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46 n e w h a v e n B I Z | J u l y / A u g u s t 2 0 1 9 | n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m T H E L O O P AGENDA Behind the mask, Boathouse blowout I n July and August formal busi- ness events slow to a trickle as titans of industry (and many of their minions) repair to the Cape, the Islands, the Berkshires and other Edens to lick their wounds and salve their souls. But if business entertaining slows to a crawl, that doesn't mean it grinds to a halt entirely. Business owners and managers wear many hats — but do they sometimes even wear masks? Find out July 12 in Branford at the "first annual" Business Behind the Mask Masquerade Ball. Organized by photographer Vic- toria Grattan to honor her friend, Michelle Borelli of Wallingford, who passed away in May, the event is an evening of networking, dinner, dancing, raffle prizes and more. It's nominally a ball for business people, but all are welcome. Passed hot hors d'oeuvres, dinner buffet (with prime rib carving station, deejay entertainment, photo-booth fun, cash bar, fun and prizes. It's a great opportunity to network, meet new people and have fun. Masquerade attire requested. (Masks available at the door if needed.) Best of all, it's for a good cause. Proceeds from the event will benefit the family of Borelli, and also Smilow Cancer Hospital in New Haven. n Business Behind the Mask Masquerade Ball, 6-11 p.m. July 12 at Woodwinds, 29 School Ground Rd., Branford. $40. 203-802-8324, vgrattan1@yahoo.com. D uring the summer months the Tsai Center for Innovative inking at Yale (Tsai CITY) hosts an intensive eight-week accelerator program for undergrad and graduate students to incubate new companies, nonprofits and ini- tiatives. CITY Summer Fellowship teams go from sketch to launch by summer's end. Approximately 10 teams were selected in a highly competitive process. e fellowship includes $15,000 for each team, along with a rigorous sequence of workshops, sprints, mentorship, coaching and pitch opportunities. On Demo Day, the fruits of teams' summer labors are shared with the public for the first time. It's an event filled with enterprise, invention, surprises, entertainment and fun — in an inspiring and brainy kind of way. n Tsai CITY Summer Fellowship Demo Day, 4-7 p.m. July 25 at Hastings Hall (Rm. B02), 180 York St., New Haven. Open to the public; free. Registration. 203-436-8893, city.yale.edu. T he Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce continues its 225th anniversary celebration with a late-summer bash at the Canal Dock Boathouse on Long Wharf. It's an historically significant setting: When a group of New Haven merchants first met in 1794, their common purpose was to protect their community's fragile maritime link with the outside world from the predations of French and British privateers. Today the "long wharf " that once defined New Haven Harbor is long gone, but the waterway continues to be a link to the world beyond — and the group that evolved into the New Haven Chamber endures as one of the three oldest institutions of its kind in the U.S. is soirée will bring the com- munity together for an evening of networking, food tastings from an array of the region's coolest eateries, wine and spirits and, well, an abun- dance of high spirits, too. n 225th Anniversary Summer Celebration Bash, 4-7 p.m. Aug. 27 at Canal Dock Boathouse, 475 Long Wharf Dr., New Haven. $55 ($45 members). 203-787-6735, gnhcc.com. Participants at the 2018 Tsai CITY Summer Fellowship Demo Day. This year's event takes place July 25. The Canal Dock Boathouse will be the site of the Greater New Haven Chamber's 225th Anniversary Bash Aug. 27.

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