Contest Judges to Review Twenty-Two Videos from Nonprofits

We are so excited and grateful that 22 nonprofit organizations in the Valley have sent us videos to review and judge.  Now it’s time for the judges to go to work and decide which videos make them laugh, cry and feel inspired to give on Valley Gives Day.

Our panel of judges is quite esteemed with public relations, marketing and communications, digital media, social media and video professionals, and we want to introduce you to them.

First, the team of gurus who have done all the behind-the-scenes process and planning is Janice Beetle of Beetle Press, Ruth Griggs of RC Communications and Dave Sweeney of viz-bang!

We also have six other judges who – with Janice, Ruth and Dave – will be scoring your videos and determining our winners.

Meet all of our judges, starting with the planning team.

Janice Beetle

Janice has almost 30 years of journalistic and promotional writing experience in the Pioneer Valley. She is the principal of Beetle Press, a communications firm that develops content and messaging that allows for-profit and nonprofit organizations to grow, communicate effectively with their target audiences and keep their internal teams informed. A former writer and editor for both the Daily Hampshire Gazette in Northampton and The Republican in Springfield, Janice has extensive knowledge in media relations. Her specialty is connecting clients to the media to raise awareness through storytelling in the wider community. Janice also writes for colleges, universities, hospitals, businesses and nonprofit organizations.

Ruth Griggs

Ruth Griggs is the principal of RC Communications in Northampton, which provides online and offline marketing and communications services to nonprofits, small businesses and community development organizations. Located in Northampton and serving all of western Mass and beyond, the firm offers practical marketing solutions to help organizations facilitate communications, raise awareness, build business and enhance relationships through strategically designed, multi-faceted marketing programs. Whether you are a new nonprofit looking to establish your identity in the Pioneer Valley or a large organization seeking to leverage your existing assets across the United States, RC Communications is expert at crafting and managing strategic, custom-designed marketing plans that have proven success.

Dave Sweeney

Dave is the principal of viz-bang! of Agawam, which increases engagement and visibility through optimized online video and the successful strategic deployment of social network platforms. Dave’s experience and skill-set serve a client mix that includes Fortune 500 companies and regional market leaders. Dave helps organizations jump into the digital age, focusing primarily on effective and measurable video campaigns. He also works with these same organizations to improve their social networking activities, special events and marketing communications. Dave’s expertise lies in video production, corporate event management, social media consulting, marketing communications and project management. He has presented nationally on video production and social media strategy.

And the rest of our judges:

Crystal Childs-Gryszkiewicz

Crystal is the Social Media Specialist for Balise Motor Sales. She has been with the Balise marketing team for almost nine years and loves what she does. Before devoting all of her time to social media, Crystal spent 12 years as a graphic designer. Her favorite quote is, “Tweet responsibly. The world is watching.

Matthew Duranti

Matthew is the co-founder/CEO of Counterfeit Cow Productions in Amherst, a company dedicated to creating provocative films that highlight the most important social issues of our day. He began his entertainment career as an actor/writer, working with major Hollywood studios’ including, Sony, 20th Century Fox and Disney. Matt now leads a new division of Counterfeit Cow dedicated to creating digital content and social media strategy.

Christine Romanko

Christine is a digital media consultant with Masslive in Springfield. She is a 2002 graduate of the University of Massachusetts, Isenberg School of Management, and has been in marketing and advertising for more than a decade. She has a wide array of knowledge in both traditional and digital media. Christine’s experience includes managing and maintaining websites and the development and execution of marketing campaigns for broadcast media. Christine is continuing to develop her career and further help clients reach their best potential customers with digital marketing strategies.

Alfonso Santaniello

Alfonso is the president/chief strategist at the Creative Strategy Agency, Inc. in Springfield, a digital marketing and communications agency that helps its clients effectively use social media websites, tools and applications to effectively communicate with customers and potential customers. He is also creator/host of Strictly Businews, a local business web show, also based in Springfield, covering business news and featuring local businesses.

Maureen Scanlon

As the principal of Murre Creative in Florence, Maureen produces effective, award-winning graphic design across all media, specializing in identity systems, advertising and print publications. Maureen works through a branding lens, bringing the clients’ images into alignment with their visions and services, always from the viewpoint of their audiences. Through her years of agency experience, Maureen has worked across many industry sectors, including culture and arts, human services, retail, industrial and business-to-business.

Garrett Yargeau

Garrett represents Big Y as the Head of Social Media. He grew up locally in Western Mass and holds a marketing degree from Western New England University. Garrett has been with Big Y for eight years, starting at the Ludlow location. In his spare time, he enjoys traveling and running. He has a passion for cars and loves listening to electronic dance music.