Foursquare Kalamazoo gets its own day in April

Kalamazoo will join cities around the country by officially celebrating Foursquare Day April 16.

Mayor Bobby Hopewell recently signed an official proclamation making the observance official.

The day, intended to increase awareness of the local social media group, will be celebrated by visiting a number of local restaurants on April 15 and by providing help to Ministry with Community on April 16.

Foursquare followers explore local destinations such as restaurants, retailers, shopping malls, entertainment venues and others.

Founder and organizer of Foursquare Kalamazoo and TweetUp Kalamazoo Sarah Lee says a lot of Kalamazooans are using the social network platform. The day recognizing it points up the value of Foursquare Kalamazoo and TweetUp Kalamazoo. Foursquare encourages people to shop locally, she adds.

The festivities begin with a tweetup at 5 p.m. on April 15 at The Wine Loft. Stanford Smith and Gary Platte from Pure Michigan talking about tourism and social media. A progressive party to other locations downtown will follow.

The next day, the Foursquare Kalamazoo group will volunteer at Ministry with Community, serving breakfast.

"Social media has been extremely useful in bringing people together to have important conversations that impact our community," Lee says.

April 16 originally was established in 2010 as Foursquare Day in Tampa, Fla. Lee says that was the first global social media event recognizing the positive influence that social media can have for individuals, organizations and communities. Other cities that have proclaimed April 16 as Foursquare Day include Atlanta, Ga.; Austin, Texas; Cincinnati, Ohio; Corpus Christi, Texas and Gaithersburg, Md.
 
Writer: Kathy Jennings
Source: Sarah Lee, Foursquare Kalamazoo and TweetUp Kalamazoo