300+ leaders from sectors of Design, Architecture, Construction, Music, Law, and Education throughout Boston and New England attended the first annual Over My Shoulder Foundation event, Designing the Next Generation. It was an incredible evening with a packed audience mesmerized by speakers and musicians sharing their mentoring experiences.

In case you missed this year’s event, I wanted to share the contents of our program, including the people that spoke at the event and the sponsors that made it possible. At the end of the post there is a link where you can download the program to see its entirety. Help us keep up the momentum and spread the mentoring magic that happened at Designing the Next Generation. Become a mentor today!

-Dawn Carroll, Over My Shoulder Foundation Co-Founder and Executive Director

The People Who Made DESIGNING THE NEXT GENERATION Possible

This event would not have been possible without the generosity of our sponsors, including: Cumar, Inc; Greenberg Traurig; VossFoundation (Read the OMSF Interview with Kara Gerson, Executive Director); Design New England, HRO, Hemenway & Barnes; Leslie Fine Interiors, Inc.; Kenneth Vona Construction, Inc.; Consentino Center; SWANK Audio Visuals; and Suffolk Construction.

Now, on the people who dedicated so much time and energy into organizing and shaping Designing the Next Generation into the mentoring celebration it was…

Dave Connor, General Manager, CUMAR Marble & Granite

Dave Connor assumed the reigns as General Manager of CUMAR Marble & Granite in July 2009. He embraced the multi-generational mentoring culture at CUMAR and created a client centric TEAM focused approach to the Stone Fabrication & Supply business. CUMAR is New England’s Stone company of choice to discerning architects, designers, general contractors, and owners. He joined the Board of Over My Shoulder in 2010 to create the MIDDIE awards and mentoring initiatives. As a career business executive and change agent in manufacturing, fabrication, construction, and distribution, Dave spent the previous seven years in landscape construction on the Big Dig and residential home construction and remodeling. From 1991–2002 he worked as a VP in the Graphic Arts/Printing industry as a Merger/Acquisition specialist and Manufacturing/Operations executive. Dave is a graduate of UMASS/Amherst and resides in Marshfield, MA with his wife Kristen and 2 young children, where he is involved in his community church, youth sports, scouting, music, and theater.

Carlotta Cubi, Executive Vice President, CUMAR Marble & Granite

Carlotta Cubi’s background in the stone business begins at her childhood where she spent hours leaning over her father’s blueprints highlighting all the countertops and tile floors. During her countless visits to her father’s stone shop she wandered the showroom and warehouse looking over all the stones trying to decide if they were granites or marbles. She went on to obtain a business degree from Northeastern University and began her formal employment at Cumar Inc. working in sales and account management. Over the next 7 years she was mentored closely by her father and worked through the various aspects of the business ending up in her current position 2nd in command to her father as Executive Vice President.

Gail Ravgiala Editor, Design New England

Gail Ravgiala joined Design New England as editor in November 2007. She had been the home design editor for the Sunday Boston Globe Magazine, where she edited and produced the six-times-a-year Your Home issues. Her magazine experience began in 1990 when she was named content editor for the Globe’s Your Home, Your Health, Travel, and Fashion magazines. “Design New England’s editorial goal,” she says, “is to bring to our readers the best in design, while introducing them to the professionals behind these splendid homes and gardens.” She lives in a neighborhood of 19th-century Victorian homes in Boston, where she nurtures her appreciation of architecture and solid building techniques.

Patti Austin, Grammy® Award-winning recording artist + Co-Founder of Over My Shoulder Foundation

Renowned global performer and Grammy® Award-winning recording artist Patti Austin has earned the respect and admiration of peers and audiences the world over. Celebrating an incredible five decades of music, the native New Yorker has created an amazing legacy of work that covers close to twenty albums. A dedicated humanitarian who has devoted considerable time to performing for AIDS-related organizations over the years, Patti’s “Blue Movement” is her personal crusade to bring awareness and new insights into the domestic violence crisis in the USA and around the world. Patti was one of a host of artists on the 2010 single, “We Are the World: 25 For Haiti” and she also co-created the Over My Shoulder Foundation with Dawn Carroll.

Watch Patti perform the song that started Over My Shoulder Foundation

Dawn Carroll, award-winning stone designer at CUMAR Marble & Granite + Executive Director of Over My Shoulder Foundation

The Over My Shoulder Foundation started with a song called “Over My Shoulder,” with lyrics written by Dawn as a duet to be performed by legendary Patti Austin and one of her mentees, Lianna Guiterrrez. Dawn’s vision was to musically weave together her message: that without support and emotional sustenance we can become lost, disconnected, and unstable—as individuals and as a society. As the Executive Director of OMSF, Dawn has inspired programs like the MIDDIES, which ask people to stop and pay tribute to those who helped navigate them to success. As Dawn states, “The dream behind the OMSF is to celebrate, nominate, and reward mentors and mentees: a new cadre of creative talent which will have the leadership skills to amend many of our social and economic crises.”

