NoteWorthy - 4/29/18 | Merrimack Valley Magazine

NoteWorthy is your weekly news roundup of happenings, movers and shakers, and community events in the Merrimack Valley.

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AROUND THE VALLEY

Back row, l-r: Sarah Dempsey, Manny Hardy, Karla Morales, Katya Severyukhina, Sara Cho (and her husband John); front row, l-r: Polly Chen, Jasmine Nguyen, Debbie Chung, Jay Chung, Jay Lee.

Seoul Kitchen Owners Support Life Connection Center with Time and Food

On April 23, Seoul Kitchen owners Jay and Debbi Chung donated their time and food to the Life Connection Center, a hunger relief and homeless outreach ministry in Lowell. The ministry provides lunch to the homeless and those with substance abuse issues on a daily basis, averaging 100 to 120 meals for each lunch. They also provide counseling, prayer and needle exchange services, and help people with addiction find recovery programs. Chung and his staff plan to donate more time and food on a monthly basis, committing to providing 120 lunches every third Monday of each month going forward.

Learn more about Seoul Kitchen in our article on Korean food in the Merrimack Valley.

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Lowell Management Group, Inc. to Take Over Management of Lowell Memorial Auditorium

Peter Lally, John Chemaly, Chris Dick, Dan Berube, Jack Lally and Andrew Holden of Lowell Management Group have announced that they will be taking over the management of the Lowell Memorial Auditorium. The group’s 5-year contract will begin July 1.

Lally started his career in Lowell in the 1970s in the burgeoning technology industry.m He went on to work in financial management and global strategic sourcing in the high tech and financial services industries before joining Spectacle Management as vice president of finance and administration in 2013.

Chemaly is president and co-founder of Trinity EMS, also headquartered in Lowell. Chemaly is actively involved in Trinity’s day-to-day operations and community enrichment.

Dick has been director of business development and marketing for Trinity EMS since 2007. With deep roots in Greater Lowell, Dick has for many years been, along with Lally, co-chair of Lowell Winterfest’s fundraising committee.

Berube has worked in the live entertainment business since 2002 when he was hired as a marketing intern at Lowell Memorial Auditorium. In 2013, he joined Spectacle Management as marketing director.

Holden is a 2012 graduate of UMass Lowell’s music business program. Holden began his career in the live entertainment business at Lowell’s WUML radio before he accepted a position in marketing and public relations at Spectacle Management in 2014.

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Merrimack Repertory Theatre Wins Four Major Awards from the Independent Reviewers of New England

Merrimack Repertory Theatre (MRT) has announced that it has won four 2018 Awards from the Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE) in the large stage category:

Best Play
“The Royale”

Best Solo Performance
Charissa Bertels, “My 80-Year-Old Boyfriend”

Best Supporting Actor–Play
Mark W. Soucy, “The Royale”

Best Director–Play
Megan Sandberg-Zakian, “The Royale”

“Part of our long range goals for the past few years is to get more critics up to Lowell,” said Artistic Director Sean Daniels, who accepted the award on behalf of MRT for Best Play for The Royale. “So, this past year, to have so many writers attend our plays, and to have been nominated for 15 awards and won four, it’s a true compliment to our tireless staff and the artists who work on our stage.”

Learn more about Daniels and the Merrimack Repertory Theatre in our profile.

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Cummings Foundation volunteer Sandy Santin; FSMV Mentoring Director Leah Feroce and COO Lori Howe.

Family Services of the Merrimack Valley Awarded $30,000 Grant from the Cummings Foundation

Family Services of the Merrimack Valley has received a $30,000 sustaining grant from the Cummings Foundation, an award which will fuel the organization’s Stand & Deliver mentoring program. Launched in 2010, the program provides weekly, site-based academic mentoring with the primary goals of helping 115 middle and high school students in Lawrence improve their school performance and the likelihood that they will graduate from high school and attend college or other post-secondary education.

“Family Services of the Merrimack Valley has a true friend in the Cummings Foundation,” said Family Services CEO Elizabeth Sweeney. “As a result of the generosity of Joyce and Bill Cummings and their entire organization, Family Services looks forward to expanding the number of students served here in the Merrimack Valley and also enlarging our circle of Stand & Deliver corporate partners.”

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UML Program Wins Award for Innovation in International Education

The Institute of International Education (IIE) has named UMass Lowell’s Global Entrepreneurship Exchange (GE2) program as the winner of one of this year’s IIE Andrew Heiskell Awards for Innovation in International Education. The GE2 program, led by Manning School of Business senior lecturer Ashwin Mehta, recently received the award in the category of study abroad at the IIE’s annual Best Practices in Internationalization Conference. Mehta is a resident of Hudson, N.H.

Since the UMass Lowell program’s inception four years ago, more than 670 students from 12 countries have come together to experience multidisciplinary and multicultural immersion in entrepreneurship, complete with project-based activities and field visits to businesses in the region. Five sessions are being held in 2018 and include faculty in not only entrepreneurship, but also accounting, management and marketing.

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

NECC President Lane Glenn (left) with NECC’s second quarter employee award winners (left to right) Minh Le, Taylor Balin, and Lance Hidy.

Three Northern Essex Community College Employees Honored for Work

Taylor Balin of Billerica, Lance Hidy of Merrimac, and Minh Le of Westford recently received Northern Essex Community College’s employee recognition award for the second quarter of 2018.

The award recognizes the many and varied contributions of the college’s nearly 700 employees. Employees are selected each quarter based on recommendations from supervisors and co-workers. Recipients receive a $150 certificate to the restaurant or mall of his or her choice.

Balin, a laboratory technician on the Lawrence campus for over five years, received three nominations from work colleagues. She holds a bachelor of science in professional chemistry from Bridgewater State University. Emily Gonzalez, NECC natural science professor, and Bob West, NECC laboratory technician and natural science safety officer, supported her nomination. Both praised Balin for her work ethic and preparedness.

Hidy, who has worked at NECC for more than 18 years, is the accessible media specialist. A renowned graphic designer who worked with the famed photographer Ansel Adams, Hidy previously taught at Northern Essex. He holds a bachelor of arts degree from Yale University. Hidy was nominated by Susan Martin, director of Learning Accommodations at Northern Essex. “A little under two years ago, we were looking for someone to help us coordinate our accessible media vision,” wrote Martin. “We hired Lance and he has successfully made the position his own.”

Le, an instructional media specialist, is a nine-year employee of Northern Essex. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Art from Northeastern University. He also was nominated by Martin who praised his work. “Minh has been an integral member of the accessibility media initiative,” she wrote. “[He] is very approachable and helps people to feel at ease with technology and new information.”