food & beverage
As a kid, Greg was especially partial to his favorite meal: grilled cheese & milkshakes. In college, he came up with an idea: use food & beverages as common ground to bring people together. After graduating, he started The Brunch Bunch mentoring program - bringing diverse groups of kids & adults together for milkshakes, meals & an activity (like basketball or volunteering with seniors) every weekend for nearly five years. More than 700 people participated in his program. Some of Greg's speeches & book signings have been connected to F&B-related organizations (i.e. events for staff of companies like General Mills and Coca-Cola North America, event for business students sponsored by The Republic of Tea, annual convention for companies that make and sell ice cream). He did a book signing at Empty Bowls 2015 -- an annual event supporting hunger & homeless-related causes. The books based on Greg's story (The Milkshake Man, The First Thirty and The Silhouette Man) tell the tale of a young person who uses food & beverages to help bring his community together. Many restaurants, grocery stores & F&B-related groups have ordered copies of the books &/or the related posters for their own staff, customers &/or local students -- including Freshline Foods, East Side Kosher Deli, Schoop's Hamburgers, Denny's, Tosca Restaurant & California Milk Advisory Board. McDonald's has ordered copies of the books & book-related posters for students in multiple states. One of its franchisees ordered copies of the books & companion workbooks for a group of teen philanthropists in its community & retained Greg to serve as Mentor to the group. His story has been featured by media like Nation's Restaurant News and Beverage World. Good Morning America buried a Time Capsule which chronicled his efforts to team up with restaurants to bring people together. First Lady Laura Bush wrote a kind letter that noted how Greg changed the way we look at milkshakes. His first job ever (busboy), first job in college (food delivery) & first job after college (restaurant doorman) were all F&B/restaurant-related. In his free time, he has spent time shadowing farmers &/or top chefs - in an effort to learn more about the food & beverage industry.