Stephen Powell, Executive Director at Mentoring USA

An alumnus of the Institute for Not-for-Profit Management Executive Education Program at Columbia University’s Graduate Business School, Stephen remains driven to lead program expansion and technical assistance efforts for Mentoring USA across the nation in major cities such as Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Chicago, and also in Newark, NJ. Prior to joining Mentoring USA in 2005, Stephen worked in program development and management for local and national non-profits such as: Family and Child Services of Washington, DC, VSA arts/Kennedy Center, Youth for Understanding, and the Harlem Educational Activities Fund.

Stephen has appeared on the Over My Shoulder Foundation blog before as the author of posts about Mentoring on Martin Luther King Day.

Ted Fujimoto, Founder of The Right to Succeed Foundation

Ted Fujimoto helps communities and school districts create and support 21st-century schools. As an entrepreneur and consultant, he has helped develop business strategies for Bay Area Coalition of Essential Schools, Big Picture Learning, Alliance for College-Ready Public Schools, Partnership for Uplifting Communities, Linking Education & Economic Development, California Charter Schools Association and the New York Charter Schools Association. Ted has toured over 500 public schools in the nation, his work represents more than $150 million in funding. He was instrumental in designing and founding Napa New Technology High School and the New Technology Foundation that now comprises 85+ schools nationwide. He has served on the California Education Technology Advisory Committee and received the 2002 Center for Digital Government “In the Arena” award for education leadership in transforming vision to reality. In Converge Magazines “1999 Year in Review”, Ted was named one of “Educations Dreamers, Leaders and Innovators.” He is pioneer of the “Right to Succeed” movement and believes every child should have the opportunity to succeed.

Gary Greenberg, Co-Managing Shareholder at GreenbergTraurig

Gary Greenberg, a senior trial attorney with more than 25 years of experience throughout the United States and other parts of the world, including Switzerland, United Kingdom, Bulgaria, the Cayman Islands, Cyprus and the Isle of Man, has represented clients in a wide variety of complex matters, at trials and in state and federal appellate courts and the U.S. Supreme Court, including international fraud recovery, patent infringement and intellectual property disputes; securities litigation; class actions; money laundering actions; civil forfeiture proceedings; Petroleum Marketing Practices Act litigation; mail and wire fraud criminal proceedings; employment and labor disputes; shareholder derivative actions; franchisor disputes with franchisees; lender-borrower disputes; telecommunications litigation; public bid procurement disputes; land-use disputes; litigation concerning regulations promulgated by state and federal agencies; complex personal injury; binding and non-binding mediation; death action claims; and contract, tort and statutory claims. Gary also appears before several state and federal administrative agencies. He has lectured, conducted workshops, and served as a public commentator for print and radio commentary on a variety of litigation issues.

Rick Dyer, Attorney

Rick is a passionate advocate. He has practiced law for 25 years in the areas of Criminal Defense, Juvenile/Child Welfare, Family Law, and Commutation and Parole, with special concentrations in addiction and sentencing mitigation. He believes that justice should be administered with passion, integrity, and a deep understanding of its impact on the individual and community. In representing clients, he brings to bear a broad spectrum of personal and professional experience. Rick is an holistic advocate, bringing to the Court a zealous representation and whole-person picture of his clients with tact, strategy, and dignity. Rick is a member of the Federal Bar, the Massachusetts Bar Association and the Boston Juvenile Bar Association, as well as a panel member of the pro bono group Suffolk Lawyers for Justice.

Read our Over My Shoulder Foundation interview with Rick about One Less Hopeless Person and his inspiring life story.

Michael Dukakis, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, Northeastern University

Governor of Massachusetts (1975-1979, 1983-1991)

1988 Democratic Nominee for President of the United States

Michael Stanley Dukakis was born in Brookline, Massachusetts on November 3, 1933. His parents, Panos and Euterpe (Boukis) Dukakis both emigrated from Greece to the mill cities of Lowell and Haverhill, Massachusetts before marrying and settling in the town of Brookline, just outside Boston. Dukakis graduated from Brookline High School (1951), Swarthmore College (1955), and Harvard Law School (1960). He served for two years in the United States Army, sixteen months of which he spent with the support group to the United Nations delegation of the Military Armistice Commission in Munsan, Korea.

Dukakis began his political career as an elected Town Meeting Member in the town of Brookline. He was elected chairman of his town’s Democratic organization in 1960 and won a seat in the Massachusetts Legislature in 1962. He served four terms as a legislator, winning reelection by an increasing margin each time he ran. In 1970 he was the Massachusetts Democratic Party’s nominee for Lieutenant Governor and the running mate of Boston Mayor Kevin White in the year’s gubernatorial race which they lost to Republicans Frank Sargent and Donald Dwight.

