Fine Flavors of Fig & Olive Melrose Place!
When a trip to Europe is too far to travel to satisfy your cravings of rich, Mediterranean flavors, there's a hot spot in West Hollywood that will do more than satisfy your taste buds. The chic atmosphere at Fig & Olive Melrose Place is perfect for a light brunch or lunch during the day, but it transforms in the night, taking you away with culture and flavor!
Fig & Olive is the perfect venue for an engagement party or rehearsal dinner, as they have rooms and space for larger parties, and the décor is taken care of.
Perfectly pairing their dishes with some of the finest olive oils, the chefs stray away from using heavy butters and other sauces, making their menu items healthy and light!
Try the seared salmon with fennel and green olives- they finish it with fresh pepper and olive oil… to die for!
Since you've had a healthy meal, there's no excuse not to save room for dessert! The Crème Brulee Cheesecake with crunch olive oil crisp and thyme macerated figs is a sinless sensation that will complete your trip to Europe right at your table in Beverly Hills!
Go to www.figandolive.com to see more delicious menu items and find about the restaurant's locations in other cities!


text:
Marriage: Is It Really Work?
Along with the rise of marriage counseling in the 1950s, and a deep-seated fear of divorce, came the idea that marriage is work -- and that it's mostly the wife's job to do it -- and a slew of relationship "experts" and a multimillion-dollar self-help industry to help us with that.
ByVicki Larson, Contributor
Co-author of "The New I Do," journalist, mom
05/14/2013 04:18pm EDT | Updated July 14, 2013
Couple just married.
Not even beautiful people have it easy.
Just a few weeks ago, Gwyneth Paltrow -- People magazine's most beautiful woman in the world -- confessed that marriage is hard and it takes work.
"It's hard being married. You go through great times, you go through terrible times. We're the same as any couple," Paltrow said of her nine-year marriage to Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin (to which I'm sure many female Martin fans were thinking, hmm, not if I were married to him).
She basically affirmed what Ben Affleck said of wife Jennifer Garner while accepting his Oscar for Argo earlier this year: "I want to thank you for working on our marriage for 10 Christmases. It's good. It is work but the best kind of work and there's no one I'd rather work with," which caused a bit of a kerfuffle.
Even Beyonce noted how marriage takes "hard work and sacrifice."
OK, we get; marriage is no fairytale, no bed of roses, no walk in the park. But some just aren't buying that.
Blogger Kate Fridkis says she's done with hearing how hard marriage is supposed to be. Two years into married life and she says, "I'm tired of feeling like I must sound fake for being happily married. Like I must not know what I'm talking about."
CafeMom Sasha Brown-Worsham says marriage isn't "hard," although she admits it's "challenging:"
I guess it really depends on your definition of 'hard.' It can be challenging, but many good things are ... Saying it's hard somehow implies that it isn't worth it or that there are many parts of it that are bad. I disagree. Why would anyone stay in a marriage that feels like drudgery and makes you unhappy?
(Note to Sasha: If you want to get a lot of angry HuffPost comments, just try telling people you -- a woman -- want to get out of a marriage because it "makes you unhappy"!)
So clearly we are experiencing something along the lines of the Mommy Wars except it's the Marriage Wars, those who think marriage is hard and requires work, and those who don't.
Marriage never used to be considered work; marriage was considered a duty. I'm not sure that's any better because duty implies there's no choice and we certainly like choice in marriage nowadays. But along with the rise of marriage counseling in the 1950s, and a deep-seated fear of divorce, came the idea that marriage is work -- and that it's mostly the wife's job to do it -- and a slew of relationship "experts" and a multimillion-dollar self-help industry to help us with that.
Still, if you're generally a kind and loving person, wouldn't married life be somewhat easy? Could it be that we aren't always as kind and loving as we believe we are? Or is there something wrong with marriage itself?
Certainly, if we marry with unrealistic expectations, it's a recipe for disaster. At the same time, it just isn't all that easy to live with anyone for decades on end, no matter how kind and loving you are and how much you genuinely like each other; there are going to be what Paltrow calls great times and terrible times.
A huge part of the problem is we get habituated, says Sonja Lyubomirsky, a professor of psychology at the University of California, Riverside, whose book, The Myths of Happiness, details actions and words that can help keep love alive, like asking yourself each morning, "What can I do for five minutes today to make my partner's life better?"
But, you don't have to be married to experience habituation, as Susan Saradon, who lived with partner Tim Robbins for 23 years, knows:
The one thing that's been really clear to me is that you have to think of your own life and your relationship and everything as a living organism. It's constantly moving, changing, growing. I think long-term relationships need to be constantly re-evaluated and talked about.
