Spark Summit

Taylor Cubbie, Portrait Photographer
Taylor Cubbie works as Education, Government, and Commercial support at Midwest Photo in Columbus, Ohio. He uses his experiences as a freelance photographer and commercial photo assistant to outfit commercial studios across the country. Taylor also works to build the analog photo community in Columbus by organizing workshops and photo walks.

Brad Cresswell, Radio Station Manager at WGTE Public Media
Brad Cresswell moved from WNYC in New York City to Toledo, OH to work at WGTE Public Media. During his time at WGTE, Brad has been awarded five Touchstone Awards for Excellence in Journalism from the Press Club of Toledo and has been recognized by the Ohio State Senate for his contributions to public radio in the community. Before Brad entered public media, he enjoyed a 16-year career as a professional opera singer and performed leading roles with the New York City Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, Washington Opera, Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, among many others.

Nick Corbin, Nick Corbin Productions
Nick Corbin is a filmmaker/documentarian, English instructor, and actor in Toledo, Ohio. As well as working with national bands like Hawthorne Heights, and former First Lady Michelle Obama, he’s also the documentarian for the largest mural in the United States: The Glass City River Wall, right here in Toledo.

Condessa Croninger, 20 North Gallery
Condessa Croninger is an artist and artist-educator working with many arts and cultural institutions in the Toledo region since 1990. Affiliated with the independent sales gallery, 20 North Gallery, from its inception in 1993, Croninger was appointed art director in 2008.

Additionally, since 1998, she has served as the educational outreach specialist for Toledo Ballet/Toledo Alliance for the Performing Arts, providing classroom enrichment and narration for student performances, as well as performing in Toledo Ballet’s annual production of “The Nutcracker” — the longest running production of this holiday classic in the nation.

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Eric Dregne, Freelance Bass/Tenor Trombonist, Band Leader, Composer, Arranger, Multi-business Owner
Eric found a passion for music and started pursuing his career interests starting in high school.  Co-leading his first performing big band at 16 years old, he has been playing professionally for over 35 years.  Currently the owner of two music based businesses, he continues to run multiple bands of his own and contracts with a wide range of other groups for performances.  He is considered one of the top call bass trombonists in Northeast Ohio and provides coaching and mentoring sessions to local school and community groups.

Melanie Dunn, Madhouse
Melanie Dunn is a Designer/Digital Marketing Strategist at Madhouse and the owner of Cuttlefish Graphics. Melanie graduated from the Owens Community College Commercial Art Technology program and has expanded her capabilities by working in Agency, Corporate and Freelance environments. With a passion for design, Melanie has a passion to collaborate with clients and fellow marketers to create cohesive campaigns. She takes pride in the ability to help clients identify their target market and create content that gets results.

Eric Eggly, Photographer
Passion has fueled Eric Eggly’s drive to create emotionally captivating imagery for the advertising industry for over 30 years. This passion grew from studying advertising media at a young age to waking up at dawn to catch the perfect glow of natural light and pursuing a lifelong career dedicated to perfecting the art. Specializing in lighting techniques ranging from strobe to continuous light, Eric learned to master the trade through working with many great photographers in the Detroit market. To this day, the manipulation of light is one of the most enjoyable elements of any project, superseded only by Eric’s love of working with people. Capturing the true personality and character of a person within the confines of a static picture is at the core of Eric’s work.Celebrating the uniqueness and diversity of each person who steps in front of a lens has always inspired Eric, whether it is a veteran model or someone who is met on a walk through the city. Eric has worked with a multitude of clients ranging from Fortune 500 companies to non-profit organizations and every face had its own unique story to tell. The true joy for Eric is bringing those stories to life through image stories that are so strong that they are never forgotten. And the best part of all is the times that those faces turn into lifelong friends.

