Pure, Unadulterated Joy

United Way of Southern Nevada Presents Women’s Leadership Council Fall Suit Drive 11/1/13.

United Way of Southern Nevada’s Women’s Leadership Council (WLC) will host its 6th Annual “Women’s Fall Suit Drive” from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday, November 1 at the NV Energy parking lot at 6226 W. Sahara Ave.

WLC is collecting new and gently-used, clean professional suits and dresses on a hanger and shoes, handbags and jewelry to assist women in need. The drive helps women prepare for career opportunities and gain confidence to succeed during an interview and in the workplace.

Donations will benefit United Way accredited agencies with back to work programs for women. The agencies include Goodwill Career Connections, S.A.F.E. House, Safe Nest, The Shade Tree, Women’s Development Center and HELP of Southern Nevada’s Work Opportunities Readiness Center.

Donations will also be accepted during the month of October during normal business hours at the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino customer service desk operated by Tickets & Tours.

Last year’s drive collected more than 6,200 professional items including suits, dresses, shoes, handbags and jewelry. For more information about WLC and the suit drive, please visit uwsn.org or contact Lawrel K. Larsen at [email protected] or 702-892-2319.

Wooden: A Coach's Life coming to a bookstore near you! Can't wait! #Books #Inspiration #Sports

Just received this announcement and wanted to share it with you because Coach Wooden is one of my favorite sports coaches. I'm not into sports at all so this is really saying something. His wisdom translates across all industries and his life was an inspiration to so many, myself included. He was one of the Golden lights in the Golden era of California transcending sports.

Writing a couple other blogs, but in the meantime, enjoy this new book announcement:

On the 50^th anniversary of John Wooden's first NCAA Championship at UCLA in 1963-1964, Sports Illustrated senior writer and CBS analyst Seth Davis presents the unflinching and definitive biography of one of the giants of the game in WOODEN: A Coach's Life (Times Books, January 14, 2014). 

"WOODEN" captures the life, legacy and essence of the sports icon. Davis's research is exhaustive and exemplary and his prose is artful and entertaining, as he offers perspective on this quintessentially American tale.

The "Wooden mystique" was built on his sweat-soaked gymnasium floors, his awe-inspiring fast break, his harnessing the talents of legendary players like Lew Alcindor, Gail Goodrich, Walt Hazzard and Bill Walton, and his unmatched record in the NCAA tournament.

Davis celebrates the mystique and how it was built, but digs further. He takes full measure of the man who was often considered an enigma in his playing and coaching days before he was elevated to "St. John."  John Wooden was a disciplined and hard-nosed man, who dealt with the issues that all coaches of that era dealt with (race relations, political protests, mercurial athletes, overeager boosters and the heavy weight of expectations), and others that don't quite mesh with the lasting memories we have of "The Wizard of Westwood."

In order to take full measure of the man, we must know the full story, warts and all. In "WOODEN", Seth Davis grants us a clear-eyed look at a gifted player, a brilliant coach, and a master teacher, and helps us appreciate John Wooden for what he was. Not a god, or a saint, or a wizard-but a man.

In anticipation of the release, Davis has launched an informative website for WOODEN: A Coach's Life (released by Times Books, January 14, 2014). The site includes a book trailer narrated by CBS Sportscaster Jim Nantz, preparing the reader for one of the greatest sports reads of the New Year as we kick of a new NCAA season. 

"This is a superb biography, worthy of its subject. With deep research, clear writing, and objective thinking,  Seth Davis has cut through the mythology to present John Wooden and his UCLA dynasty in a fresh and compulsively readable way." 

- David Maraniss, author of When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi

    

About the Author

Seth Davis is the author of the New York Times bestseller When March Went Mad: The Game That Transformed Basketball and the memoir Equinunk, Tell Your Story: My Return to Summer Camp. He is a senior writer at Sports Illustrated as well as a college basketball studio analyst for CBS Sports and CBS Sports Network. A graduate of Duke University, he lives with his family in Los Angeles.

Follow Seth Davis on Twitter

@SethDavisHoops

 

Joy's Travel Adventures: @threesquareLV @Zappos @DowntownProjLV @GirlsInTechLV @TheMobMuseum @Barrett_Jackson & more! #VegasTech #VegasFun

By Joy A. Kennelly

Long time no chat, howzit going out there?:) Since arriving in Vegas it's been a whirlwind of activity and writing opportunities that always preclude my writing here. 

Now that I've had bronchitis for almost two weeks and feel like I'm finally coming back from the dead, I feel inspired to share all the fun things that have been happening just in case you're curious.:)

I dove head first into getting involved with the tech scene and enjoyed many Downtown Podcasts with my Girls in Tech friends until I started having other events and illness affect my ability to participate. The Downtown Podcast is a fun gathering of tech entreprenuers who live in Vegas and is produced by the founders of Ticketcake.com.

Here's a pic and a link to more if you're curious: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152297110938849.1073741830.348417258848&type=1

Girls in Tech is a "global non-profit organization which aims to support the collaboration, promotion, growth and success of women in the local technology sector.

It does this by offering educational workshops and lectures, panel discussions, networking functions, social engagements, and recruitment events."

I was fortunate to arrive just in time to participate in GIT's Computer Education classes for the Girl Scouts of Southern Nevada and really enjoyed helping young girls develop a passion for technology.

