Indy 500 drivers Attend Jeans & Jewels Fundraiser

Nearly all of the 33 Indianapolis 500 drivers, as well as a few other stars, slipped into denim and then added a little bling Wednesday for the annual Jeans & Jewels fundraiser.

The event, held at Mo's . . . a Place for Steaks, raises money for the Indy Family Foundation, which offers financial aid to members of the racing community in emergencies, and The Women's Fund of Central Indiana. It drew 500 to 600 guests.
Advertisement

"I would consider this the star-studded driver party of the month," said Ruthie Forbes, director of guest services for the Indy Racing League.

No kidding.

Among the drivers who attended were 2007 Indy 500 winner Dario Franchitti, who came with his wife, actress Ashley Judd. The 2008 winner, Scott Dixon, also showed up with his wife, Emma, who is pregnant with their first child.

Cathy Kightlinger: Racing celebs glitter at Jeans & Jewels fundraiser | IndyStar.com | The Indianapolis Star

Technorati Tags: indy 500, fundraiser, jeans & jewels, broad ripple, indianapolis

Indianapolis to Host Energy Summit

Washington, DC- The American Energy Solutions Group (AESG) and its chairman, Congressman Mike Pence, chairman of the House Republican Conference, will hold an Energy Summit in Indianapolis, IN, next week with leading energy experts to discuss solutions to America’s energy challenges.

The AESG will be hosting several summits across the country next week in order to develop policy initiatives to lower energy prices for American families and small businesses, and create energy independence for the American people.


The Indianapolis Energy Summit will take place Wednesday, May 27th at 10:00 a.m. in Indianapolis, IN, at the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library. A press conference will follow the summit at approximately 12:00 pm.

Energy Summit Set For Indianapolis - Newsroom - Inside INdiana Business with Gerry Dick

Technorati Tags: indianapolis, energy summit, aesg,

Indy 500 Drawing Lots of Fans

Race Fans Gathering For Indy 500 - Newsroom - Inside INdiana Business with Gerry Dick

It is one of the busiest weeks for tourism in Indiana's largest city. Tens of thousands of people are expected to arrive in Indianapolis for this weekend's Indianapolis 500. An economic impact study for the event has not been completed since the early part of this decade. At that point, the estimated impact was $336 million. Indianapolis Downtown Inc. President Tamara Zahn says the race puts the area "on the map "and provides an opportunity to showcase the downtown core of the city.

Technorati Tags: indianapolis 500, indy 500, race, indianapolis tourism, indianapolis

Renovations for the Indianapolis Museum of Art

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – When the Indianapolis Museum of Art contacted Digital AV about Scala InfoChannel® software, the Indiana based digital signage company knew it was in for an interesting artistic journey. Part of the $220 million expansion program under development at IMA included the vision for a dynamic visual greeting system for visitors and guests as they entered the new Glass Rotunda at the front of the Museum. The entrance was designed with exposed structural steel framework and a glass curtain wall system creating a large, open environment to welcome visitors. The problem was, the beautiful open area left visitors without a focal point of direction and, considering potential visitor counts in thousands for key events, IMA staff knew they had to pull the minds eye of the visitors to a central point of key information.

Enter Mike Prusa, Manager of IMA Ticketing and Visitors Division, who had seen digital signage used in other large museums throughout the country and knew it was exactly what the entrance needed to help guide their guests to the wide range of museum locations. A call to Tom Johnson, president of Digital AV, brought the museum in closer to their quest for a signage system that would do more than one thing at the same time. Johnson recommended three large digital displays, positioned together on a custom designed steel floor stand from Premier Mounts, with special mounting brackets for flexible positioning.

Indianapolis Museum of Art

Technorati Tags: indianapolis, museum, art, renovations

Shop the World in Indy, Broad Ripple

Jenny Elig: Village Experience | IndyStar.com | The Indianapolis Star

From the moment you enter the Village Experience, the new addition to Broad Ripple and to the fair-trade shopping scene, you are in for a rare experience -- a shopping trip that will help you learn about the world.

The words painted over the door are as memorable as they are important: "The purpose of a life is a life of purpose."
Advertisement

It's the philosophy Kelly and Anne Campbell have adopted for the shop and their tourism business. It opened recently at 6055 N. College Ave. (on the other side of Der Glasswerks). The shop is a treasure trove of handmade accessories and home accent pieces made from materials indigenous to the places where they were made.

Better still, each time you nab a brilliantly dyed Thai silk scarf ($15), a necklace made of paper beads from Uganda ($32), or a clutch made from an Indian sari ($35), your money is going back to the villages where the pieces were created.

Prices range from $4 to $125 -- not bad at all for handmade pieces that each have a story behind them.

Technorati Tags: shopping, world, indy, broad ripple