Do re-evaluation and conversation take work? Do Lyubomirsky's "actions" and "words" sound like work? After all, we're being asked to do something for our marriage; is that "work" or just a conscious decision to act? If "work" is how you chose to look at it, OK, it's work. If you see that as challenging, fine; consider yourself challenged. If you accept that these are things that you just do, great; just do it.
All I know is this; if you don't look after a baby, a pet, a plant, sourdough culture -- really, anything that's living -- it tends to wither and die, perhaps while you're struggling with what to call what you might want to be doing to keep it alive.
A version of this story appeared on Vicki Larson's personal blog, OMG Chronicles.
relationship advicemarriage adviceweddingsRelationshipsMarriage
Vicki Larson, Contributor
MORE IN Weddings

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Ally Align Health
Transformative
PARTNERS IN THE NEWS
All the Stars Aligned': Operators Boast 30% Readmission Reductions, Market Gains with I-SNPs
As skilled nursing facilities work to establish their position in an increasingly value-based health landscape, many are looking at the world of Medicare Advantage as more than a pressure point for billing. They see it as an opportunity to take control of the premium dollar, moving into the business of providing insurance for their patients. [...]
AllyAlign Health Licenses Juniper's Connect4Life Care Model as Foundation for Senior-Housing Medicare Advantage Risk Strategy
RICHMOND, VA, and BLOOMFIELD, NJ–AllyAlign Health (AAH), a leading convener and owner of Medicare Advantage plans designed for senior housing residents, announced today a strategic partnership with Juniper Communities to license their Connect4Life program. The partnership enables AAH to exclusively implement Connect4Life as the foundation for their CMS-approved care model as part of the company's Medicare Advantage plans nationwide.
Juniper's care model, Connect4Life, to see national rollout under licensing agreement
Juniper Communities' Connect4Life care coordination model soon will be finding its way into senior living communities across the country under the terms of a new five-year licensing agreement between the Bloomfield, NJ-based operator and Richmond, VA-based Medicare Advantage plan developer and administrator AllyAlign Health.
AllyAlign Health Announces Strategic Growth Investment Funding from McKesson Ventures
New funding to accelerate growth in new markets
Richmond, VA – April 16, 2019— AllyAlign Health(AAH), a Richmond-based developer and administrator of Medicare Advantage special need plans that benefit long-term care (LTC) providers, announced today it closed a $10 million strategic round led by McKesson Ventures. Existing investors Heritage Healthcare Innovation Fund,
Poised To Take The New Payment Leap
Long term care providers are entering into a time of serious decision making on how best to embrace the opportunities and challenges that alternative payment models offer.
By Patrick Connole
As the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) aggressively pursues value-based payments over traditional fee-for-service (FFS) contracting, the stage seems to be set for some radical changes for stakeholders of all stripes,
All the Stars Aligned': Operators Boast 30% Readmission Reductions, Market Gains with I-SNPs	Jan 03, 2020
AllyAlign Health Licenses Juniper's Connect4Life Care Model as Foundation for Senior-Housing Medicare Advantage Risk Strategy	Oct 24, 2019
Download Articles
Copyright © 2019 AllyAlign Health, Inc. All rights reserved.
Amy E. Kaszak
President of Special Needs Plans
Amy.Kaszak@AllyAlign.com
Amy E. Kaszak is the President, Special Needs Plans for AllyAlign Health. As AllyAlign Health's second employee, Amy helped shape the company's strategy of empowering long-term care providers to change the financial incentives and care models for vulnerable populations. Amy oversees all partner relationships, clinical operations, business development, and sales and marketing activities of the company.
Amy's experience with innovative care models began in the mid-1990s when she helped organize one of the first hospitalist companies in the country, Intercede Health (formerly Inpatient Medical Services). Based in Houston, Texas, the company built and operated Hospitalist networks for CIGNA, Humana, Pacificare, and Heritage, and NAMM IPAs and, as payment models shifted, later partnered with hospitals across the country to implement Hospitalist and SNFist practices. Amy helped pioneer the concept of the high-risk medical home, co-authoring a 1997 article that coined the term "Extensive" to describe an outpatient physician focused on complex, chronic condition patients.
Amy earned her B.A. degree from Baylor University and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. She currently lives in Houston, Texas.
R.J. Gilson
Senior Vice President, Market Development
RJ.Gilson@AllyAlign.com
R.J. Gilson is the Senior Vice President, Market Development for AllyAlign Health, leading the expansion of membership for plans under AllyAlign's management. In this capacity, he is responsible for the strategic partnerships with long-term care providers, Medicare Advantage plan development, marketing and enrollment for AllyAlign's partners' plans.
