Go Hawks!

Our hometown hockey heroes did us proud by bringing home the Stanley Cup - the first in almost 50 years! they defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 in overtime.
A parade and rally in honor of the victory has taken over the base of our building right on the corner of Wacker and Michigan Ave -way to be part of the action!

Thanks Mary Ward and Nick for the pics!

Welcome Sheila!

Sheila Kindig joins us this week - and all of us in Chicago have been busy getting her up to speed and getting to know her as well. Here's a little more about her:

Tell us a bit about your family.

My husband (Mark) and I have three daughters, Caitlin (11), Julia (nearly 4) and Hannah (1).  Mark is a fun-loving father to our children, aspiring organic vegetable farmer, passionate squash player and gifted black & white photographer.  Caitlin is finishing up 5^th grade at the Nettelhorst School and spends her spare time practicing tae kwon do, participating in school theatre productions and serving as a Girl Scout (she’ll be around in January to sell cookies!). Julia is finishing her first year of pre-school at Nettelhorst and brings joyful energy to all that she does, while Hannah is busy exploring the world around her as she learns to walk and talk.

I come from a family of four girls  – Shannon, Sheri, Shelly (my twin) and Sheila –  and was also known as a Tuttle twin (my maiden name), providing an early introduction to alliteration.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?  

A note that I keep at my desk at home describes “happiness” as reflecting on the PAST with satisfaction, contentment and pride; appreciating the PRESENT with joy, ecstasy, calm and flow; and viewing the FUTURE with optimism, hope, faith and trust. 

Put simply, my idea of perfect happiness is pausing  to witness and enjoy what’s happening all around me, wherever I am.

What is your favorite journey?

I love road trips because it frees you to explore special places along the way.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?   

“Right?” … particularly as I talk with my little ones.

Favorite Chicago spot
Millennium Park

If you haven't already been in touch, please write a comment to say hi and share one or two of your fave things about working at Gagen.

We Heart Halsted Street Deli

Lunch is something we all look forward to every day, but when it comes to Chandler - his heart belongs to just one place - Halsted Street deli - just 2 blocks from our offices. Fast delicious service - and an uncanny ability to know what you want even before you know what you want!

Gagen at Conference Board 2.0 conference

Here's our display at this week's Conference Board Web 2.0 meeting. Peter D presented with Evan Kraus from APCO and Shel Holz on using social media to drive employee engagement. We were co-sponsors with APCO of the event, and making our mark with the people who matter - about 85 communicators from all around the country were at the event.

Showering Morgan

In true Gagen style, we held a bridal shower for Morgan in our offices - complete with Bellini and brunch. Congrats soon-to-be Mrs Muirhead!

Welcome Erica!

Erica Warner joined us a receptionist last week and many of us have probably talked to her on the phone. Here's a little about her:

I was originally from Colorado, but we moved to Connecticut when I was 6 so I really did all of my growing up there. I have 1 younger sister, and LOTS of extended family, both parents are from families of 6 kids. My family has 3 dogs, 2 black labs and a jack-a-poo. Only 1 of them came with me in the move so he’s getting adjusted to being an only child.

My favorite food is Asian – any and all, but especially Sushi! I haven’t found a favorite hangout here yet, but back in CT we used to go to this restaurant/bar called The Tavern in Hartford, such awesome food and great wine & martinis too.

I like snowboarding, wine tasting (there’s a small wine trail in CT, going to CA in august) and traveling, my next big trip is going to be Greece!

Water anyone?

It's official - our new water dispenser beats the fridge by a large margin - almost 3 times faster. Time to fill a tall glass with water - 18 seconds by the new dispenser, 48 seconds by the fridge. I say we call it Speedy!