Dukakis won his party’s nomination for Governor in 1974 and beat Sargent decisively in November of that year. He inherited a record deficit and record high unemployment and is generally credited with digging Massachusetts out of one of its worst financial and economic crises in history. But the effort took its toll, and Dukakis was defeated in the Democratic primary in 1978 by Edward King. Dukakis came back to defeat King in 1982 and was reelected to an unprecedented third four-year term in 1986 by one of the largest margins in history. In 1986, his colleagues in the National Governors’ Association voted him the most effective governor in the nation.

Dukakis won the Democratic nomination for the presidency of the United States in 1988 but was defeated by George Bush. Soon thereafter, he announced that he would not be a candidate for reelection as governor. After leaving office in January 1991, Dukakis and his wife, Kitty, spent three months at the University of Hawaii where Dukakis was a visiting professor in the Department of Political Science and the School of Public Health. While at the University of Hawaii, he taught courses in political leadership and health policy and led a series of public forums on the reform of the nation’s health-care system. There has been increasing public interest in Hawaii’s first-in-the-nation universal health insurance system and the lessons that can be learned from it as the nation debates the future of health care in America.

Since June 1991, Dukakis has been a Distinguished Professor of Political Science at Northeastern University and Visiting Professor at the School of Public Policy at UCLA. His research has focused on national health care policy reform and the lessons that national policy makers can learn from state reform efforts. Recently, he and former U.S. Senator Paul Simon authored a book entitled How to Get Into Politics-and Why which is designed to encourage young people to think seriously about politics and public service as a career.

Dukakis was nominated by President Clinton for a five-year term as a member of the Board of Directors of Amtrak, The National Railroad Passenger Corporation on May 21, 1998 and was confirmed by the Senate on June 25, 1998. He served a full five-year term on the Amtrak Board as Vice-Chairman. Mike and Kitty Dukakis have three children: John, Andrea, and Kara, and are the proud grandparents of seven grandchildren.

Charlie Farren, Musician

Charlie Farren emerged onto the national scene in the early ‘80s as lead singer and guitarist with The Joe Perry Project. In that band Charlie established himself as one of the hottest young singers to emerge from the Boston music scene, writing the hits ‘Listen To The Rock’ and ‘East Coast, West Coast’ and ‘I’ve Got The Rock And Rolls Again’.

In 1986 Charlie, along with Dave Hull (Joe Perry Project) and John Muzzy, formed FARRENHEIT and released a self-titled debut album on Warner Brothers. Three singles from that album, ‘Fool in Love’, ‘Bad Habit’, and ‘Lost in Loveland’, as well as video exposure on MTV, established FARRENHEIT as one of the premier new rock acts and receiving awards, media attention and new fans across the country.

Released in 1999, ‘Deja Blue’ established the Farren brand in earnest, this through masterful songwriting, soulful vocals and keen instincts for musical re-invention. Charlie subsequently released ‘World Gone Wild’, ‘Four Letter Word’, and ‘Live at Club Passim’ as a solo artist, along with a new live FARRENHEIT CD ‘FARRENHEIT Live at The Roxy – Boston MA’.

In 2009, Farren released a live DVD and CD double set, ‘Charlie Farren: Retrospective – Live at The Regent Theatre’ , a tour-de-force that exhibits sophistication and musical depth most recording artists never achieve. Charlie’s exquisitely soulful voice confirms him as one of the world’s most easily identifiable and gifted singer/ songwriters.

Charlie is currently working on a project with partner and fellow singer/songwriter Jon Butcher, FARREN BUTCHER, INC. Their most recent release, “FBI” has been well received, and their live performances across New England. Both Charlie and Jon are members of the cast of judges in the Emmy award winning television program, Community Auditions, and both were included on the bill of the 2011 Boston Legends New England tour.

Robin Lane, Musician

Robin Lane was born into a musical family in the city of Los Angeles. Her father was a songwriter and musical director for Dean Martin who wrote the hit “Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime.” Robin began her career singing with Neil Young on the Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere album. She then went on to form her renowned band Robin Lane & The Chartbusters. RL & The Busters had the eleventh video broadcast on the debut day of MTV with their hit song “When Things Go Wrong” and performed for audiences worldwide.

Robin Lane is certified as Teaching Partner for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Cultural Council. Ms. Lane’s industry experience includes a three decade long recording and performance career (Warner Bros.: Robin Lane & The Chartbusters) and songwriting for musicians including Susannah Hoffs (The Bangles), independent film soundtracks, and recording with Neil Young.

