Latest news with #Alsip
Chicago Tribune
31-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Oak Lawn based film discussion group marks 20th anniversary
For 15 years, Erik Martin had a pretty good thing going. Starting with showing the film 'Citizen Kane' on June 1, 2005, he founded the CineVerse group, which would meet at the Oak View Center in Oak Lawn. People from the area would drop by on Wednesday nights, watch a movie and discuss it. Roughly 10-20 people would show up each week for entertainment, conversation and sometimes lively debate. Then the pandemic hit. The best Martin could offer was to have members watch films on their own and then have a Wednesday night discussion via the online Zoom platform. 'It was like a book club,' Martin said. 'I thought Oak View would eventually reopen and we would go back to in-person each week.' But the group never went back to in-person. The dynamic of the club changed dramatically and five years later, CineVerse is still using Zoom as its platform. The group celebrated its 20th anniversary in June and the in-person format has become a distant memory. 'When we met in person, if we had three hours, two-plus would be spent watching the movie,' Martin said. 'There were typically 40 or 45 minutes to discuss. 'Now we have 90-plus minutes and, as you can imagine, there is much more robust and dynamic conversation.' Alsip's Janet Pierucci has been a member since the early days of the club and enjoyed the old format. She likes the new format just as much. 'This is working a lot better than I suspected,' she said. 'I didn't think Zoom would capture the magic of being able to watch the movie together. But you never knew how long you would be able to talk about a movie. It was nice watching the movie together, however, we now have a longer opportunity to be able to speak to each other.' The Zoom format allows people from across the country to interact. While it's still a small, exclusive group, it brings out people who are serious about film. 'It's open to a wider group of people,' Pierucci said. 'We get some strong aficionados. These people really know their films. They are so knowledgeable and have such incredible insight.' Among the group members are Barna Donovan, a professor of communications and media studies at St. Peter's the Jesuit College of New Jersey, and former New York Times film critic Ken Chanko. There is a former movie studio publicist, an author, a teacher and an attorney. 'We have some very bright people who are passionate about movies,' Martin said. The group celebrated 20 years of watching movies on June 11 by not watching a movie. 'I told everybody I would like them to complete a survey, and I was able to talk to each survey respondent about everything from their favorite movies, to their favorite snack at the theater,' Martin said. 'We spent a couple of hours as a commemoration of the 20 years. Everyone was better acquainted with everyone's tastes and talked about goals for the group.' Through June, the group has met 1,360 times and viewed 1,330 films. There have been 116 people who attended in person and 30 on Zoom over the years. Pierucci, 62, said that some of the contrary 'discourse' that arises during discussions is enjoyable to her. She said it's not as fun when everyone has the same opinion. She liked playing tennis in Oak Lawn and saw a notice from the Oak Lawn Park District about the group. 'I thought it looked interesting,' she said. 'I liked movies. I went on a Wednesday. And I've been with them ever since.' Martin is a freelance writer who is also known around Oak Lawn for his Halloween displays at his house. Over the last two decades, it's grown to 120 life-size figures. Aside from serious movies, he is a fan of monster movies. But it was a science fiction classic that ratcheted up his love for cinema. 'The film that changed my life was Star Wars in 1977,' Martin said. 'It was my Beatles on the 'Ed Sullivan Show' moment. I had never had that much fun in a movie theater. I realized movies were a transcendent experience, even at age eight. 'They can be fun and escapist. They can be deep and resonant and meaningful.'
