Thank You!

Thank you to everyone who came out to our Lit Up gala and dance party on Thursday, November 6th. The event, in support of GrubStreet programming and scholarships, was a huge success! This year, we were honored to present our inaugural Grubby award, which was beautifully designed by IDEO, to poet and Bread Loaf Director, Michael Collier. Michael accepted his award with the grace and generosity that the award is meant to honor, and we were all inspired by his reading of poems he wrote in response to some of his mentors and teachers.

 

After Michael’s reading, we were treated to a 10 x 2 performance featuring the work of writers in our community. From a slam poem about jazz by one of our teen writers, to a heartrending memoir excerpt from a breast cancer survivor, to a scene from a Novel Incubator alum’s debut novel that reimagines Jane Eyre, the pieces were all engaging and inspiring. Like the writing adage “show, don’t tell,” the performers did a great job of showing all the terrific work that comes of GrubStreet programs.

 

 Somewhere—between the socializing, the program, the drinks, the contests, the auction, and the dancing—we were able to raise more than $50,000 for GrubStreet’s scholarship fund! Not only did we reach our fundraising goal, but we had a blast getting to see all of the creativity and positive energy that the Grub community has to offer.

 

Special shout-outs to our drink sponsors Bully Boy Distillery, Pretty Things Brewery, and BRIX wine shop for keeping everybody hydrated while they worked up a sweat on the dance floor. Speaking of the dance floor, we saw some show-stopping, jaw-dropping, dancing-shoe-breaking dance moves that will go down in Grub history for a long time to come. Our event band Ripcord really pulled out all of the stops, providing us with some kickin’ tunes and make-you-wanna-get-up-and-groove energy. And thanks as well to our event sponsor Uber for getting us home safely (and for free!)

 

Another thank you to The Grand Circle Gallery for providing us with the perfect venue for our event, and to Bad Apple for capturing some of the zany antics of Grubbies at the photo booth.

 

So on behalf of the GrubStreet team, thank you to everyone for showing up with your dancing shoes, positive energy, and generosity—we couldn’t have done it without you! We appreciate all of your support in helping us on our mission to create a welcoming and growing community for writers, and promote the literary arts as a whole. We are so glad that we’ve raised the funds we need to keep our programs open and accessible to any and all writers who want to participate. For anyone who missed out on all of the fun and was not able to attend the event, or for anyone who attended but is still feeling generous, you can still support our scholarship fund by making a donation on our website.

 

It’s never too soon to start rehearsing your dance moves for Lit Up 2015, so get practicing!

 

-Lyndon Nicholas, GrubStreet Intern

Lyndon is a 4th year English major at Northeastern University pursuing a BFA in English, and minors in Secondary Education and History. When he isn't reading, writing, playing music, or playing tennis, he enjoys being an international spy, the 5th ninja turtle, Game of Thrones extra, hand model, Tai Chi master, and what Willis was talking about.

 

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