Robin has a lengthy record of providing therapeutic music programming to at-risk youth Giving Youth A Voice and trauma survivors A Woman’s Voice. She has taught workshops on creativity and The Artist’s Way at various locations. Robin has been a presenter at the Dare to Act Conference in Baltimore and Break The Silence Conference at Rowe, MA, as well presenting workshops and conferences for youth and women trauma survivors. Robin Says, “There is empowerment in the arts. Those participating will come to see that they do not have to go back to the lives they once lived. They will learn to have faith in their creative abilities and will realize the power contained in their own voice. This isn’t a cure but for those who have survived trauma, for those who are incarcerated, it is a powerful step in the healing transformation.” Santana Roberts, a young musician mentored by Patti Austin, conducted an Over My Shoulder Foundation interview with Robin Lane on National “Thank Your Mentor Day.”

Hal Lebeaux Boudreau, Musician

Hal Lebeaux is a founding member of the successful rock band Extreme, which formed in Malden, MA in 1985. Hal is a personal friend of the Over My Shoulder Foundation’s Co-Founder and Executive Director Dawn Carroll. At the core of the Over My Shoulder project, mentoring through music allows individuals to explore a creative outlet enabling them to express themselves and their ideas. Foundations like Over My Shoulder have become increasingly valuable to not only educate aspiring artists but to also act as primary sources for sharing musical interests.

When asked by his personal friend, Dawn Carroll, to help with lyrics and melodies for another song specifically for the Over My Shoulder Project, Hal Lebeaux Boudreau was happy to oblige. Today, 53 year old music veteran Boudreau wholeheartedly attributes his rekindled passion for music to Carroll’s infectious positivity, thanking his friend for not only her personal support but her professional confidence in him to include him in such a key project.

Hal says, “My friend Dawn Carroll called me one day asking me to ‘mentor’ her and help her complete some new songs for her Over My Shoulder project. Her request had a surprising impact on me personally and before I knew it, I developed an additional eighteen songs for my own first album. Drawing on personal vision as well as Dawn’s writing, Dawn and her Over My Shoulder project unknowingly set the wheels in motion for a rebirth of my artistic creativity. Although I have worked throughout my life in music, it was not until this project have I been so motivated. I’d like to take a moment to thank my friend and musical colleague Dawn Carroll for re-igniting the fire in me to be creative and write, sing and play my own original music. Without the magical mentoring spirit of Over My Shoulder, I doubt my new album would have happened.”

Julie Silver, Musician

Julie is one of the most celebrated and beloved performers in the world of contemporary Jewish music today. She tours throughout the world, and has been engaging audiences with her lyrical guitar playing, her dynamic stage presence, and her megawatt smile for nearly twenty years.

Although she resides in Southern California, Julie’s roots are deep in New England. She was raised in Newton, Massachusetts and by the time she was 18, she was leading raucous song sessions throughout the Reform Jewish movement and playing coffeehouses in and around Boston. Without backing from a major label, Julie has sold more than 80,000 copies of her CDs. Between 1992 and 2000 she released some of the highest selling, successful albums of original Jewish music (Together, From Strength to Strength, Walk With Me, and Beyond Tomorrow) Her songs have become so tightly woven into the fabric of American Judaism that they have become “standards” in worship, camp, and academic settings.

In 2002 Julie released Notes from Montana, a collection of original folk/rock songs that featured a duet with the Academy Award winning actress Helen Hunt. Julie’s children’s CD, For Love to Grow, was released in spring 2005 and quickly honored as a Parents’ Choice Blue Ribbon Recommended work. The honor is especially sweet for Julie, who recorded this beautiful CD as a tribute to her childhood music teacher, the prolific Boston-based composer, Aline Shader. She even granted Over My Shoulder Foundation an exclusive interview about blossoming as a musician Under the Wings of Aline Shader.

It’s Chanukah Time, was recorded in 2007, and was the first Jewish holiday CD produced exclusively for the Barnes and Noble bookstore chain. It was also the only Jewish album to ever be recognized on Billboard, peaking at #5 in 2009. Julie’s 2009 release, Reunion, is a collection of twelve “songs from a faithful heart” that reflect Julie’s journey over the last ten years. These days, Silver is focused on traveling the world, mentoring up-and-coming singer-songwriters, participating in Social Justice projects and making the Jewish experience more meaningful. “I try to enhance the way people experience Judaism by adding my own take on our sacred texts” Silver says. “I also want people who have historically been marginalized to feel included in the Jewish community or in any community and to be encouraged to tell their stories and live their lives openly. Our tradition compels us to express ourselves…our joys, our hopes, our faith and our fears. The only path to healing is through sharing our stories with one another. As a songwriter, I just write and sing what I feel and hope it resonates with people.”

Please click the link below to see the entire program and our event sponsors

OMSF & CUMAR_PGRM – 6-18-12 Liberty Hotel

(to download the program, please click the link above or go to http://s3.amazonaws.com/overmyshoulderfoundation/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/13235622/OMSF-CUMAR_PGRM-6-18-12-Liberty-Hotel.pdf)

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