Plus, made some new fun girlfriends in the process! You can see Christina Aldan sharing our events during a recent Downtown Podcast. She runs Lucky Girl Designs and is a great person. Connect with her on Linkedin here! http://www.linkedin.com/pub/christina-aldan/8/2/b13

Here's a pic from that experience with a link to more too: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152297068708849.1073741828.348417258848&type=1

There's a really supportive community for female entreprenuers out here in Vegas and I was able to participate in a recent Women of Influence seminar featuring: Jean Birch, Owner/CEO Birch Company and Former CEO of IHOP Restaurants and Romano's Macaroni Grill; Rose McKinney-James, Managing Principal of Energy Works LLC; Fafie Moore, Owner of Realty Executives of Nevada; Renee West, President/COO Luxor and Excalibur and Dr. Kate Zhong, Senior Director of Clinical Research and Development at the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health.

Impressive, eh? Tell me about it! Here's a pic from the event with a link to more if you're curious too: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152297131378849.1073741831.348417258848&type=1

I crashed Zappos Headquarter move to Downtown Vegas which was really cool too! 

Tony Hseih cutting the Zappos celebratory cake

Also, the Downtown Project tour given by the Pixie of Positivity, HeidyNoelle Stamper, (isn't she great!:) which gives you the overview of the vision for Downtown was interesting too.

I especially enjoyed the last speaker I heard during the Downtown Speaker series too. You can view those pictorial essays here: https://www.facebook.com/JoyKennelly?ref=hl - just scroll down a bit.

I also loved participating in the DISH Las Vegas Three Square Food Bank Charity Fundraiser held at the "Palms Casino Resort (at The Palms Pool & Bungalows) with tastes from Las Vegas’ most acclaimed restaurants, including: N9NE Steakhouse, NOVE Italiano, TAO Asian Bistro, LAVO Italian Restaurant & Nightclub, rm Seafood, Border Grill and Bar+Bistro @ The Arts Factory." (As written in their press announcement.)

Talk about a feast! It was really fun and for a great cause too. Here's a little facts on Three Square Food Bank and how they help the community. They are partnered with over 650 community program partners including non-profit and faith-based organizations, schools and feeding sites; serve over 100,000 people monthly; and have provided the equivalent of roughly 18 million meals in 2011 alone!

 

What a wonderful event and charity! Click here for more pix: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.444327465687980.1073741830.412260405561353&type=1&l=59d3b5e860

In addition, I've enjoyed the Cowboy BBQ,
hosted by my former employer, O Entertainment, who recently relocated here to Vegas as well!

And for a change of pace, crashed The Las Vegas Biker Fest with another new Vegas BFF, Jamie, with very fun results. We never know what will happen when we hang out which always makes it fun.

Just another Adventure!:) See what I mean?:)

Earlie that day we visited The Mob Museum in Downtown Vegas which is really interesting, but very graphic too. Here's me with the cut-out of the former Mayor of Vegas, Oscar Goodman, recognize him?:) 

His memoir was very good too by the way, although I think he kinda white-washed the criminals he represented in my humble opinion. No offense mobsters who might be reading this, but when you kill and rob people, you're not a family man, no matter how many times you say it out loud or want to believe it.

I worked the amazing Barrett-Jackson Auto Auction which I have always wanted to attend ever since an attorney I was working for years ago helped Micheal Jackson sell his Maybach there. 

Here's a teaser... It was so cool to see Siegfried and Roy on the final day make an appearance. I remember that fateful day 10 years ago when the tiger attacked Roy and was thrilled to see Vegas royalty live at the auction fully recovered and supporting the community.

View more pictures from all my adventures here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/joystraveladventures/

And for my latest tech adventures with the Vegas Tech scene, check out my Social Media Strategist Facebook fan page here: https://www.facebook.com/JoyKennelly?ref=hl

I still have to share about other adventures including the cool luxury travel show, Rock of Ages, crashing a local Harley Davidson BBQ, exploring the Strip, and much, much more...

I will as soon as I catch up on everything else I need to do! Oh, and if you want to read my latest travel article on traveling to and through Big Sur for C-Suite Magazine, you can do so here: http://pages.cdn.pagesuite.com/4/6/46c0e80c-2401-4055-b495-bb4d11633343/page.pdf

I also wrote an article on social media for a classy, cultured magazine out here in Vegas called BLVDS Las Vegas which I will be able to share soon. I was pleased to include my friend, Social Media Guru, Peter Shankman, and his esteemed colleague, Dr. Jennifer Hartstein, of Hartstein Psychological Services in New York City whom you may recognize as a contributing psychologist for CBS’ The Early Show.

So, needless to say, I've been berry, berry busy.:) Oh, and in addition to all of this, have managed to create my budget and work on more details for Joy's Travel Adventures, despite being too sick to participate in a cool pitching event in front of a bunch of potential investors. Sad face, but there will be other opportunities.

I'm continuing to plan my next travel video now that I'm here in Vegas and reaching out to all the cool casinos for freelance and permanent work because you always create stronger relationships when you work with people.

Funding may take awhile and I'm hustling!

Wish me luck!:)

I'm also still trying to coordinate activities both here and in Los Angeles for my StartupMind group I run with my friend, KP http://www.meetup.com/StartupMind/members/3248131/.

Become a member to stay in touch with what's happening in Silicon Beach, Silicon Valley and Vegas Tech scenes here: http://www.meetup.com/StartupMind/

Now that I'm feeling better I plan to update it more frequently, along with all my other event organizers too.

Okay, I think that's all for now.

Thanks for reading and staying in touch. Love to hear your thoughts.