling would be illegal.  It’s a bold move and it’s working.  Although not quite eloquently stated, Marc realizes that this generation of kids have a higher sense of entitlement to do what they want; what piques their interest, over the standard curriculum that you or I “suffered” through.  He feels that with the right mix of making education fun and not being reprimanded with physical punishment would make kids more successful in school.

Keynote – Joe Trippi – Father of Online Advocacy

Joe Trippi is a leading political strategist in Washington, D.C.  He is the author of  “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised: Democracy, the Internet and the Overthrow of Everything,” the story of how his revolutionary use of the Internet combined with an impassioned, contagious desire to overturn politics-as-usual grew into a national grassroots movement – and changed the face of American politics forever.

Below are my tweets from his keynote:

• “Best thing I’ve read is Glenn Reynolds’ (of http://instapundit.com) book, Army of Davids.”
• “We can solve a lot of problems by building sling shots and giving people the power to use them.”
• “Trippi says by 2016 there will be replacements for the two political parties. Do you agree?

Why what he is saying is important: Social media has changed the way in which information is disseminated.  It’s creating a powerful voice – a platform – for the way people express their opinions, even more so when it comes to political parties and ideas.  He even went so far as to predict that by 2016, it will bring about an entire shift in how political parties are viewed and defined.

Keynote – Matt Blunt – Governor of Missouri

According to Wikipedia, “Governor Matt Blunt was elected governor on November 2, 2004, carrying 101 of Missouri’s 114 counties. At age 33, he became the second youngest person ever elected to that office after Kit Bond. Blunt was the youngest governor in the United States until Bobby Jindal was sworn in as Governor of Louisiana on January 14, 2008. Blunt did not seek a second term as governor, announcing his decision in an address to Missourians on January 22, 2008.^[2] He was selected to serve as the president of the American Automotive Policy Council in 2011.“  His platform in office was to use social media as a “disruptor” to gain movement with his constituents and ultimately, with the state.

Below are my tweets from his keynote:

• “Big change often follows disruptions. Real change requires disruptors.”
• “Effective, innovative disruptors are changing things”
• Matt Blunt wanted to mobilize citizens to be a part of affecting change
• Matt Blunt says that these disruptive technologies are changing the face of how politics happen.
• “The ability to connect with as many people as we can today was non-existant six years ago.”
• “Public now has more tools than ever to engage in direct democracy and take power away from government.”

Why what he is saying is important: Governments need to realize that the power of social media is allowing for more transparency between the state and its constituents.  It’s allowing faster movement of getting things done and more real-time interaction.  He used the example of an app that was created to allow people to connect with MDOT to alert them of potholes in real-time.  He encourages more states to take these “risks” of getting on board with technology that virtually everyone uses.

Track 1 – (Activation) Mobilizing the Crowd: Better Grassroots Engagement

Speakers include: Jason Oxman, VP of Industry Affairs, CEA; George Atallah, Assistant Executive Director of External Affairs, NFL Players Association; Lukas Biewald, Co-founder, CrowdFlower; John Davies, Founder & CEO, Davies Public Affairs

The track gave attendees the ability to listen to live case studies of how social tools are empowering movements amongst people.  The mainly focused on a live case study of the NFL and how their Twitter campaign effectively ended an otherwise prolonged lockout.  Below are my tweets from the session:

• NFL players assoc. Think Twitter is the most effective online tool
• @crowdflower says email campaigns are most effective tool for online grass roots campaigns.
• Rep from Blaze agrees in email as well
• Discussing NFL lockout and need to mobilize. Important for fans to stay in loop
• Players were key to mobilizing during lockout. It impacts fans, businesses and NFL.
• NFL Assoc. Using Twitter campaign as means of transparency while layering messages – “Let us play” campaign.
• No one is using mail and phones anymore. Engagement level over the phone? 86% “yes” rate
• I think it’s safe to say that consumerism is driven by soc. media and B2B is driven by more traditional outlets still
• To justify a strategy – you need to have a “why”.
• “Campaign managers need to be on #Facebook and #twitter to make it a successful campaign in #2012″ – DigiMediaMavens
• A smaller company has much more freedom. Blogging is best for activation and participation.
• “What’s the point of using a tool if it’s not interactive?” George from NFL Assoc.