Kate Fineske, National Museum of the Great Lakes
Kate Fineske is the Senior Director of Institutional Advancement at the National Museum of the Great Lakes where she oversees the museum’s marketing, communications, development and community partnerships. She has over 20 years of experience in communications, education and nonprofit leadership and began her career in advertising. Over time, she bridged her communication work with non-profit operations, having formerly served as Assistant Executive Director for a national nonprofit in New York and, more recently, as United Way of Greater Toledo’s Vice President. Kate has an undergraduate degree from the University of Toledo and a Master of Business Administration from Lourdes University.

Denise Grupp-Verbon, School of Liberal Arts Internship Manager – Owens Community College
Denise Grupp-Verbon has been the Internship Manager for the School of Liberal Arts for 7 years and was instrumental in designing the Music Business Technology Degree program at Owens. She has been placing interns since 2012. Denise was named Adjunct Teacher of the Year, 2005-06 by the Ohio Assoc. of Community Colleges.

Denise is a working harpist and she plays in a duo called TAPESTRY with acoustic guitarist husband, Michael. TAPESTRY has performed from New Jersey to California.

Denise teaches 25+ private harp lessons monthly and has published dozens of harp compositions, arrangements, and instructional books.

She received her Bachelor of Music degree from BGSU and her Master of Music degree from Northwestern University.

Nathan Hursh, WGTE Public Media
Nathan Hursh grew up in Bluffton, Ohio and has been living in Northwest Ohio all of his life. In 2015, he began his video production career at WBGU-PBS in Bowling Green. He then worked in corporate video for a year at Crown Equipment Corporation. In 2018, he moved to Toledo to work at WGTE Public Media where he has produced numerous documentaries and TV programs. Nathan has a passion for storytelling and loves working in Public Media.

Steven Jackson, Traffic/News Anchor & Lifestyle Show Host
Steven Jackson is an Emmy award-winning journalist for WTOL-11 & FOX 36 in Toledo, Ohio. Steven has over a decade of experience in the news industry. Outside of connecting with viewers through telling their stories, he enjoys mentoring the youth and volunteering with his wife with their congregation ministry.

Jori Jex, Executive Director – The Valentine Theatre
Jori Jex has worked in the not-for-profit world of arts management for the past 35 years.  After receiving a Master’s degree in Arts Management from BGSU, Jex served as Business Manager for the University of Toledo’s Department of Theatre, Film and Dance for 12 years.  Following that she served as General Manager of the Toledo Repertoire Theatre, General Manager of the Toledo Jazz Society, Executive Director of Project ABC (Arts Building Culture) and currently has been Executive Director of the Valentine Theatre for the past 13 years.

Andrew Kleopfer, Chicago Actor
Andrew Kleopfer is a Non-Union actor working and living in the city of Chicago. Andrew has a Bachelor’s degree in Performance from the University of Toledo and an Associate’s Degree in Communications and Media studies from Owens Community College where he spent a lot of time perfecting his craft in Theatre acting. Andrew is a current company member at the Oil Lamp Theatre in Chicago. His current collaborations include Oil Lamp’s winter season performing in Almost Maine by John Cariani and working and studying at the MA school under Max Arciniega for film acting.

Eric Leszkowicz, Studio Photographer
Eric Leszkowicz and his wife Jessica own Keepsake Portraits in Findlay, Ohio. Known for artistic portraits, Eric also has a successful commercial studio specializing in product photography. While winning national awards has been exciting, creating large wall art to be handed down for generations fuels their passion for their work.

 

Angie McGinnis, Manager of Career & Transfer Services at Owens Community College
Angie McGinnis is the Manager of Career & Transfer Services at Owens Community College.  Angie has been at Owens since 2001 and has held several roles within Student Services.  Angie has her M.A. in College Student Personnel from Bowling Green State University and her B.A. in Psychology and Spanish from Hiram College.  In addition, Angie is a Certified Career Services Provider and has managed the Career & Transfer Services Office since 2019.

Ray Miller, Executive Producer / Director of Content & Creative Services for WGTE Public Media
Ray Miller brings 37 years of experience in television and video production. An Emmy Award-winning producer, Miller has spent 19 years working in public broadcasting as a videographer, producer and executive producer. He has produced and directed countless documentaries and television series airing both locally and nationally.

