JAM Magazine: August/September 1999 Issue: President's Corner

Mike Fitzgerald

A Mid-Summer Report
Many KCJA members have been involved in numerous activities so far this summer. So, I offer this report on behalf of your officers and your board.

Another Successful Pub Crawl
The Pub Crawl on June 24 was probably the smoothest we've ever had. Minimal complaints, great music and a lot of fun accounted for the success of our favorite event of the year. We did make money, which we will use to support many of the year's continuing activities. We will also be able to share some of those revenues with several other not-for-profit groups.

The success of the Pub Crawl would not be possible without the volunteers and our KCJA members. Kudos to our PR Director Jennifer Vizina whose efforts really paid off this year. And special thanks to Syd Alleyne's Pub Crawl Committee that includes Mike and Vicki Rollf, Vanessa Barnard, Bob Daniels, Volunteer Director Wayne Davis, Dave Jennings and Darrell Hoffman.

We also received valuable support from the media this year, including Channels 4 and 9 and our friends on the radio at KCFX and 106.5. Calvin Wilson's article in The Star was a publicity plus for us as well, and a welcome tribute to the local artists who performed. Special thanks to Calvin for that.

At the monthly KCJA meeting in September we will announce the organizations that will benefit from our Pub Crawl and we will present the checks at that time.

And yes, we can now refer to it as "our" Pub Crawl. The US Patent Office has advised us that the name "Jazz Lovers Pub Crawl" is now registered to our organization. A number of people helped to gather the information necessary to make the service mark filing with the Patent Office. Their work is greatly appreciated.
Mini Pub Crawls
One of the things the KCJA does best is make Mini Pub Crawls available for visiting groups and conventioneers. Mary Ellen Farney does a great job of organizing and hosting these events. If you would like to help, please contact Mary Ellen at 478-8378. She and husband Nelson are experts on Kansas City jazz history and are always willing to share their love for jazz with our visitors. Mini crawls usually include a catered dinner from Gates Bar-B-Q served at the Mutual Musicians Foundation and visits to several other clubs that feature live jazz.
The Cypress Recovery CD
Along with the KC Blues Society, we are helping to underwrite a blues and jazz CD that features local musicians and supports the work of Cypress Recovery, Inc. The CD release party for "When There Is Hope" will be on Sunday, September 12 at the Grand Emporium, 5:00 p.m. to midnight, and will feature many of the performers on the CD. (Max Groove, Ida McBeth, Carl Bender, John Paul's Flying Circus, Tom Hall, Cotton Candy and Everette DeVan are among those who appear.) You may have already purchased this CD at the Blues and Jazz Festival. If not, this will give you another opportunity to do so. And if you'd like to order a copy now, you can use our apparel order blank on page 55. The price is $15 with the proceeds benefiting Cypress Recovery's "Drug Free Kids" program.
Another Thank You to All KCJA Volunteers
Our organization keeps getting stronger due to the willingness of those of you who volunteer for our pet projects. Special thanks (from Wayne Davis and me) to those who helped with beverage sales at the La Strada dell'Arte festival. This was a new undertaking for us and an event not familiar to many of our members. Despite the fact that we were not involved in the planning, we were able to handle the beverage operation. It was also nice to have some new volunteers onboard to help out.

We are also grateful for the volunteer support at the Corporate Woods Jazz Festival, the Kansas City International Jazz Festival, and the KC Blues & Jazz Festival. Through the efforts of our tireless KCJA volunteers we are able to do our part to keep jazz alive in Kansas City!






	Search our site:		Mike Fitzgerald A Mid-Summer Report Many KCJA members have been involved in numerous activities so far this summer. So, I offer this report on behalf of your officers and your board. Another Successful Pub Crawl The Pub Crawl on June 24 was probably the smoothest we've ever had. Minimal complaints, great music and a lot of fun accounted for the success of our favorite event of the year. We did make money, which we will use to support many of the year's continuing activities. We will also be able to share some of those revenues with several other not-for-profit groups. The success of the Pub Crawl would not be possible without the volunteers and our KCJA members. Kudos to our PR Director Jennifer Vizina whose efforts really paid off this year. And special thanks to Syd Alleyne's Pub Crawl Committee that includes Mike and Vicki Rollf, Vanessa Barnard, Bob Daniels, Volunteer Director Wayne Davis, Dave Jennings and Darrell Hoffman. We also received valuable support from the media this year, including Channels 4 and 9 and our friends on the radio at KCFX and 106.5. Calvin Wilson's article in The Star was a publicity plus for us as well, and a welcome tribute to the local artists who performed. Special thanks to Calvin for that. At the monthly KCJA meeting in September we will announce the organizations that will benefit from our Pub Crawl and we will present the checks at that time. And yes, we can now refer to it as "our" Pub Crawl. The US Patent Office has advised us that the name "Jazz Lovers Pub Crawl" is now registered to our organization. A number of people helped to gather the information necessary to make the service mark filing with the Patent Office. Their work is greatly appreciated. Mini Pub Crawls One of the things the KCJA does best is make Mini Pub Crawls available for visiting groups and conventioneers. Mary Ellen Farney does a great job of organizing and hosting these events. If you would like to help, please contact Mary Ellen at 478-8378. She and husband Nelson are experts on Kansas City jazz history and are always willing to share their love for jazz with our visitors. Mini crawls usually include a catered dinner from Gates Bar-B-Q served at the Mutual Musicians Foundation and visits to several other clubs that feature live jazz. The Cypress Recovery CD Along with the KC Blues Society, we are helping to underwrite a blues and jazz CD that features local musicians and supports the work of Cypress Recovery, Inc. The CD release party for "When There Is Hope" will be on Sunday, September 12 at the Grand Emporium, 5:00 p.m. to midnight, and will feature many of the performers on the CD. (Max Groove, Ida McBeth, Carl Bender, John Paul's Flying Circus, Tom Hall, Cotton Candy and Everette DeVan are among those who appear.) You may have already purchased this CD at the Blues and Jazz Festival. If not, this will give you another opportunity to do so. And if you'd like to order a copy now, you can use our apparel order blank on page 55. The price is $15 with the proceeds benefiting Cypress Recovery's "Drug Free Kids" program. Another Thank You to All KCJA Volunteers Our organization keeps getting stronger due to the willingness of those of you who volunteer for our pet projects. Special thanks (from Wayne Davis and me) to those who helped with beverage sales at the La Strada dell'Arte festival. This was a new undertaking for us and an event not familiar to many of our members. Despite the fact that we were not involved in the planning, we were able to handle the beverage operation. It was also nice to have some new volunteers onboard to help out. We are also grateful for the volunteer support at the Corporate Woods Jazz Festival, the Kansas City International Jazz Festival, and the KC Blues & Jazz Festival. Through the efforts of our tireless KCJA volunteers we are able to do our part to keep jazz alive in Kansas City! RETURN TO AUGUST 1999 MAIN INDEX ------------------------------------------------------------------------ © Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors 1996-2001. All rights reserved.