Co-founders Shana Porteen, owner of Black Ice Comics & Books and Patricia Summersett, actor/voice actor from L’Anse, are proud to announce the seventh Annual Geek U.P. to be held on Saturday, September 27 at Michigan Technological University’s Memorial Union Building. Geek U.P, which will be from 12 to 7 p.m., is a mini-con charity event celebrating geek culture offering an artists’ alley, vendors, cosplay contest, celebrity Q&As, autograph sessions and more!
This year’s charity recipient is Copper Shores Meals on Wheels, a home-delivered and congregate meal service. For homebound seniors, this vital service not only provides a hot meal, but also a visit from a dedicated delivery person. Often, this is the only social contact homebound seniors have, and it is very important for them to have a connection with the world outside. Copper Shores Meals on Wheels also provides Meet & Eat group meal sites throughout the area, providing an opportunity for social interaction for folks 60 and older that can get out and about.
Veronica Taylor is a classically trained actor who became a mainstay of Saturday morning cartoons, best known for playing the original Ash and May on the first eight seasons of “Pokémon”, April on “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” and roles in “Yu-Gi-Oh!”, “Cubix”, “Dinosaur King”, “Winx Club”, “One Piece”, and more with 4Kids. Shows for PBS include “Word World” as Sheep, “Lunch Lab” as Mixiebot and “Chuck Vanderchuck’s ‘something something’ Explosion!” as Ramona. Current projects include Nickelodeon’s Emmy nominated “Welcome to the Wayne” as Spy from 8-i, “Sailor Moon” as Sailor Pluto, Netflix’s “Shaman King” as Tamao and “Rilakkuma and Kaoru” as Tokio, “Dragon Ball Super: Broly” as BerryBlue, “Dragon Ball Super” as Brianne/Ribrianne, Sprout’s “Ollie and Moon” as flight attendant/ensemble, “Astroblast” as Sputnik, “Aria” as Akari, “Mofy” as Mofy, Mogu, and Sora, “Fire Emblem: Three Houses/Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes” as Manuela, “Fire Emblem: Heroes” as Macaiah, and “Valkyria Chronicles 4” as Crymaria. Anime favorites include “Slayers” as Amelia, “His and Hers Circumstances” as Yukino, “Nana Seven of Seven” as all 7 Nanas, among others. She has done numerous voices for animation, video games, audiobooks, commercials and documentaries.
Roger Craig Smith is a prolific voice actor who has voiced some of the most iconic characters in entertainment. Over the course of his illustrious career, one of Roger’s notable credits include the voice of “Sonic the Hedgehog” not only in video games, but also in the Disney film series, “Wreck-It Ralph,” and in Cartoon Network’s animated series, “Sonic Boom.” Other notable credits include the voice of Batman in the video game “Arkham Origins” as well as in the DC animated films “Batman Ninja” and “Superman: Red Son,” the voice of Ezio Auditore da Firenze in the “Assassin’s Creed” franchise, and the voice of Claggor in Netflix’s award-winning animated series “Arcane.” Anime fans will know Roger as the voice of Deidara from the worldwide hit “Naruto,” Shinji Hirako in “Bleach,” and Minoru Okabe in the blockbuster, “Suzume.”
Providing voice and full performance capture for several video games, Patricia Summersett is known as the first official voice of Princess Zelda in Nintendo Video Games for: “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom,” “The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild,” and “Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity.” Other top voice credits include “Rainbow Six: Siege,” “Star Wars: Squadrons,” and the “Assassin’s Creed” franchise. She has also appeared in several films and television series. Patricia was raised in L’Anse, MI, and graduated from Houghton High School before pursuing her acting career in L.A. and Montreal.
“We’re very excited about what we have in store for Geek U.P. this year,” said Porteen, “We want to welcome folks of all ages to Geek U.P. to come have a great time. Even if it’s been years since you read a gripping sci-fi novel, or you’ve never played a video game, we can’t wait to share the fun, have folks meet our fabulous celebrities and help us raise money for Copper Shores Meals on Wheels.”
“I’m thrilled to celebrate local arts and culture in the community I grew up in,” said Summersett. “I certainly hope to inspire and provide insight for budding artists who may be thinking of a related career path. Shana and I dreamed up this event several years ago and I’m amazed how the festival has evolved so considerably. I’m excited to imagine how it may grow and expand in years to come!”
More information, developing schedule, and pre-order tickets can be found at GeekUP906.com. Tickets at the door can be purchased through cash/credit. Learn more about Copper Shores Meals on Wheels and the work being done to feed local seniors local food by visiting the Meals on Wheels page.