Todd Mitchell, President and owner of Great Lakes Sound, Inc.
Based in Toledo, Great Lakes Sound has been in business since 1985 and specializes in providing professional sound, lighting and staging systems. “GLS” has a diverse customer base and provides services for events such as The Toledo Symphony Pops Series, ProMedica Concert Series, The Solheim Cup, LPGA Dana Open, The Toledo Mud Hens Hensville, University of Toledo Commencement, Dayton Celtic Fest and Owens Community College Commencement. Todd has worked with several of our Nation’s Presidents earning a certificate of appreciation from The White House Communications Agency for his superb attitude, professionalism and unique ability in providing critical communications for the President of The United States.

Todd is a graduate of The Musician’s Institute in California and is an accomplished guitarist. He is also an adjunct faculty member of Owens Community College and currently teaches Sound Engineering and Production.  He is married to his wife Julie and they have two children. In 2022 they celebrated 25 years of marriage, even renewing their wedding vows in front of Elvis at the famed Graceland Chapel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Outside of work, Todd is an avid skier, enjoys cooking, listening to music and spending time with his family.

Bianca Marcia Naves, IATSE Local 24 Stagehands Union
Bianca Marcia Naves is a Toledo native with an array of experience in both the makeup and wardrobe industry.  She is a freelancer, educator, performance artist, and IATSE cardholding member. Through tenacity and hard work, she has built and maintained relationships across the entertainment industry. She continues to freelance and build her business and is currently a trustee for IATSE Local 24.

Kevin Tiell, Hero Collective
Kevin is a commercial photographer specializing in product and lifestyle imagery. His passion for crafting photos began in college at The Ohio State University. Shortly after graduating, he relocated to San Francisco, California to further develop, transitioning from freelance photo assistant and digital tech, to full-time photo retoucher at Pottery Barn, Apple, Google, Uber Eats, and many other commercial clients. He began shooting and retouching for his own clients like Birdies, Rothys, Linea Caffe, Swisswater Decaffeinated Coffee, and SquareTrade in the past 6 years. Kevin says, “Being a commercial photographer is fun and exciting and always challenging. You never know what the next job will be. The best part are the relationships we make with new and existing clients. It is fun to work with creative people.”

Anastasia Wagner, 20 North Gallery
Anastasia Wagner received a B.F.A. from The University of Toledo (Ohio) in 2018. She began her professional involvement in the arts through The Arts Commission (Toledo, Ohio) as an Apprentice for Young Artists At Work in 2012 and an arts administration internship in 2016. Wagner is the 20 North Gallery Manager (Toledo, Ohio), where she has worked since 2017.

Wagner is a frequent contributor to juried and group exhibitions. She has served as Judge for the categories of Jewelry and Sculpture in the Crosby Festival of the Arts at Toledo Botanical Garden (Ohio). Currently, Wagner is an Independent Member of the Toledo Federation of Art Societies, for which she serves as Exhibition Committee Co-Chair.

Brandon Zale, Educator and Vocalist
Originally from Chicago, Brandon now resides in Scottsdale, AZ with his wife and two young daughters.  Brandon has been teaching Music and Theatre courses to grades PreK-12 for twenty-two years, currently serving as the Fine Arts Department Chair at Rancho Solano Preparatory School in Scottsdale.  As a performing artist, Brandon has performed professionally in choral, theatre, and musical theatre shows and concerts both nationally and internationally.  Recent theatre credits include Julian Marsh in 42^nd Street (currently at the Hale Theatre in Gilbert, AZ), Max in Sound of Music, George in Billy Elliott, Reverend Shaw in Footloose, and Daddy Murphy in Bright Star.  Brandon is currently represented by the Leighton Agency and has been seen and heard in voice-over and commercial work both in Phoenix and his native Chicago.  Brandon has toured nationally with the Missoula Children’s Theatre and is a frequent National Anthem soloist for Major League Baseball.  He holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from Millikin University in Decatur, IL.