The Tom and Ray Show
Today's story about Tom Philion's hiring of Stephanie Cordick as general manager of the Eastern Music Festival reminded me we should plan to do an editorial on Phillion soon.
He turned EMF around after arriving in 2000, adding more eclectic programming to the schedule and building audience and community interest.
He was a gently aggressive marketer and maintained EMF's artistic integrity while solidifying its fiscal integrity.
I can't blame him for being excited about his new gig as president of the Seattle Symphony.
But he'll be missed. On his watch, EMF became less of an elegant curiosity and something for more of us to go to and enjoy.
Another notable mover who is moving on is Ray Gibbs, president of Downtown Greensboro Inc., whose tenure has seen unprecedented growth in the center city, as a cultural, entertainment and residential district.
Since Gibbs arrived in 1999, about $250 million in projects have been completed or are under construction downtown.
The center city -- which truly used to be a place to get away from it all -- has added 50 restaurants and entertainment venues, and more than 275 residential units, with 285 more under construction on Gibbs' watch.
Ray may in some ways have benefited from being in the right place at the right time, but he has been a tireless booster and advocate for downtown who has help enable any number of projects, often behind the scenes.
And who has helped to create a cohesive vision for what downtown can and should be.
Beginning on June 1, Ray will join a Mooresvile engineering firm. He should feel good about his role here in helping engineer downtown's comeback.