Matthew Fraijo is a classic introvert who loves his alone time. He’d also never needed to make a friend: through school and college he always found his core group and settled in. Then he graduated, moved to Pittsburgh, looked around, and realized he didn’t know anyone. Scrolling Instagram, he spotted OC Social Club from Orange County, where he grew up, and thought, 'That's it.' He and his co-founder made a graphic, posted it and told friends they’d be at a bar. The first few events were just friends of friends. The moment it became real was when strangers started arriving from Instagram and TikTok. Now PGH Social Club runs six to eight events a month, with 100 to 120 people at the big ones. His craft is the welcome. The first two to three minutes of someone’s experience matter most. The hardest part isn’t hosting 120 people. It was one invitation. After an event he asked someone to go get a drink, just the two of them, which meant admitting, ‘I’m lonely and I need friends.' They’re still friends. Meanwhile at the Chamber, Charlotte goes to a Halloween party as a park ranger with her husband, Sam the Bear. Aaron reports that a friend’s students are funding college by raising injured goldfish for koi collectors at $10,000 a fish. 00:00 Welcome 00:30 Halloween and Host Banter 11:10 Meet Matthew 13:20 Starting the Social Club 15:15 The Art of Welcoming 17:50 Events and Programming 20:45 Growing as a Leader 25:10 Building for the Future 35:10 Reflection About the Chamber of Connection The most creative artists in America right now aren’t in galleries. They’re in your neighborhood. How We Connected is a front-row seat to the social artists rebuilding human connection. Hear inspiring stories about roller skating crews, bad art clubs, jousting societies, city saunters, Georgian dinner parties, catch-playing challenges, midnight runners, and picnic societies. Hosted by Charlotte Massey and Aaron Hurst, co-founders of the US Chamber of Connection. Aaron Hurst is the co-founder of the US Chamber of Connection. He’s a long-time entrepreneur focused on purpose and community. He founded Imperative and the Taproot Foundation and wrote The Purpose Economy. Charlotte Massey is the co-founder of the US Chamber of Connection and leads community programs nationally. A Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree and former organizer and founder, she works at the intersection of civic life and entrepreneurship. Learn more: www.chamberofconnection.org Matthew Fraijo, Co-Founder, PGH Social Club Matthew is an unlikely host for parties of 120. He grew up in Orange County, studied at Trinity University, went into hospitality, and moved to Pittsburgh after college knowing nobody. He spotted OC Social Club on Instagram and realized Pittsburgh needed one too. With his co-founder Avi Moses, he started posting invitations to a bar. PGH Social Club now runs six to eight events a month, from 120-person bar nights to craft clubs, trivia teams and pickup sports. It’s the things you’d do with friends, for people who haven’t met them yet. He staffs every big event with a welcome committee trained to find whoever’s standing alone. His dream is a reimagined Elks Lodge for this generation, a clubhouse where you go on a Tuesday night just to see who’s there. Learn more: https://www.pghsocialclub.com Heylo Heylo is a community-management platform built for real-world groups of every kind, giving leaders a clean, branded home base to run events, manage members, communicate clearly, and handle payments without friction. It brings scheduling, RSVPs, waivers, announcements, topic-based chats, and membership tools into one place so clubs, teams, and interest groups can stay organized and connected without the noise of traditional social platforms. Learn more: www.heylo.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
