my questions - were these activities going on before the board/discussion group?

Did this encourage any one region to have Meet & Greets - or were they going to have them anyway..?

has this encouraged anyone to attend?

The Chicago M&G's have been going on for years, but just recently have become much more frequent. From what I've heard, they have been very popular in NYC, LA, and Dallas for a long time also. I would assume that most large metrpolitan areas have them.

When and were is the next Chicago M&G planned for?