Page 38 - BusinessWest February 21, 2022
P. 38

It made sense — since returning from New
York in 2011, she had built a marketing firm, RC Communications, that focused on small to mid- sized businesses and especially nonprofits, which are, in many ways, the lifeblood of the region. She has also been a board member with the Greater Northampton Chamber of Commerce for the past six years and is currently its immediate past vice president.
“I am a marketing strategist by trade, and,
“We stage the music a half-hour apart, and every band plays for two hours. That definitely gets people
all over town, patronizing the restaurants and breweries and cafés. And that’s important.”
as such, I am good at seeing the big picture, keeping my eye on the vision and mission of an organization,” Griggs told BusinessWest. “When you combine that with my work in nonprofits
over the last 15 years, that adds up to the type of experience that enables me to lead a nonprofit, which, of course, is what the Jazz Fest is at the end of the day.”
Her leadership in the chamber and her role as an entrepreneur with RC Communications have helped her build a wide network in the business
Ruth Griggs announces from the stage of
the Academy
of Music in Northampton during the headline Jazz Festival concert last October.
   community, she added.
“I also just have a knack for getting things
done; I am a doer,” she went on. “Fundraising
for the Jazz Fest, which is a big part of what I do, benefits from these relationships. As president of the board, I oversee all operations of the festival and keep everyone’s eye on the ball, but I have
a particular focus on marketing and fundraising and community relations, with the help of Amy Cahillane.”
Within that model, she leaves the choosing and booking of the musicians and the running of the performances to five producers who serve on the
board. And the model works, with the two-day October festival roaring back to life in 2018 and following that with successful outings in 2019 and 2021 as well; pandemic-disrupted 2020 saw a series of virtual performances instead.
But that success isn’t contained to the festival, or even to jazz lovers. As a two-day event held
in locations scattered throughout the downtown (more on that in a bit), the event promotes the downtown corridor and boosts its businesses, making the festival’s success a true economic- development story, and Griggs a Difference Maker.
“I really care about the vitality and the economy
  Congratulations to 2022 Business West Difference Maker
Ruth Griggs
      for all she does for the business and arts community of the greater Northampton area!
                                                                  38 FEBRUARY 21, 2022
BusinessWest
Photo by Julian Parker-Burns








































































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