Mingle: creating a space for Lansing's diverse array of young professionals

As a young professional in a new city, restarting your life can be a difficult challenge. Similarly,
longtime residents can feel disconnected from a place in which they have not expanded their relationships. Growing from this need, a group of Lansing young professionals have begun looking for ways to connect both of these types of people.

Jasmine Lee falls in the category of being a longtime resident. Raised in Lansing, she wanted to reconnect to her hometown with a different lense.

"I tell people, especially new professionals, networking can be uncomfortable and awkward," says Lee, "We try to have something in place that makes networking easier for people that aren't as comfortable."

Lee is now one of the co-founders of Mingle, a networking group dedicated to creating a fun, friendly, and encouraging environment for young professionals from diverse backgrounds in the greater Lansing area. While there are other networking groups in the Lansing area, Mingle aims to offer something a little different. Mingle focuses on diversity in all forms, and as a result it attracts a melting pot of people who represent a wide array of who is living and working in Lansing.

"There is a lot more variety in attendance," says Mingle organizer Randelle Lenoir, "We have people of a lot of different ages, cultures, backgrounds, jobs - way more diverse diverse in all ways."

The events are mostly free-flowing, with a limited structure in place. Every event includes a creative ice-breaker to get conversational juices flowing. The Mingle photo frames, large cardboard cut-outs which mimic instagram photo frames, make appearances late into the event. Attendees pose with their new-made friendships, providing the event with a fun vibe that flows easily onto social media.

"I feel like it's a lot more laid back atmosphere," says Lenoir, "There's a lot less pressure."

Mingle has primarily relied on word of mouth as its main form of promotion, but all are welcome to attend. At the last meet-up in August, Lee and Lenoir recall meeting a woman who was struggling to make friendships in Lansing. She was venting during an appointment when her doctor suggested she check out the upcoming Mingle event in town. The woman remarked she was really happy that she came to the event.

"Because I only know about the people I tell about Mingle, I never know who is hearing about it," said Lee, "I thought this [story] was really powerful."

Though Mingle focuses primarily on building new friendships, professional connections are naturally made during the event. For Mingle organizer Christopher Seals, it has helped him both build relationships and advance his professional interests. As a Doctoral Student in Educational Psychology at MSU, it has helped further his research interests.

"I have only been in Lansing for 14 months, but i have been a Mingle team member for half of the time," says Seals, " Mingle has given me the opportunity to build my network, and it has given me something to be apart of."

Mingle launched early in 2013 as a social event after the Martin Luther King service day. The organizers expected a decent turnout, but they were shocked when a dozens of new faces showed up at their event. It was a special moment for the group.

"We had way more people turn out than we expected and stay way longer than we expected," said Lenoir, "I remember standing there and thinking - this is one of the few times I've been at an event and most of people aren't familiar."

Another Mingle event was hosted by the Black Family and Child Institute, where attendees helped clean up their playground and do some minor landscaping. This focus on service projects has attracted an audience with interests in social justice and community engagement.  Lee recalls two women that she met at Mingle. In the wake of the Michael Brown shooting in Ferguson, MO, she ran into them while they were planning a rally and marching at the state capitol.

"I was able to get my students who were doing the same thing connected with them," says Lee, "Now they work together through Michigan State as a partner. Those are other things that have also been very cool - to connect people across interests to connect people positively to impact the city."

As the Mingle brand grows, its organizers hope to build the foundations of a stable organization. They now see Mingle as a vehicle for retaining talent in the city.

"There has been a lot of concern about the fact that young people come but they don't stay (in Lansing)," says Lenoir, "You can't settle here if you don't have a network of friends of support and you can't build your career."

Mingle aims to do just that.
 
Photos © Dave Trumpie
 
Dave Trumpie is the managing photographer for Capital Gains. He is a freelance photographer and owner of Trumpie Photography.