Key takeaways from this session: Use the tool that best aligns with the campaign, as well as the audience you are trying to reach.  Tools are cyclical – you will hit a saturation point that causes you to have to hit a “reset” button, thus why Twitter is hot and email is as well right now.

Track 2 – (Activation) Social, Mobile, Location: The Future of the Web

Speakers include: David All, Chief Creative Officer of the David All Group; Andy Ellwood, Director of Business Development, Gowalla; Eric Kuhn, Social Media Agent, United Talent Agency; Nick O’Neill, Co-Founder & CEO, Holler; Adam Sharp, Manager, Government and Political Partnerships, Twitter

The track gave insight into what the power of the web really holds for people: telling stories.  These days, it’s more about listening that sharing.

• Listening to Adam Sharp from Twitter – talking about explosion in mobile tweeting 40% growth QoQ!
• Andy Ellwood now speaking on behalf of Gowalla – story telling transcends industry, age, gender and industry
• Nick O’Neill – founder of Holler – talking about infrastructure to build technologies to connect is huge
• Eric Kuhn – United Talent Agency – deemed “Justin Bieber” of social media by Vanity Fair.
• Eric Kuhn talks about working with social media on global scale and hyper-local scale
• Eric Kuhn – social media intelligence (SMI) is better than TMI – we need to spend more time listening
• Twitter will not take down parody accounts until you request it.
• Are we crowdsourcing our news through #twitter to save time?
• “We’ve gotten to the point where we don’t know what’s really #awesome or #epic. via @AndyEllwood” - CityGirlBlogs
• On a clear parody account, twitter does not mediate content or get in the middle of it
• People will “like” something during a campaign and “unlike” it by a week after it’s over. Do you do this?
• Social media is like a big party but at the core of it, you’re in the backyard, hanging with just your closest friends.

Key takeaways from this session: People are looking to Twitter for a quick source of news.  However, in order to sift through the “noise”, people need to spend more time listening to the conversation before forming an opinion.  At the end of the day, we are over saturated with news and thus, while we might “follow” or “friend” a few thousand people, only a very small selection of people are those we really “listen” to.

Track 3 – Brands as Publishers: Interactive Content and Video

Speakers include: Matt Lira, Director of New Media, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s Office; Dan Beckmann, Co-founder, IB5k; Andrew Foxwell, Marketing and New Media Director, iConstituent; Colin Moffett, Senior Vice President, Digital Communications, Powell Tate | Weber Shandwick

This conversation was more about the power of video and the goal to spark emotion to initiate “movement”.  Several examples were shown, as to how powerful video has become to people – how it is used to tell a story.

AMP Summit After Party

After a great day with some informative sessions, attendees and speakers were invited to the AOL/Huffington Post after-party at L2.  Guests were treated to an open bar and some delicious hors d’ oeuvres and desserts, as well as a great DJ to dance the night away.  Some pics are below:

Many thanks to Lauri Tamney (Digital Media Mavens) for the invite!  Shout outs also go to: Lindsay Kin (Lukes Wings), Stef Woods (City Girl Blogs), Masha Tatianina, Mark Drapeau (Microsoft), Tiffany Carter (RepEquity), Luke Radlinksi (Kettler), Michael Woestehoff (The Washington Lobbyist), Kate Michael (K Street Kate), Shelley Tidmore (Tidmore Group), Lisa Byrne (DCEventJunkies) and Angie Goff (NBC4)

I must say, I’m so, so blessed with so many wonderful friends.  If it weren’t for them, life just wouldn’t be as fun.

On Monday, August 15th, my dear friend Kate Michael threw me a birthday party at Lincoln.  Not expecting this whatsoever, I was so touched that someone would take the time to do this for me, as no one has ever thrown me a birthday party before!!