R.J. has over 25 years of sales, marketing, and business development experience. Most recently, R.J. was with Xerox State Healthcare (now part of Conduent) and its predecessor companies serving in a variety of sales and marketing roles. R.J. led complex sales efforts with states focused on Medicaid Enterprise Solutions (formerly MMIS), electronic health records, pharmacy benefit management, and other healthcare management solutions. As an individual contributor, R.J. booked over $1B in sales for the company. Immediately before joining AllyAlign, R.J. was responsible for leading the government healthcare sales organization located east of the Mississippi River.
A lifelong Richmond, Virginia resident, R.J. enjoys spending time with his wife and two children or playing bad golf.
Julianne C. Hug
Julianne.Hug@allyalign.com
Julianne Hug is the Chief Financial Officer of AllyAlign Health, providing guidance and oversight for the financial reporting of all health plans. This includes overseeing the monthly financial results as well as coordinating audits, tax reporting, and regulatory filings.
Julianne has extensive experience in the financial, accounting, regulatory, and management aspects of the health insurance industry. She began her career as a CPA for Grant Thornton. She later served as Director of Finance and Controller for Saint Mary's Health Plans, the health insurance subsidiary for Dignity Health, and was responsible for financial and statutory reporting, NAIC and CMS filings, risk analysis, and budgets.
When Prominence Health Plan—a subsidiary of Universal Health Services—acquired Saint Mary's Health Plans, Julianne served on the transition team, and later as Vice President of Finance and CFO. In these roles, she oversaw GAAP and statutory financial reporting, earnings projections, RBC and capital projections, NAIC financial filings, CMS financial filings, underwriting, actuarial, product development, and budgets for several entities. These included insurance companies offering commercial, exchange, and Medicare products in multiple states. She was also responsible for research and financial analysis of regulations, strategic business opportunities, market conditions and impacts on financial results.
Julianne recently relocated to Richmond and is excited to explore the region's National Parks and museums.
Alan Bratton
Alan.Bratton@allyalign.com
Alan Bratton is the Chief Operating Officer of AllyAlign Health. He has a long, distinguished track record of success in implementing complex technical and operational projects in the state and federal government and commercial healthcare environments.
Alan has over 33 years of professional experience in public sector healthcare, large-scale system development and solution delivery, and healthcare payer operations. He has managed multiple Medicaid Management Information Systems (MMIS) projects as well as drug point of sale, enrollment broker, decision support system, case management, prior authorization, electronic data exchange, and eligibility projects throughout his career.
Before joining AllyAlign, Alan managed large-scale, global technical organizations (1,600+ people), projects ranging from $5M up to $150M in budget size, and a portfolio of projects up to $250M. Two of the projects he led were Xerox's assumption of operations of the California Medicaid program and the implementation of the New Hampshire Health Enterprise system. Both projects involved numerous vendors, multiple systems, management of 1000+ staff, and high visibility. Under his leadership, both projects were implemented on schedule and met all milestones and project goals; and met or exceeded performance metrics. Overall, Alan has worked with 26 states helping to deliver solutions for the administration of their Medicaid programs.
Alan earned a B.S. degree from Milligan College and an MBA from Emory University.
Patrick Hurd
Senior Vice President and General Counsel
Pat.Hurd@AllyAlign.com
As Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Pat serves as the chief legal officer at AllyAlign. With over 30 years of experience as a practicing attorney, Pat most recently served as Senior Counsel and Chair of the Healthcare Industry Practice at a national law firm.
His representative matters include advising hospitals, long-term care facilities, and allied health entities on licensing matters; responding to OIG, CMS, and other agency investigative matters, including Medicare and Medicaid billing and reimbursement issues; negotiating contracts with managed care organizations; counseling on HIPAA/HITECH and related privacy matters; and assisting a diverse array of employers on issues arising under the Affordable Care Act.
Pat has also held positions as the Director of Risk Management for a health system and CEO of a not-for-profit organization providing reproductive health and family planning services to women, men, and teens.
Pat is an avid cyclist and can be found most weekends riding the roads and trails around greater Richmond. He and his wife also enjoy hiking with their grandchildren.
Stephanie Bauerle
Stephanie.beaurle@allyalign.com
Dr. Bauerle is the Chief Medical Officer for AllyAlign, and also serves as Plan Medical Director for Missouri Medicare Select, NHC Advantage, and Sunrise Advantage Virginia.
Dr. Bauerle is a board-certified Internist with over a decade of experience in long-term care. She completed her residency at Des Peres Hospital in Des Peres, Missouri and was in the first class of residents to participate in St. Louis Universities Acute Care for the Elderly affiliation.
