October 2017 Connections

30 Scholars got together for a networking reception at Quartino in Chicago on September 27.

35 Scholars came together at Amazon in Seattle to view their “Smart Home Lab of the Future” and hear from Jason Feldman (1990 Scholar and Global Head of Innovation).

Coke Scholars came together at Nike in Portland to network and hear from Jorge Casimiro (1994 Scholar and head of the Nike Foundation).

Our friends at Coca-Cola in NYC for took local Scholars and alumni to a Mets game!

Our Alumni Advisory Board held its annual board retreat this month, dedicating two days to strategic planning and enhanced programming. They are also hard at work planning the 2018 Leadership Summit, which will be held September 27 – 30, 2018, in Coca-Cola’s home of Atlanta.

Our President, Mark Davis, hiked with Scholars in the Snoqualmie Area of the Washington trails. Mark, Aviva Hirsch (2012), Mason Meyer (2016), David Sanchez (2010), Mary Sun (2012) and her friend tackled Mt. Defiance, Kendall Katwalk, and Mailbox Peak over 3 days.

Scholars got together for pizza and Cokes at the University of California Berkeley.

MIT Scholars met up for pizza and enjoyed Coke and Diet Coke.

Scholars connected over pizza and Cokes at Case Western Reserve University.

Daron Roberts (1997) brought Madi Pfaff (2013) to speak to one of his classes at the University of Texas in Austin. Madi talked about her story of being a female coder. Daron also interviewed Madi Pfaff (2013) and Jason Feldman (1990) for his podcast “A Tribe Called Yes.” Jason’s interview will air on November 28 and Madi’s will air on December 12.

Hilary Corna (2003) organized a cookout for Scholars in Austin, TX. Simmi Mehta (1999) and Natalie Neumann (2005) attended and had a great time catching up!

Jonathan Jones (2012) came by the CCSF office to catch up.

You never know what will happen when two Coke Scholars get together…but in this case, you can see the results on TV Tuesday night, November 7, on HGTV! Julie Gehrki (1998), an executive with the Walmart Foundation, and Carrie Regan (1989), an executive with HGTV, met years ago as members of the Alumni Advisory Board and became fast friends.  Over one Scholars Weekend, Carrie mentioned to Julie that she was looking to cast people who renovate historic homes in small towns just like Bentonville, Arkansas, Walmart’s home base. Julie knew just the couple and quickly put Carrie in touch with them. The result, Almost Home, is an hour-long program that follows Dave & Jenny Marrs as they renovate a home from 1893 for a young family. The pilot episode airs Tuesday, November 7, at 11 p.m. on HGTV.  Only top-rated pilots get picked up for a series, so Carrie asks that you please spread the word!

Erin Muffoletto (2003) sent us this photo with her wearing her Coke Scholars sweatshirt in front of the Coca-Cola balloon at the annual Hot Air Balloon Festival outside of Albuquerque, NM.

Sudha Meghan (2006) and Anjali Fernandes (2013) visited Coca-Cola.  They had never met but instantly connected over their love for computer science.  When we were discussing the amazing Coke Scholars network and our new Coke Scholars Connect platform, Sudha said, “Whenever I travel, I look up Coca-Cola Scholars like I look up Embassies.” Now THAT is a plug for why you want to stay involved!