Annual Meeting Wrap-Up

What do you get when you combine good friends and good food (and maybe a pink flamingo)? AmeriCorps Alums Connecticut's inaugural annual meeting! Held on June 25th, 40+ alums, current members, and community partners gathered at St. Michael Church in New Haven to celebrate service and start planning for the future.

Chapter Leader Tina Lindstrom shares highlights from the past year.

Chapter Leader Tina Lindstrom shared the story of how she came to found our chapter and highlighted some of our greatest accomplishments from the past year, including:

• Engaging over volunteers in over 9,000 hours of service;
• Forming partnerships with 11 local organizations;
• Soliciting $1,355 in cash and in-kind support; and
• Sponsoring 10 events (almost once/month!) to bring together AmeriCorps Alums, current members, and the community in the name of service. 

For a copy of our full annual report, please contact us at connecticut@americorpsalums.org.

We were also honored to be joined by our 2014 Champions of Service:

• Nick Montini, who went above-and-beyond this past year as an AmeriCorps VISTA serving with the Errera Center as part of the Veterans Recovery Project and member of the InterCorps Council;
• Jennifer Turner, a (five-year) VISTA alum who continues to inspire current members and her students at University of Bridgeport;
• RYASAP, a leading community-connector and AmeriCorps supporter in Bridgeport; and
• Representative Jim Himes, represented by Tyrone McClain, for his unending support for national and community service both locally and in Washington.

VISTA alum and New Haven mayor Toni Harp was also there in spirit, issuing a proclamation "urg[ing] citizens to join [us] in finding ways to give back to their communities."

Friends from NeighborWorks New Horizons show their best #cookiesmiles, courtesy of Insomnia Cookies

Thank you to everyone who supported us by coming out, buying raffle tickets, and sharing your story with us. We also want to give a huge THANK YOU to Knights of Columbus Council No. 65 for the fantastic space and the other businesses who showed their support through donations: Claire's Corner Corpia, Insomnia Cookies, Barcelona Wine Bar, Caseus Fromagerie & Bistro, The Original Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana, Fresh Yoga, Message by Massage, and Woodside Massage.

Together we raised over $600 to support AmeriCorps Alums-led initiatives and service projects (stay tuned for one exciting mini-grant opportunity to be announced soon!)

For more pics, check out our Facebook album at http://bit.ly/CTAlumMeeting.


2014 Leadership Board (l-r): RJ Mercede, Noor Al-Ghanem,
Tina Lindstrom, Shannon Mykins, Colleen Mattatall, and Sam Rigotti

We'll see you next year!