She is a Washington University Alzheimer's Project Scholar and has held multiple facility-level medical directorships in the St. Louis area. Dr. Bauerle is committed to the care and quality of life for the institutionalized and elderly.
Dr. Bauerle lives in St. Louis and enjoys cooking and family time with her husband and 11-year-old daughter.
Bill Lucia
Chairman & CEO HMS Holdings
blucia@hms.com
Bill Lucia serves as HMS Holdings president and chief executive officer. In 2008, he joined the HMS board of directors and was appointed as chairman in 2015. He joined HMS in 1996 and continues to lead HMS through the evolving healthcare landscape, demonstrating the ability to formulate and implement key strategic initiatives.
Before HMS, Bill served as senior vice president of operations and chief information officer for Celtic Life Insurance Company. Previous to that role, he held the position of senior vice president of Insurance Operations for North American Company for Life and Health Insurance. He currently serves as chairman of the Council for Medicare Integrity.
Bill is also a fellow of the Life Management Institute program through LOMA, an international association of insurance and financial services companies engaging in research and educational activities to improve operations.
Kenneth Paulus
Founder and CEO Reference Health
kpaulus@referencehealth.com
Ken Paulus is the past President and CEO for Allina Health, of one of the nation's largest integrated delivery systems serving Minnesota and Western Wisconsin. Proceeding his role at Allina, Ken was the President and CEO of Atrius Health System, the largest integrated physician group in New England and a teaching and research affiliate of Harvard Medical School.
Ken held the role of Chief Operating Officer of Partners Community HealthCare – the integrated medical network representing Partners HealthCare System, the Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women's Hospital.
In addition to AllyAlign Health, Ken serves on multiple corporate boards: Health Grades, Teladoc (NYSE: TDOC), and Breg.
Ken was born in Wisconsin, raised in Chicago. He completed his Bachelor of Arts in biology at Augustana College and his Master of Healthcare Administration school at the University of Minnesota.
Bob Schulz
Managing Member Health Enterprise Partners
bschulz@helpfund.com
Bob Schulz has served as a director of AllyAlign Health since the company's formation in 2013. In 2006, he co-founded and currently serves as a Managing Member of Health Enterprise Partners, a healthcare-focused private equity firm that has raised $427 million in three funds. In 1997, prior to co-founding HEP, Mr. Schulz was a Managing Member and co-founder of CB Health Ventures ("CBHV") and its investment funds.
Previous to CBHV, Mr. Schulz spent three years as the President and COO of Harris & Harris Group, Inc., a publicly traded business development company, and ten years with Credit Suisse First Boston (now Credit Suisse). Prior experience included work on synthetic fuels research for Chevron Research Company and Exxon Research and Engineering Company.
Bob is currently or has been a director of several portfolio companies including ContinuumRx, SCIO Health Analytics (acquired by EXL), Applied Pathways (acquired by Anthem), CareMedic Systems (acquired by UnitedHealthcare), CorSolutions Medical (acquired by Matria), Carefx (acquired by Harris Corp.), Passport Health Communications (acquired by Experian) and Skylight Healthcare (acquired by GetWell Network).
He received a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Chemical Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and an MBA from Columbia Business School (Beta Gamma Sigma).
Paul Wallace
Managing Director Heritage Group
paul@heritagegroupusa.com
Paul Wallace serves as Managing Director for Heritage Group.
His prior experience includes more than 20 years in venture capital and private equity investing with firms such as GTCR, Lazard Asia, Gilbert Global, Petra Capital, and SV Life Sciences.
He also spent six years leading corporate development for Tivity Health (NASDAQ: TVTY), during which time the company's revenue increased more than fivefold.
He received his M.B.A. from Kellogg and his B.A. from the University of Richmond. He is a native of Nashville, where he resides with his wife and three wild children.
Will Saunders
Chief Executive Officer AllyAlign Health
Will.Saunders@AllyAlign.com
Will Saunders is the Founder and CEO of AllyAlign Health. Will has a passion for reforming the healthcare system to more efficiently and effectively care for vulnerable and medically complex patients.
Before founding AllyAlign, Will was the President of the largest business unit of Xerox Business Services; contracting with 38 states to assist in Medicaid program administration. Will grew the unit to over $1B in revenue with more than nine thousand employees; and enjoyed working as a trusted partner with state customers in implementing the mandates of health reform and the Affordable Care Act.
