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SPRINGFIELD — Longtime ABC News White House correspondent Ann Compton will headline the Springfield Regional Chamber’s virtual Outlook on April 28, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Presented by Baystate Health, Outlook generally brings together more than 500 business leaders to network and hear from expert speakers on local, state, and federal issues.

 

Keynote speaker Compton has 41 years of on-air experience for ABC News. Her tenure spanned seven presidents and 10 presidential campaigns. Assigned to the White House in 1974, she reported for ABC News broadcasts from Washington and around the globe, traveling with presidents, vice presidents, and first ladies. Notably, Compton was the first woman assigned to cover the White House on network television. Compton received special recognition onboard Air Force One during the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in the awards bestowed on ABC’s coverage which included an Emmy, a Peabody, and a SilverBaton from the DuPont awards at Columbia University.

“This year’s Outlook program will look a little different, but it’s important to note that the content will be just as informative,” said Nancy Creed, president of the Springfield Regional Chamber. “It has been a challenging year for our business community, our region, our Commonwealth and our country, but we do have a path forward and are making strides in our recovery. We’re thrilled to be able to discuss what lies ahead with key leaders who are helping our communities rebuild a sustainable future.”

 

The Outlook event will once again be hosted by Congressman Richard E. Neal, who will provide insights on what is happening on Capitol Hill, the American Rescue Plan stimulus package, and what is on the horizon relative to a major infrastructure spending bill. The event will include remarks from recently elected speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, Ronald Mariano, who has represented the third Norfolk District, comprised of Quincy, Weymouth, and Holbrook in the Massachusetts House of Representatives since 1991.

Additional speakers will include Michael Knapik, vice president of Government and Community Relations at Baystate Health, who will serve as the event’s emcee; Springfield’s Mayor Domenic Sarno, and representative of the 8th Hampden District and assistant majority leader, Joseph Wagner.

This year’s Outlook is supported by platinum sponsors: Comcast, Mercy Medical Center, Health New England, Eversource, and United Personnel along with gold sponsors MGM Springfield and BusinessWest. Print and television media partners include The Republican/MassLive and WWLP-TV 22.

Tickets cost $39.95 for Springfield Regional Chamber members and $49.95 for general admission. Enterprise-level tickets (six access passes) for members are available for $179 and enterprise level tickets (six access passes) for general admission are available for $225. Visit www.springfieldregionalchamber.com to register. For additional information, visit [email protected].

Features

‘Passion and Purpose’

Lisa Tanzer says it took her a while to find work she was truly passionate about. But it was well worth the wait and the effort.

“It took me a long while to get here, but I learned along the way that I need to be working every day on something I’m excited about and passionate about,” she said. “You need to do what you love every day and find a way to put passion into what you do.”

This, in a nutshell, is the message Tanzer, president of Life Is Good — a lifestyle brand that now generates more than $100 million in annual revenue and also operates the Life Is Good Kids Foundation — intends to leave with attendees at BusinessWest’s second annual Women of Impact luncheon on Thursday, Dec. 5 at the Sheraton Springfield.

In a phone interview, Tanzer told BusinessWest that Life Is Good provides her passion and purpose not merely because of what it sells or how much it sells, but because of how it spreads the “power of optimism,” as she put it.

Elaborating, she said ‘Life Is Good,’ the slogan placed on a T-shirt along with a smiling face by brothers Bert and John Jacobs as a last-ditch effort to stay in business, has received a great reaction from the public.

“People from all sorts of demographics started resonating with the brand,” she explained. “In the early days, they started to get letters from people who were wearing ‘Life Is Good’ who were facing terrible adversity — illness or loss of a loved one.

“They connected with the positive message of Life Is Good and realized there was more depth to the brand than ‘hey, life is good, enjoy the beach, enjoy the outdoors,’” she went on. “People really needed optimism in their lives and started to understand the power of optimism. So the company became more mission-driven.”

Tanzer’s keynote address will be one of many highlights at the second annual Women of Impact Luncheon, which will honor eight women who are making an impact in different ways. They are:

• Tricia Canavan, president, United Personnel Services;

• Carol Moore Cutting, president, CEO, and general manager, Cutting Edge Broadcasting;

• Jean Deliso, principal, Deliso Financial Services;

• Ellen Freyman, partner, Shatz, Schwartz & Fentin;

• Mary Hurley, Massachusetts Governor’s Councilor;

• Lydia Martinez-Alvarez, assistant superintendent, Springfield Public Schools;

• Suzanne Parker, executive director, Girls Inc. of the Valley; and

• Katherine Putnam, managing director, Golden Seeds.

Tanzer, who speaks to a wide variety of audiences on many topics each year, will bring a broad range of corporate experience to the podium at the Women of Impact event. Indeed, she has more than 25 years of consumer brand experience, working for powerhouse brands such as Hasbro, Staples, Gillette, and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Fast Facts

What: The Second Annual Women of Impact Gala
When: Dec. 5, 11 a.m. to 1:45 p.m.
Where: Sheraton Springfield, One Monarch Place
Keynote Speaker: Lisa Tanzer, president of Life Is Good
Tickets: $65 (tables of 10 available)
For More Information: Visit HERE or call (413) 781-8600, ext. 100.

Starting very early in her career, though, she started working with nonprofits, especially one founded by a high-school classmate called Project Joy, which helped homeless children find purpose and connection through play.

The talk Tanzer will give at the Women of Impact Luncheon concerns how she determined long ago that she wanted to blend work in the corporate world with “making people happy and providing joy in people’s lives.” And while it was a rather circuitous route and there was a good deal of serendipity along the way, she found all of what she was looking for at Life Is Good.

To hear the full story, you’ll need to be at the Sheraton on Dec. 5. And you should be there to salute the eight outstanding honorees who make up the Women of Impact class of 2019.

The Women of Impact program is sponsored by Country Bank and TommyCar Auto Group (presenting sponsors), Comcast Business and Granite State Developing (supporting sponsors), New Valley Bank & Trust (speaker sponsor), and WWLP 22 News/CW Springfield (media sponsor).

For more information, or to order tickets, call (413) 781-8600, or go HERE.