A small group of us dined on small plates, ate Kate’s homemade cupcakes (which I heard were fantastic – not just from the guests but the bartenders as well) and caught up.  Many MANY thanks goes out to Lindsay Kin, Moshe Zusman, Mark Drapeau, Raea Jean Leinster, Constance Christakos, Michael Woestehoff, Stef Woods, Vithaya Phongsavan and Kelly Collis for making my night so special!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last year, I attended the Washington Life Young and the Guest List party to help toast those individuals that Washington Life Magazine named as the best-of-the-best in D.C.  This year, I was honored to be named as one of them.

Like with any Washington Life party, a great level of detail (and hard work) is put into it and this party was no exception.

Held at Longview Gallery/Rogue 24, 600 fashionable guests stepped into a completely transformed space, complete with fully-stocked bars, a sushi bar, Rogue 24 food stations, a chocolate/champagne room (my favorite), bands, DJ’s and very chic decor.  It was the party of parties for the magazine – and a complete success.

If you were one of the lucky guests to be honored, you walked away with an amazing gift bag, full of products from: Michael Kors, Juicy Couture, Alessi Alessi, Lush, Kiehls, Alchimie Forever, Salon Daniel, Astor and Black and many more.  And, if you were one of the lucky FEW, you may have also received the keys to a Cadillac for a week!

Shout outs go to: Michael Clements, Kristen Thorne, John Arundel, Andre Wells, Kate Michael, Laura Chavez, John-Michael Scott, Fletcher Gill, Lindsay Kin, Cheryl Romero, Katherine Kennedy, Kirk Wiles, Christina Mohr, Ray Regan, Michael Woestehoff, Paul Wharton, Aureta Thomollari, Mary Amons and anyone else I may have forgotten.

Last week I wrote a post about why it was I made a choice to be a part of the Executive Committee for this year’s Fashion Takes Flight.  This week, I am proud to say I can prove why.

Just under one month ago, the Executive Committee of Rachael Glaws, Kristen Murdock, Lindsay Kin, Mackenzie Miles, Fletcher Gill and myself got together to discuss the show. Just under one month later, it became a reality.  Here are the highlights:

The event was held in the grand ballroom of Adams Morgan Mansion, which is now Stroga Yoga.  The VIP guests were treated to champagne (many thanks to the Fly Lounge girls for serving), hors d’ oeuvres (thanks to Peacock Cafe and Purple Onion Catering) and violin music from the very talented Raea Leinster.  At promptly 9:00pm, the upstairs was open for people to mingle at two more bars, while listening to the sounds of Seyhan and watching moving military videos on two 60″ flat screen TVs.  Natasha Barrett, the emcee for the evening, welcomed everyone to the show and the National Anthem was sung by Samantha Dredge.  When the lights went down, the runway lit up and the sounds of aircrafts filled the air.  All eyes were glued to the flat screens that now illuminated the entire room.  Lights flashed, the helicopter sounds came closer and the fog machine gave us an instant feeling of being on an aircraft carrier.  Things went dark and the spot lights came on, with the men starting out the show in custom-made Don Patron shirts.  This was followed by Ella Rue, Saks Fifth Avenue Galleria for men and Aram for women. The finale was giving our military models one final walk down the runway in their uniforms.

To close the show, Fletcher gave some wonderful remarks, followed by a moving video of some of the families that have benefitted from Luke’s Wings.  MSA then presented Luke’s Wings with a check.  This check, amongst many other donations (including ticket sales, silent auction items and other forms of donations) raised about $20,000 (so far).

There are so many thank you’s to be given for such a successful event.  Please forgive me if not everyone is listed: Fletcher Gill, Lindsay Kin, Rachael Glaws, Kristen Murdock, Mackenzie Miles, Alfredo Flores, Daniel Swartz, Nakeva Corothers, Seyhan Duru, all of the models, all of the volunteers and all of the attendees!!!! Also, a special THANK YOU to my sister Cassie Devolites for flying from Colorado Springs to represent Air Force!!!