Before his work with Xerox, Will was the President of Heritage Information Systems, a successful health information technology company that was sold to the entity that became Xerox Business Services. Heritage was a pioneer in aggregating disparate sources of healthcare data and utilizing a clinical rules engine to drive solutions that decreased the cost and improved the quality of healthcare. Will started his career as a CPA for Price Waterhouse.
Will is a graduate of the University of Virginia and resides in Richmond, VA. In his spare time, Will enjoys spending time with his wife and four daughters.


INTENSE Hosted Cookout A Success!
We want to thank everyone who attended the Greater Ohio Club Grand Prix Picnic event we hosted here at INTENSE. The turnout was great and the food was awesome. Hamburgers, chicken, hot dogs, and a plethora of side dishes and desserts were demolished by a bunch of great people who spent hours talking cars, mods and football (Ohio State was playing).
We had over 30 cars and about twice as many people and we look forward to doing this event again next year. Thanks to GOCLUBGP for bringing the meat, Mike Murphy for doing the grilling, Tracy Bright and Scott Cook for loaning the grill, and everyone for having a good time.
New INTENSE Chrome Badges Available!
We just received our first batch of new INTENSE Chromed Emblems. These are the perfect exterior accessory for your INTENSE powered vehicle. These emblems are 6 inches long by 1/2 inch tall, are prepared for peel and stick and come in singles for $15 or pairs for $25. The first batch may not last long so be sure to get yours today!
You've seen pictures of the quality of our prototype INTENSE Camaro Twin Turbo Kit. You've seen the videos of the awesome sound and power it produces. You've read the owner's testimonial after driving it from Columbus to Florida. Now, finally, you can experience this excitement for yourself.
Along with everything included in the kit, we recommend the following items with this or any other forced induction kit. While these items are not included and are not required, we consider adding them the right way to make power safely and maximize performance gains.
Aftermarket Exhaust system such as Corsa, SLP, or Magnaflow.
Installation time is approximately 20 hours at our normal labor pricing of $75/hour. The first 8-10 installs must be done here at our shop. This will allow us to make sure that our customers are happy and satisfied with the kit as well as allow us to streamline installation instructions and procedures.
Pricing is not completely set as we are still waiting on some quotes to be finalized on various kit parts however all pre-orders placed during the month of September, 2009 and secured with a 25% deposit will get this listed pricing even if the final pricing goes up. Orders and installations will be handled on a first come first serve basis.
Place your order today and amaze your friends, wow your family, and put a smile on your face every time you drive your INTENSE Twin Turbo powered Camaro.
Free Order #19000 Winner Announced!
Congratulations to James Keith of Birchwood, TN. His entire order which consisted of some 4T65E-HD transaxle parts was completely FREE!. We want to thank everyone who participated in this always exciting event. Be sure to watch for our next FREE order give away at order #20000.


Sheila of Sheila's WheelersWhy are we doing this?
There are plenty of people to thank.
On a very self indulgent and personal note I would first like to thank my wife Lisa, for not just putting up with every harebrained scheme I come up with, but supporting me through them no matter how idiotic the scheme may be. She gave up her time and some of our family budget to make this ride possible. Thanks Duck!
I would also like to thank the other 4 members of the team. You made a great experience greater, you dealt with the tough times with great calmness and put up with my grumpiness when things went wrong. You got cracking.
Matt would like to thank his wife Sue for giving him his leave from the housework to go training.
Also his kids, Holly and Bradley for being his motivation for pedaling faster so that he'd see them sooner.
The four riders of the team are very much in debt to our team member Bryn Edwards, who gave up annual leave entitlement and hard cash to drive a van in support of the trip. It just wouldn't have been possible without you. Many thanks.
"I'd like to thank everyone who helped us - whether it was the staff and customers at the Leap or the relatives, friends, workmates who made donations. The people who went out of their way to help and support, the drivers who were courteous and Gary will eventually forgive those who weren't, those who offered encouragement. In fact everyone who supported and helped us, whether their contribution was large or small they were all very very much appreciated and they are not forgotten. Thank you all. (now where do I pick up the award?)"
Former Gold Commonwealth cyclist Keith Reynolds for the training advice passed through Sheila's Wheeler Matt and for keeping his mouth shut regarding our unprepared state before the ride. The power of mind over matter eh?
Best Connection Group for the publicity and the funds the staff raised in aid of our charities.
Flora Van Hire and Controlled Scaffolding for sponsoring the van used to support the ride.
The staff and patrons of the Deer's Leap Public House in Kingstanding took part in family fund raising days, raffles and sponsorship raising an enormous amount of money. You're good, good people.
The staff and patrons of the Great Barr Club who raised sponsorship. You too are good people.
