Agenda

Soul Food & Jazz Luncheon
Feb. 27: Springfield Technical Community College will present its annual Soul Food & Jazz Luncheon from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the seventh floor of Scibelli Hall. The event will feature the smooth sounds of Rohn Lawrence. Tickets are $5 per plate at the door. All proceeds will benefit the STCC Warms Hearts Fund. The event is sponsored by the Diversity Council at STCC.

Dark Dining Room House Concert Series
March 1, April 5, May 3: This winter and spring, Dark Dining Room brings the warmth and coziness of your living room to the grandeur of Wistariahurst. Concert curators Matthew Larsen and Greg Saulmon will serve up several courses of local and national musicians over the first Saturdays of March through May. While no dinner will be served, there will be light refreshments provided by Tony Jones Catering, as well as a cash bar. Doors open at 7 p.m. for all shows. Reservations are suggested. Tickets cost $18 ($15 for members) and can be purchased online at wistariahurst.org or by calling the museum at (413) 322-5660. The March 1 concert features Heather Maloney, who boasts influences and roots in adventurous folk. Rosary Beard, whose intricately intertwined acoustic guitars skate a thin line between melancholy reflection and uplifting release, will open the show. On April 5, Dark Dining Room introduces Colorway, a power trio fronted by Western Mass. native F. Alex Johnson. Introspective songsmith and acoustic guitarist Mark Schwaber opens the show. The final concert on May 3 features acoustic guitarist David Berkeley, a Santa Fe-based troubadour who brings his version of Americana to the stage. Matthew Larsen and the Documents open the show with introspective piano pop layered with careful instrumentation and thoughtful harmonies. For more information about the Dark Dining Room House Concert Series, go to darkdiningroom.com. This program is supported in part by a grant from the Holyoke Cultural Council, a local agency which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

Celebrate Springfield Dinner Event
March 12: DevelopSpringfield will host its third annual dinner event in celebration of Springfield and the many accomplishments the community has achieved over the past year, along with the exciting new initiatives underway. The event will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. at the MassMutual Center in Springfield. Festivities will include a reception with live music by the Eric Bascom Trio and a silent auction, followed by dinner, a brief program, and presentations. Specifically, DevelopSpringfield will present its Partner in Progress Award to recognize the outstanding contributions of three individuals toward revitalization in Springfield: Colleen Loveless, executive director of Rebuilding Together; Terry Powe, principal of Elias Brookings Elementary School; and Mark Tolosky, president and CEO of Baystate Health. Platinum sponsors of the event are MassMutual Financial Group, Baystate Health, and Health New England. All proceeds will support DevelopSpringfield’s redevelopment initiatives, projects, and programs. About 400 attendees — including federal, state, and city officials; leaders from the business and nonprofit communities; and local residents — are expected to come together in support of ongoing efforts to advance development and redevelopment projects, stimulate and support economic growth, and expedite the revitalization process in Springfield. Registration information is available at www.developspringfield.com or by contacting Paige Thayer at (413) 209-8808 or [email protected].

Difference Makers 2014
March 20: The sixth annual Difference Makers award program, staged by BusinessWest, will be held at the Log Cabin Banquet & Meeting House, honoring these five individuals and organizations: the Gray House; Colleen Loveless, executive director of the Springfield chapter of Rebuilding Together; the Melha Shriners, Paula Moore, teacher at Roger L. Putnam Vocational Academy and founder of YSET Academy; and Michael Moriarty, attorney and director of Olde Holyoke Development Corp. Their stories are told in the Feb. 10 issue of BusinessWest and online at www.businesswest.com. More details on the gala event will be published in upcoming issues of the magazine, but tickets cost $60, and tables of 10 are available. Difference Makers is a program, launched in 2009, that recognizes groups and individuals that are, as the name suggests, making a difference in this region. Event sponsors include Baystate Medical Center, Health New England, First American Insurance, Meyers Brothers Kalicka, Northwestern Mutual, Royal LLP, Sarat Ford, and Six-Point Creative. For more information, call (413) 781-8600.

Employers Assoc. Management Conference
April 2: Accountability is a hot issue in today’s business world. At the Holiday Inn in Enfield, Conn., the Employers Assoc. of the NorthEast (EANE) will hold its 10th annual management conference, called “It’s All About Accountability.” The conference will address personal accountability and responsibility in achieving organizational results, based on Linda Galindo’s bestselling book, The 85% Solution. EANE is bringing to the area Kathleen Kelly, a master certified facilitator in ‘the Accountability Experience.’ She will teach supervisors and managers how to develop accountability and learn to accept no less than 85% responsibility for the outcomes of their actions. Conference breakout sessions will include: “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team,” “Taking the ‘Difficult’ out of Difficult Conversations,” “Tom’s Fired: Where Did Things Go Wrong?” “Taking Ownership for Your Own Professional Development,” “Digging Deep: Performance Improvement Through Real Coaching,” and “Ethical and Legal Obligations of Managers in Solving Workplace Issues.” For more information about the conference, contact Karen Cronenberger at (877) 662-6444 or [email protected]. To register, call (877) 662-6444 or visit www.eane.org.