Events Archives | Spectrum Net Designs

Category: Events

Happy 4th of July!

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Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th of July! What would be a better way to celebrate this holiday than spending some time in beautiful West Michigan. Whether you are visiting the area on vacation or are a born and raised Michigander, you are sure to be blown away by the beauty of Michigan summers and the events surrounding the 4th. We’ve compiled a list of the great things happening around town as well as a few ideas of our own to help you make the most of your Independence Day!

Races and Fun Walks

For those looking to get a little exercise before consuming all of that grilled goodness at dinner, considers participating in the Kentwood 5K Race & Fun Walk or the Trail Blazer 5K Run/Walk in East Grand Rapids. Whether you’re an avid runner or just want to walk or jog, these races will be a great way to kick off your day! Sign up here for Kentwood and find more information here for East GR.

race
fourth of july parade

Parades

Who doesn’t love a good parade? Start your morning off right with a patriotic celebration in the streets. Fun for adults and kids alike, a parade will be a great way to get in the spirit of the 4th. Check out the parades in Ada/Cascade, Allendale, East Grand Rapids, Kentwood, and Grandville (we think this one is the best but we might be a little biased).

Activities/Festivals

After you’ve gotten a workout in and caught some flying candy, head on over to the activities held throughout the day. With craft shows, rides & inflatables, car shows, food vendors, and live music there is sure to be something for everyone. Grab a funnel cake and stroll through the festivities for a fun-filled day. Discover what each town has to offer: Ada/Cascade, Allendale, East Grand Rapids, Grandville, Kentwood and Holland.

activities and festivals
baseball game

Sporting Events

What’s more American than baseball? Head on over to the Whitecaps 4th of July game vs. the South Bend Cubs for some classic American fun. Grab a hot dog and spend a nice evening at the ballpark. Plus, as soon as the game is done there will be a fireworks show! With seats for as low as $9, this is a great idea for your budget as well! Get tickets here.

Beaches

Maybe you are looking for more of a relaxing holiday. If so, head to one of our fabulous beaches along the coast! With the sun on your face and sand on your feet you are sure to spend your day out of the office to the max. Don’t forget to pack sunscreen and lots of water! Explore the beaches of Grand Haven, Holland, Muskegon and Saugatuck/Douglas (bonus – each of these cities have fireworks over the lake at night).
beach
fourth of july fireworks

Fireworks

If you aren’t already at the baseball game or camped out at one of the beaches listed above for fireworks, these other cities are putting on their own displays: Grandville, East Grand Rapids, Allendale, Kentwood, Ada/Cascade.

We hope that you have been inspired for your holiday plans! We are so thankful to be located in such a beautiful part of the country and can’t wait to spend the day celebrating our country’s freedom. Check out our Fourth of July Pinterest Board for even more holiday craft and snack ideas!

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Celebrating the World Wide Web’s 30th Birthday

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The World Changed 30 years ago, today we celebrate...

Tim Berners-Lee, a smart man born in London, England set out to change the world. Berners-Lee graduated from The Queen’s College, Oxford with a bachelor of arts degree in physics. While still in college he made a computer out of an old television set that he bought second hand. In his early 30’s & by October of 1990 Tim Berners-Lee had developed a proposal, explaining his idea & had already created the 3 main parts of what would make the World Wide Web work, HTML, URL, & HTTP. Each of these parts are an integral piece to the puzzle he created. The first page of the web went completely live in late 1991. 

Tim Berners-Lee

It didn’t catch on like wild fire though, the WWW took time; starting in Universities & Laboratories. Today, about half of the world is online & almost 2 billion websites exist. Berners-Lee is now using the celebration of 30 years  up and running to touch on the topic of hackers & some of the unethical things that are being done on the web. He stated that he wants technology to be a vehicle for “public good”. On Monday he put out a “contract” that shows what he hopes the web can become. Going forward, Tim Berners-Lee hopes good for the WWW & wants only to see the world united through this beautiful piece of technology.

Do You Need Help Getting On The World Wide Web?

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Spectrum Net Designs is dedicated to helping our clients get to where they want to be.

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A Warm Congratulations to Kelly & Justin!

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We want to congratulate Kelly & Justin Smidstra on their wedding last Thursday!

Everyone at Spectrum Net Designs wants to send you off with best wishes on the wonderful journey ahead of you and a lifetime of love and happiness.

 

 

 

Kelly is the administration assistant here at Spectrum and provides various kinds of administrative support throughout the office.  Kelly comes to us with years of experience, and we are excited to have her on our team.

“Appreciation is a wonderful thing.  It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.”  ~Voltaire

Monthly Employee Spotlight: Brandon Kaptein

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Monthly Employee: Brandon Kaptein | Project Manager

 

Brandon graduated from Covenant Christian High School in 2014 and has always been interested in working for Spectrum full-time. He started part-time in 2012 and as of December 2014, he began working full-time as a Project Manager. He is a member of the Michigan West Coast Chamber of Commerce and enjoys attending events and networking with other members. Brandon is also becoming more and more a part of the Online Auction side of Spectrum and continues to be in contact with many auction companies. He manages the work that comes from our clients and schedules it with the appropriate developer to be completed in an efficient time frame. Brandon would be the point of contact for our clients wondering about the status of their project. Feel free to contact Brandon with any of your website or online auction needs!

A little more about Brandon!