The staff at Leisure Lakes Bowling in Crewe who donated a couple of games of Ten Pin Bowling and a couple of rounds of drinks. The only late night we had during the ride was this one. We had a great evening, ta!
The many people we met en-route who helped or donated to our charities. We were constantly amazed at how trusting and generous the people of Great Britain are.
Fred Williams Cycles in Wolverhampton for the excellent advice on cycle gear and very reasonable prices.
The Great British Weather. It was perhaps a little too hot, but it was nice. For two whole weeks. Just a few spots of rain. So ta!
The friends and family who came out to visit us as we arrived in Ludlow, Mick and Jan Gough, Tom Lafferty, Sharon and Andy Hodgets, Keith Mayers, Karen Mayers. It was a great moral boost to spend an evening with you during the ride. A special thank you to Mick who bought us our evening meal and asked us to donate the cost of our meals to our charities. And also to Tom who supplied the Sheila's Wheelers T-shirts.
The welcome party at Land's End which included Terry and Libby Clews, Jessica "Kicka" Clews, Susan Clews, Val, Rob, Lucy and Sam Poxon, Carl and Trudy Mayers, Lisa Hurdman, Susan, Holly and Bradley Leech, Vicky Hurdman, Tom Lafferty, Mary, Aiden and Christie Lafferty.
Thanks to all our sponsors. Many, many thanks.
Birmigingham Childrens HospitalHolly and Bradley both required care soon after birth. As Matt is their Dad he needed no time at all to choose a charity to raise funds for. Mum, as Holly and Bradley's Grandmother would second his choice.


Kathryn W. Miree & Associates, Inc.
Elder abuse affects our families, friends, colleagues, donors- just about everyone. Yet it remains a fringe issue, with little understanding as to how we as advisors, fundraisers, or friends can address it and what tools are available to us. We will walk through several case studies to illustrate the challenges present in elder abuse cases.
The success of a planned giving program starts with the commitment of the Board of a charitable organization to its fundraising and development initiatives.
With the largest generation of donors in history turning 70 over the next 15 years, are you prepared to address and potentially benefit from managing the "donor downgrade"?
Join the conversation with three planned giving officers who will share their vast experiences in successful prospect outreach, cultivation, and stewardship.
In this session, you will learn best practices for identifying gift prospects with complex assets, as well as the strategies for closing these gifts.
Picture it: well-established institution; old marketing tools; moderate but consistent legacy gift activity. Two seasoned professionals breathe new life into a rusty legacy marketing machine. Come hear how they did it.
Insights on the impact of the new tax law on charitable gifting and how conversations with donors will have to shift towards a multi-generational focus.
The presenters will take you on a "guided hike" through the necessary expectations to set when working with donors on real estate gifts.
This session will review key issues around the use of donor advised funds and will highlight ways that charitable organizations can work with donor advised fund providers to attract support.
This session focuses on the policies and procedures that will encourage efficient use of fundraising resources while managing risk to the organization.
Examine potential risks to your fundraising programs, learn strategies to control those risks and a framework to engage staff / board leadership in sustained success.
Our donors' generous gifts from wills and trust are only complete AFTER we receive it and use it as they intended.
This session will explore what philanthropic vehicle will best achieve your client/donor's objectives - from private foundations to single member LLCs.
A thought-provoking presentation where attendees will learn about the growing trend of contributing complex assets, such as privately-held C-and S-corp stock, real estate, limited partnership interests, and certain publicly-traded stock, to public charities. These can often be the most highly appreciated assets in a client's portfolio, and contributing them to charity can potentially minimize capital gains exposure.
This session, using case studies, shows that you will close more gift annuities if you are not limited to common donor scenarios, traditional funding assets, and standard presentations.
We will explore how the new tax laws impact the planning for charitable lead trusts and other alternatives.
Gift planning metrics are frequently misunderstood and misapplied. This session focuses on tying metrics to a program plan and selecting and applying metrics that motivate success.
Kathryn Miree & Associates, Inc.
How do you attract a large gift for your organization? Once you manage to do so, what are the next steps? How do you document the parties' mutual promises? We will speak from firsthand experience, as well as some historical examples, on what works, what doesn't, and how to avoid pitfalls.
This workshop explores a possible strategy to start talking to younger donors about future bequests.
Looking to advance your career in the nonprofit world? Interested in transitioning to the nonprofit world from the corporate or legal sector? Can't figure out how to find your next staff person? Can't figure out how to best promote your own talents? This workshop will provide you with valuable tools to accomplish all your personal career goals and recruiting tips from the view point of a career nonprofit executive turned recruiter.
Registered attendees will be contacted via email and provided with a link to access presentation handouts 1-2 weeks prior to the conference.
