milkshakes
& ice cream & grilled cheese
As a child, Greg loved vanilla milkshakes (& ice cream) & grilled cheese. As he got older, he developed an affinity for protein shakes, too. During college, he came up with an idea: build bridges in divided communities by bringing people together for milkshakes & meals. Shortly after graduating, he started The Brunch Bunch mentoring program - bringing diverse groups of kids & adults together for milkshakes, brunch & an activity (like basketball or volunteering with seniors) every weekend for nearly 5 years. More than 700 people participated. Since then, as Greg has traveled for speeches & book signings, audiences have joined him for shakes. The books based on his story tell the tale of a young person who dreams of using milkshakes & food to bring his community together. (Fittingly, the story begins & ends with the main character having a grilled cheese sandwich & a milkshake). scroll down for next paragraph
A variety of dairy, cheese, ice cream & milkshake-related groups (&/or those who sell related items) have been among those to order copies of the books &/or book posters - including Country Style Ice Cream & Coffee, McDonald's, The Dairy Godmother, Golden State Ice Cream, White Mountain Creamery, Jersey Freeze, Sylas and Maddy's Homemade Ice Cream, Greg's Frozen Custard, Dairy Queen, Culver's, Wisconsin Holstein Association, Denny's, Cheeser's, My Flavor It! Place, Jim's Cheese, Sweet Pea's Ice Cream & California Milk Advisory Board. Schoop's Hamburgers ordered copies of the book to give to kid customers who ordered milkshakes (& had good grades). Cabot's Ice Cream & Restaurant ordered book posters as a gift for every kid at a grade school & middle school in their community. Texas Association of Dairymen ordered copies of the book for all of the student council members at a junior high in Texas. Dairy Business Association ordered copies of A Place To Sit (the companion workbook) for every student at a high school. The Spotted Cow ordered copies for dozens of people in their community who were recognized for being kind to others. The upcoming picture book edition of the books is called The Milkshake Man. Greg has been invited to do Readings of The Milkshake Man with elementary school-aged kids at schools, camps & events around the nation. In some instances, organizers have arranged for all the attendees to have milkshakes. Greg also has participated in many events for adults. For example, he was the guest speaker at Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board's annual County Dairy Promotion Group Conference. Other groups that have invited Greg to speak include International Association of Ice Cream Distributors & Vendors, Illinois Holstein Association & Western United Dairymen. Greg also has written for many magazines - including an article for Candy Industry about / interview with the owner of an ice cream parlor / soda fountain & confectionary in Iowa. On the civic side, Greg raised money to help send students to college by "charging" people between $5,000 & $10,000 to meet him for a milkshake. (He came up with the idea after having a grilled cheese & then milkshakes at a restaurant with a group of complete strangers). Knowing 100% of those funds from the expensive milkshakes went to charity, prominent figures like NHL legend Chris Chelios signed up to "buy" one. First Lady Laura Bush wrote that Greg changed the way we look at milkshakes. To read feedback on events & the books from dairy (milkshake)-related sources, click here Scroll down to see some ice cream & milkshake-related pictures over the years. Click for larger versions.
