LANSING – Truscott Rossman hosted civic leaders, legislators, administration officials, business leaders, lobbyists, local media and community members from across the state at the firm’s 16th annual Paczki Party on Fat Tuesday.
The event – a Capitol staple since 1999 – was the first stop for 56 leaders of organizations from Ada, Allendale, Coopersville, Grand Rapids, Muskegon and Wyoming who left the event well-fueled for West Michigan Business Day at the Capitol, organized by the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce.
About 350 people started their day with paczkis, coffee and fresh fruit at Troppo restaurant, just a block from the Capitol. Attendees guzzled 15 gallons – or 240 8-ounce cups – of freshly brewed coffee and devoured nearly 21 dozen paczkis, or about 105,840 calories’ worth of the pastries. Altogether, guests consumed 30.24 pounds of the standard Fat Tuesday fare.
“I love sharing sugary fat grams with friends,” said Kelly Rossman-McKinney, CEO and principal of Truscott Rossman. “Our Paczki Party is a great way to celebrate friends, food and fun.”
Paczkis were quartered to minimize the impact on guests’ diets, since burning off the 420 calories in each one would require either walking at 5 mph for 36 minutes, treading water vigorously for 29 minutes, walking on a treadmill at 10 percent incline at 8 mph for 16 minutes or playing tennis for 36 minutes.
“Despite its high caloric content, the paczki unites people from all sides of the political spectrum,” said John Truscott, president and principal of Truscott Rossman. “The Paczki Party is likely the most bipartisan event in Lansing all year.”
Truscott Rossman is Michigan’s premier bipartisan strategic communications firm, representing local, statewide, national and international clients from offices in Lansing, Detroit and Grand Rapids. The firm offers a full range of communications services, including community relations, grassroots initiatives, issues management, media relations, new media, crisis communication, litigation communication, government affairs and ballot initiatives. Truscott Rossman also publishes “The Legislators’ Guide to Lobbyists & Media,” the popular guide to Capitol policymakers and influencers across the state.
###