Please note that some handouts will be made available the day of the conference.


I've been thinking a lot about nucleation lately. It's one of those things you have an intuitive sense about but don't realize has a name. Once you do, and you have some understanding of how it works, you start to see it everywhere. Most people stop there, but I have a blog post to write every day so you get to hear about it too. Lucky you.
Pour a glass of beer. Pour it down the side, pour it down the middle, it doesn't matter. Assuming it's clear enough, you'll see tiny bubbles streaming up from the bottom. Ideally you'll see strings of bubbles. You probably know that the bubbles are from CO2 being released from the beer. The process of that gas being released from the beer is called nucleation. A place that promotes the process is called a nucleation point. In the case of a beer glass the nucleation points are tiny imperfections along the bottom, horizontal surface. Sharp corners and lots of surface area, albeit at the microscopic scale, provide the escape path for the excess C02.
There are lots of other examples in the physical world. A dust particle provides a location for air supersaturated with water vapor to condense as it cools. A grain of sand gets lodged in the soft tissue of an oyster so it releases a substance that coats it to smooth the rough edges. Layer after layer adheres to itself and when it's all done you have a pearl. Water pressure increases on the back of a dam and a small weak point finally gives way. That sets off a chain reaction which, at the microscopic level, is just the original failure repeated over and over. Nucleation is the process of something starting out one way and then turning into something else when conditions change. A nucleation point is a place where the conditions are favorable for that change to begin. For whatever reason, it takes less energy at that point to push the state of the system from one way of being organized to another.
I think this process has relevance in the social and political space as well. Let's take Seth Godin's "Guy #3" as an example. It's a short video of what Godin calls a "dance tribe" forming at a music festival. He points out that the key person in the process is the third person to start dancing. The first guy sets it in motion. The second guy is another guy dancing. It could end right then and it's just two goofballs dancing. The third guy is an inflection point. Now it's a trend. People can choose to join in or not, but there's no denying it's a thing. Guys 1 – 3 form a nucleation point.
The Tunisian Revolution began with public reaction to the self-immolation of a street vendor Mohamed Bouazizi who was protesting that his merchandise had been confiscated. Unrest spread to other Arab countries. Then it hit Syria. And stopped. The conditions there were different. Its government was willing to crush the rebellion and had the means to do it. Not all that different from what happened in China in 1989.
It's hard to form a social nucleation point on purpose. The folks who took over the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge wanted to be one but they couldn't pull it off. Maybe they didn't bring enough snacks, but it's more the fact that there aren't that many people willing to get that bent about federal land management issues. Is there anything more painful than a company clueless about social media trying to get something to go viral? At best it goes nowhere. At worst it goes viral when people subvert the intent to spread the exact opposite message from the one intended. Political campaigns are really good at that one.
I thought of all of this when the news came down that Justice Scalia had died. I think we're at a nucleation point. It's supposed to be the branch of government most removed from the day-to-day of politics but, ironically, it's the one most likely to put people into the streets. Like a ruling? Have a rally! Hate a ruling? Have a rally!
I have no idea what's going to happen. But I do know there's a lot of potential instability in our social fabric and now we have an emotionally-charged point for that conflict to be focused.
It scares the hell out of me, frankly.


When you are hosting a corporate event, the one thing that you will notice is that it is not easy to make sure that your event goes off without any complication. In order to have the best corporate gathering you need to make sure that they are well planned, sophisticated, and are there to serve a certain purpose. If you do not plan it well then you will end up with a mess on your hands.
When you are planning these events, the one thing that you should make sure that you do is to stick to your budget. You will find that most of these incidents go over budget unnecessarily and it is your job as the planner to ensure that you do not get any excessive costs. If you set the budget right, it will be possible for you to come up with the right framework of the budget. A the budget will help make sure that you are on the right track.
It is essential that you make sure that you have promoted your event. In case it is just one company coming, then it is best to make sure that everyone from the employees to executive knows about the event. Make use of the office administrators as well as secretaries as they will be able to publicize your event by creating flyers and sending out reminders. If you want to have a good turnout then you should make sure that you have built a favorable campaign among the employees. This is the best way to make sure that the people of the society get to learn about the upcoming event. The same case applies if many firms are coming like the corporate wellness companies.
The other thing that you should ensure you have in place is a contingency plan. It is important to know that no matter how much you plan, the possibility of something going wrong is high. At times things happen and if you do not have a plan to deal with it then you might find that you have to cancel the whole event. In case you find that something does not go as planned but you have a way out then you will have an easy time. The one thing that you should know is that no matter how you feel things are messed up you will be able to entertain your guest without them knowing that something went wrong. The other thing that you should do is to make sure that you have safety plans put in place should you have any emergencies. Since these events include many people, it is your duty to make sure that they all leave the event without any mishaps.


ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday lodged protest with India through diplomatic channels over the unprovoked firing and mortar shelling by the Indian forces in Pandu Sector across the Line of Control on Thursday.
A soldier of Pakistan Army, Sepoy Zahid Ali embraced shahadat due to multiple mortar splinter injuries as a result of the firing Foreign Office said in a statement here.
The Government of Pakistan offers its condolences to the bereaved family of the Shaheed.
Condemning the incident, Pakistan called upon India to restrain its security forces from unprovoked firing and shelling across the LoC and the Working Boundary, it said.


Sarah Hagen performs Rachmaninoff's Prelude Op. 32 No. 5 as an encore at Vancouver's Christ Church Cathedral after Mendelssohn's Piano Concerto in G minor with the West Coast Symphony Orchestra.
What do Avenue Q and classical pianist Sarah Hagen have in common? They're both on province-wide tours of British Columbia, with upcoming dates around the Lower Mainland, Okanagan Valley, and Vancouver Island! Sarah was looking for someone to help turn pages for her, but when she asked Trekkie, Lucy, and a Bad Idea Bear, I don't think this is what she had in mind!


The Phillies are 57-96. In other words, they stink.
You've given up on baseball this season. You decided the Eagles were more important (good look, right?). You don't see any need to pay any more attention to the last-place Phillies, right?
Here we are. It's a Friday afternoon in September, and the Phillies have a rare opportunity: take out the Washington Nationals. Eliminate them. Scrub them out like the stain they are, and shove the shirt back into the drawer for the winter. It's over, Washington. See you later.
The Mets are eight games up on the Nationals. The Nationals have 10 games left to play. It's pretty damn simple: Beat the Nats three times and take them out. Maybe the Mets win a game or two against the Reds. Who cares. Do the job yourself. Beat the Nationals. No, #BeatTheNats. Make these the biggest three games of the season.
I came of age during the Second Golden Age, the age of sweaty anger toward the Mets. I hated the Mets. We hated the Mets. I sat in Shea Stadium in 2007, watched a Phillies fan start a mini-brawl, and subsequently get thrown two rows south. I sat in Citizens Bank Park a year later and watched a Mets fan suffer a black eye at the hands of an eager Philadelphian. Mets fans had bite. Mets fans had pure blood, sharp fangs and wide eyes. They wanted to kill. You wanted to hate them.
Nationals fans are flies to slap, air to kick, balls of dust to wipe up and toss into the trash. They don't deserve it. They're waste. Discard them. Take them out. Start tonight.
And tonight we have Jerad Eickoff, a young and sparkling prize from the Cole Hamels trade. He sports a 3.16 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 37 innings. The kid is solid. He can do it.
Tomorrow we have Aaron Nola, he of the 3.84 ERA. What, he faces Stephen Strasburg? Who cares. He's nothing. Into the garbage with you.
It can be done. It will be done. The Nationals deserve to be thrown into the pile of mediocrity. They paid too much for Jayson Werth. They risked their sanity on Jonathan Papelbon, the lint that sticks to your t-shirt, the flint of dandruff you just can't remove. They're perfect for each other – this team of privileged pawns playing in front of the quietest fans in the whole sport. This is the mission, Phillies: Walk into Nationals Park, guns blazing. Knock out the Nationals. Take no prisoners. Eliminate them.
Prove to those Nationals that they're a fad in the fading sun. All thanks to that No. 1 pick, the precious thing on which the Nationals built their entire empire. Without Strasburg and Bryce Harper they're nothing. Lucky fools couldn't even take advantage of the best hitting season in decades. They deserve nothing but failure.
This is the weekend, Phillies. Take out those Nationals. Make them meet their failure. #BeatTheNats.
Turn the turn UP, Phillies fans. #BEATTHENATS.


Come send our lovely seniors off before they leave us for jobs, internships, and adult life! The Class of 2014 has touched many of our lives throughout their time in college, so let's show them some love! Please RSVP by contacting Clara.
1.) We will hold our annual ceremony at Blaine Memorial United Methodist Church this year. RIDES ARE NOT PROVIDED!! So, please find a ride, or plan to bus together in groups! We will post an easy bus route later this week.
2.) BRING $10 OR A CREDIT/DEBIT CARD. Dinner and dessert will be provided so we are asking for $10 to cover the cost of food and the venue. If you don't show up with money, make sure you've got a kind friend to spot you.