Associated Press
16-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Capstone Reaffirms $100M Revenue Target for 2025, Accelerates M&A Strategy with Flexible Growth Capital
Capstone Holding Corp. Highlights - Q1 2025 & 2025 Outlook ALSIP, IL / ACCESS Newswire / May 16, 2025 / Capstone Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:CAPS), a national platform of building products distribution businesses, today announced its financial and strategic highlights for the first quarter of 2025 and reaffirmed full-year 2025 guidance. The Company continues to target a $100 million revenue run-rate and $10 million in adjusted EBITDA by year-end, driven by a disciplined mix of organic growth and accretive acquisitions. 'Our strategy is working. We are reaffirming our 2025 targets' said Matthew Lipman, Chief Executive Officer of Capstone. 'Through a disciplined M&A approach, favorable valuations, and solid on the ground execution, we are positioned to double the size of our business in the near term. We remain focused on earnings growth and margin expansion while protecting shareholder value.' 'The Equity Line of Credit gives us the flexibility to act quickly and efficiently on M&A opportunities without burdening our capital structure,' further explained Mr. Lipman. 'We intend to use the facility only for transactions that are immediately accretive to earnings - ensuring that any share issuance is tied directly to profitability.' Instone Subsidiary: Positioned for Second-Half Upside Capstone's Instone business delivered margin performance within target range in Q1 and maintained disciplined cost control with SG&A tracking to about an $8 million annual run-rate. While project timing was affected by severe weather conditions in the Northeast and Midwest, activity is expected to normalize by Q3. Instone also expanded geographically and continued rolling out proprietary products including Toro and Pangea, with momentum expected to accelerate into Q3. Access to Full Materials Capstone has posted an investor presentation and audio commentary discussing Q1 2025 and its strategic outlook. These materials are available in the Investor Relations section of About Capstone Holding Corp. Capstone Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:CAPS) is a diversified platform of building products businesses focused on distribution, brand ownership, and acquisition. Capstone's Instone subsidiary currently serves 31 U.S. states, with proprietary offerings including stone veneer, landscape stone, and modular masonry systems. Capstone's strategy blends organic growth with disciplined accretive M&A, supported by a shareholder-aligned capital structure. Investor Contact: Investor Relations Capstone Holding Corp. [email protected] Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements relate to future events and performance, including guidance regarding revenue and EBITDA targets, M&A strategy, use of capital, and operating outlook. Actual results may differ materially from those projected due to a range of factors, including but not limited to acquisition timing, macroeconomic conditions, and execution risks. Please review the Company's filings with the SEC for a full discussion of risk factors. Capstone undertakes no obligation to revise forward-looking statements except as required by law. SOURCE: Capstone Holding Corp. press release
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
West Central Indiana Partnership looking for feedback
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) – A local organization encourages people to share their feedback about the West Central Indiana region. The West Central Indiana Partnership is holding a Regional Census Day on April 24. It's an opportunity for residents, students, and visitors to share their feedback about five counties in the region: Clay, Sullivan, Vermillion, Parke, and Vigo Counties. 'It's just a three-minute survey that anyone in the area can go on, fill it out, provide their feedback,' said Josh Alsip, Vice President of Regional Engagement for the West Central Indiana Partnership. 'We are going to do this once a year so that we are able to gauge how these feelings change over time and then make strategic changes to our regional plan.' Alsip said the feedback helps the partnership gauge whether their efforts are effective in the five counties. 'With us being able to track this data over time over the next three, four, five, six years, we're able to see when we're being effective and maybe when we aren't, and pivoting,' said Alsip. 'So, your three minutes really contributes to the overall well-being and productivity of all of West Central Indiana.' You can find a link to the survey here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Leadership Academy helps develop emerging leaders
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) — Every organization needs good leaders, and one local group is looking to develop leaders and keep them in the Wabash Valley. The Leadership Academy West Central Indiana program is looking for community members who want to take their professional development to the next level. 'Our community is growing and thriving, and our leaders in the community are looking for emerging leaders that are ready to take the next steps in their career,' said Brennan Randolph, President of Saint-Mary-of-the-Woods College. Terre Haute Convention Center event offers many job opportunities The program was developed by the West Central Indiana Partnership, which is an initiative of the Terre Haute Chamber of Commerce. Josh Alsip, Vice President of Engagement for the partnership, said this program is for the cream of the crop in the community. 'So, we are really looking for a lot of those premier emerging leaders in West Central Indiana, because the people we're around, again, whether it's in business, non-profit and municipalities, are going to be our peers as we are here now and in the future,' said Alsip. The program will include a robust curriculum that focuses on communication, productive conflict, effective teamwork and critical thinking. 'These are skills that are very important. Whether someone is a leader inside a local business, a manufacturer, or whether they are a leader in a non-profit out there in the community. So, through these five learning pillars that we have identified, we will build out the entire curriculum throughout the year,' said Alsip. Program members will also be able to earn Master of Leadership Development degree credit hours from Saint-Mary-of-the-Woods College. Josh Alsip of Terre Haute Chamber of Commerce wins award from Lieutenant Governor 'We need to be developing our future leaders, and this program will help to do that. And at the same time, be earning graduate credit hours that they can take into one of our graduate programs,' said Randolph. Alsip said this program aims to keep these potential leaders in the West Central Indiana Area. 'We don't want these people who are extremely talented, who can play a vital role in their communities going elsewhere. We want to give them that opportunity here in West Central Indiana,' said Alsip. Applications for the program are now open and will be open until May 15. Professionals, educators, entrepreneurs and anyone with a passion for leadership are encouraged to apply. You can apply by clicking here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
