Charlotte Creates Entrepreneurship

Everyone in and around Charlotte knows the DNC took front and center the week of September 3rd. Here at Promising Pages we are a  non-partisan non-profit and we LOVE to volunteer. Our leadership team decided our volunteer hours should be spent helping out in the many various aspects and undertakings of such a historic, and for Charlotte, unprecedented event.   

Last week I had the pleasure of volunteering with Charlotte Creates at Packard Place. Packard Place is one of the most unique organizations in the Charlotte area.  According to their website, "Packard Place is the hub for entrepreneurship and innovation in Charlotte.  Our mission is to develop fast-growth businesses and the professional community to drive them."  The businesses involved with Packard Place are divided into five specific areas including Technology, Design, Energy, Social Entrepreneurship, and Art. Several of the businesses associated with Packard Place were there to present who they were and what they do as a part of Packard Place.  

The first group I encountered was part of the Social Entrepreneurship hub of Packard Place.  The group was called Second Helping.  It is a coffee shop which employs women recently released from prison.  Melissa Mummert, Program Director for Second Helping said, “In an economy where finding employment is already challenging, women who come home from prison face an even more severe challenge as a result of discrimination against people who have criminal backgrounds.”  Second Helping is helping to change the lives of women in the Charlotte community just like Promising Pages is doing for the children we encounter. 

The next business who left a lasting impression was Eventys.  Eventys is part of the Design group at Packard Place.  It is a company that is a source for invention.  They have a website which allows people to propose an invention they think could be taken to market.  Eventys has scientists who partner with the inventor to get the invention to market.  Once to market Eventys shares the profits with the inventor 50/50.  The company has started the award-winning television show Everyday Edisons.  

One of the technology companies presenting at Packard Place was T1Visions.  T1Visions is a company trying to revolutionize the way we use touchscreen technology.  The product they were displaying was called Social Connect Touchscreens.  It is a video monitor which enabled four to eight individuals to gather around a desk with individual laptops and share documents to one common screen. The desk also has touchscreen capability to move documents or items from the web.  According to President Mike Feldman,  "Teams can connect, share, and learn using an intuitive, multitouch user interface.  Meetings become more efficient, information is highly accessible, and presentations are engaging."  T1Visions has a prototype being used on campus of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.  

The most memorable portion of Charlotte Creates was several Random Acts of Culture.  About once per hour there was a different group who would come in and perform some type of artistic expression.  One performance was a group of four ladies who did a dance which seemed to be a mixture of rhythmic gymnastics and yoga.  Another performance was a lady singing the popular Adele song "Someone Like You."  The song was interrupted with a few poems speaking about empowering women.  


Charlotte Creates at Packard Place was a very unique experience which showed off some of the best of what Charlotte has to offer. Although of business of brining books to children in Charlotte never stopped behind the scenes the week of the DNC, it was good to get out and mingle with other like-minded folks who also want to better our community and leave a long lasting mark.  I appreciate the opportunity to be a part of this and to meet so many intelligent people and their entrepreneurial spirit.  

- Mitchell Sharp

Creativity at the Convention

What do the Democratic National Convention, all-natural fashion, and award winning barbeque have in common? The support of Promising Pages!

Promising Pages dove into the hustle and bustle of the Convention this week to show support for Charlotte while fundraising in a unique (and yummy) way. 

To kick off the Monday of the DNC, Promising Pages volunteers partnered with Packard Place and assisted with the free “Charlotte Creates” event happening Sept. 3^rd-5^th at 222 S. Church Street. Packard Place is Charlotte’s uptown hub for entrepreneurs and start up companies where the ultimate goal is for creative juices to flow and for ideas to become reality! This venue was the perfect host for “Charlotte Creates” (#CLTCreates), a free exhibition of innovation and creativity across this city where organizations feature their products and services in the areas of technology, social entrepreneurship, energy, design, and the arts. Companies set up to showcase their mission and goods to curious visitors across four floors of converted, renovated, and “hi-tech” garage space.

Knight Arts' Random Act of Culture

Charlotte Creates relied on volunteers to pull in Convention goers from the heat of the streets, escort them around the building, highlight the purpose of Packard Place, and provide the chance to learn of a new, creative concept in Charlotte. A few personal favorites that I enjoyed learning and sharing about were “The Little Idea” (an invention development company where each great invention starts with a “little idea”), “Lime Energy” (a clean energy solutions company), and “Random Acts of Culture” (an arts initiative that spontaneously provides crowds with song, dance, and slam poetry). If you were not able to visit Charlotte Creates this week, I strongly suggest you visit their site here:  

http://charlottechamber.com/index.php?src=gendocs&ref=CharlotteCreates-PackardPlace

and explore the companies in each category for yourself. As a volunteer, it was eye opening and simply refreshing to realize how many imaginative and resourceful organizations are boosting our community’s growth and well-being!

Queen City Q Barbeque!

While Promising Pages volunteers spent time at Packard Place, Promising Pages was also creating a presence across Uptown at “Queen City Q,” an award-winning barbeque restaurant. This Charlotte favorite has parternered to sell our “Limited Edition” Charlotte Totes during the week of the DNC. Promising Pages will be selling these “Queen City” themed Jute bags for $20 (tax included) during the Convention and after. They are the perfect size for Ipads, Kindles, Books, and essentials! These bags are unique because the Jute material, ink, and bamboo handles are all natural. They are handmade, waterproof, and the creation of local designer, Maurice Crawford.

Our super unique DNC Jute Bags

I sat down with Maurice Crawford to hear her unique story behind these environmentally friendly bags. Maurice worked as a fashion designer in New York City for thirty years before retiring in 2000. The idea for these totes came to her one night after she had heard the question “What are you reading at the moment?” When an idea struck her in the middle of the night, she jolted out of bed and sketched a bag with a design revolving around reading. She turned her idea into a reality after experimenting with the special Jute fabric that can only grow from Jute trees in India and China. The result was a durable, organic tote that promoted reading and books. After expanding her designs and clients, her bags reached bookstores in Charlotte before she had moved here herself! 

Maurice strongly believes people should use their creativity to the best of their ability and channel it into something one thoroughly enjoys. Maurice finds her joy in helping children and she hopes that a major result of her work will be encouraging kids to read. This is why the coincidental pairing of Promising Pages with Maurice seems "meant to be".

Promising Pages and Maurice’s business were both featured on the same page of an April issue of the Charlotte Observer. Soon after reading up on each other, Promising Pages’ Founder, Kristina Cruise, and Maurice met up and realized that the Jute bags would be the perfect fundraiser for Promising Pages. Maurice is confident that these “Queen City” Totes will appeal to visitors and Charlotte residents alike who enjoy and take pride in our city. The profits will go directly to Promising Pages and Maurice hopes that the fundraising capabilities of these bags will continue to help children across Charlotte discover a love for reading and give them a voice.

This week I have been blown away by the excitement and energy that has surrounded our city. It has been a great opportunity for Promising Pages to learn from and contribute to our creative community and I know the connections that we have made this week will continue into the future! Look out for our Jute bags around Uptown, visit Queen City Q or contact us if you would like one, and definitely check out Maurice’s website here: http://www.mccustomjutebags.com/.

 

Have a great rest of the week!

-Brennan Shearer