Michelle Kelly of La Piele Skincare Studio invited me to attend a meeting of the Huntington Referral Network this morning. They meet at 7 am for breakfast at Toast in Huntington Village. Considering that I need 1/2 hour drive time, it was just a little bit early, but I figured I would give it a try. A group of about 16 arrived and ordered breakfast while they caught up with each other and waited for the meeting to start. They then went around the table and each member talked about the business of the member to their right. I thought it was a great idea. Networking events can be very self serving and it was immediately clear that this group took time to get to know about each member. They also talked about their recent fundraising event which raised several thousand dollars for Island Harvest, whose mission it is to end hunger and reduce food waste on Long Island. You can find out more about the organization at www.islandharvest.org.

It was obvious that the members had become friends as easy laughs were shared throughout the meeting. It was nice to see some familiar faces and also to meet a few new people when everyone broke off into casual conversation after the meeting. I had a nice conversation with Alex Borg, who, it turns out, has recently started writing for my brother’s magazine, The Village Connection. All in all it was a nice group of people and I even made a few possible business contacts. I guess I’ll attend another meeting before I decide if I want to commit to 7am EVERY Tuesday…