Favorite Quote: 

“The three great essentials to achieve anything worthwhile are: Hard Work, Stick-to-itiveness, and Common Sense.” Thomas A Edison

What is your dream car?   Brown(Caribou) F-150Brandon Kaptein

What’s your biggest pet peeve?  Having my food touched by other people.

Do you have any pets?  I have a dog named Dex

Do you have any hobbies? Golf, Golf, and Golf. I do like bike rides when I can’t golf.

What was the last really great book you read? Why? I don’t read often, but History books are always good. Currently reading Dunkirk and it has not disappointed.

What is one food that you will never eat?  Mushrooms

Are you artistic? I think yes, ask anyone else and they will say no.

Any new information about your life?  Becoming a dad in February 2018. About to get crazy. ????

Have you ever played a musical instrument?  Never

Which superhuman power do you wish you had?  Time Travel

Do you have a favorite season?  Football Season

If you could splurge on one item, what would it be?  The truck above would be a cool splurge

Multi-Parcel Simulcast Debuts at 2017 Conference & Show

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2017 Conference & Show | Columbus Ohio

Real Estate auctions are becoming an increasing part of the real estate markets. We hear every day the many creative ways auctioneers use the auction method of carrying out the sale of each of these unique properties. With the ever-changing industry, it is important that the tools to carry out these endeavors are developed and updated along with it.
It was our pleasure to exhibit at the 2017 NAA Conference & Show this past month in Columbus, OH. It was a perfect venue to introduce and demo our Multi Parcel Auction platform.

Kurt Kaptein, President of Spectrum Net Designs says “It has become clear that due to the complexity of this type of auction, it is not the first piece of an auction providers software portfolio that get the attention. We saw a need and we believe that we have fulfilled it”.

The multi-parcel option has been brought to a new level with the introduction of this online method. Not only will it take care of the typical ballroom scenario but it also includes the ability for the bidders to bid online in conjunction with your live audience. A multi-par simulcast is what we call it.

The software made its debut last month as it was used to sell 4,000 acres in 31 parcels with at least 2.5 million dollars of real estate being sold to the online bidder. You may ask: Is this all there is to it? Kurt Kaptein says “We will continue to develop this software based on feedback from auctioneers who use it. There is not anything like it on the market that gives you the ability to include online bidders with the live ball room setting, so we are blazing a trail”.

At the 2017 Conference & Show one of the messages was that our industry cannot afford to stand still; this is the message that the auction industry providers need to heed as well. Continue to provide truly dynamic products to the industry. We believe the auctioneers will be served best by it.

For a demo of the software, you can visit www.auctioneersoftware.com and request that a free demo be setup for you.

Multi-Parcel Simulcast

One Flag, One Land, One Heart….

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Celebrate the 4th of July

#Support  #Freedom  #Celebrate

 

American Flag

Thank you to service men and woman in the military both past and present for fighting for our freedoms.  We hope everyone has a safe holiday!

While “Independence Day” is a very good name for a holiday celebrating the separation of one country from another; most Americans refer to this holiday by its date, as “The Fourth of July”-or, indeed, “The Glorious Fourth,” though the latter has fallen out of common usage.

Nevertheless, there are and always have been people who say “July Fourth” instead of “The Fourth of July”-just not as many of them. Google returns 11,000,000 hits on a search for “Fourth of July” and only 826,000 for “July Fourth.” But whatever order you choose to say it in, we hope you enjoy the national holiday.

 

Fun July 4th Facts

4th of july

304 Million!That’s the population this July 4th.
1804.The first celebration west of the Mississippi River is held at Independence creek by Lewis and Clark…
1941.The year that July 4th became a holiday. However, Independence Day was observed since July 9, 1776.
31.Number of places named “eagle” – after the majestic bird that serves as our national symbol.
155 Million.Americans consume around 155 million hot dogs on the Fourth of July each year. They also spend $92 million on chips, $167.5 million on watermelon, and $341.4 million on beer.

Need Ideas for 4th of July Inspired Picnic?

4th of july
Try the All American Trifle!

Here is a recipe for any type of celebration. This dessert is very popular with cool whip cream and fresh fruits it is bound to be a hit.
 

Happy Independence Day!

4th of july

Small Business Person of the Year

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Michigan West Coast Chamber Small Business Person

November 25, 2016 | By Rachel Watson

A chamber of commerce in the region has selected the owner of a trucking and warehousing company as its Small Business Person of the Year.

jon lanning - west mi chamber person of yearThe Michigan West Coast Chamber of Commerce presented the award to Jon Lanning, owner of Zeeland-based Inontime, during the chamber’s gathering this month.

Each year, the chamber asks its members to nominate small businesses for the award. The selection committee then reviews the nominations and chooses a winner who has a growing, innovative company that’s been in business at least five years and is increasing jobs and sales and “overcoming adversity,” as well as contributing to the community.

Inontime was started in 1998 by Lanning’s father, Jack Lanning, with one employee. The company now employs 300 and has annual sales of $25 million — a 240-percent growth rate during the past five years.

Lanning holds a bachelor’s degree in business from Calvin College and M.B.A. from Grand Valley State University.

The Chamber

The Michigan West Coast Chamber of Commerce, founded in 1908, represents 1,400 organizations with 70,000 employees in the greater Holland-Zeeland area. It has offices in Holland and Zeeland.

Grand Rapids Business Journal