Friends pool interests to create new company By MURIEL J. SMITH Posted:05/04/10
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What does a talented, artistic, creative marketing director who loves history do when he finishes a full day of work on an Air Force base?
If he's Monty Dunn, he spends his spare time pooling all those talents and interests and combines them with those of a friend to start a new business.
Burnin Daylite is that kind of business and Monty Dunn is that kind of man. And Tony Di Flumeri, his friend and also an employee of the Department of Defense, is the friend with whom he pools those talents.
The business they have formed is designed to preserve history, not on a national or international level, but rather on a personal level, letting families tell their own stories about how they fit into the history of the world. Part of it is because of enthusiasm, part talent, part education, and part just because they both like perfection.
A life-long resident of New Jersey and a graduate of Seton Hall University, Tony holds a Bachelors Degree in Communications and a Masters Degree in Corporate and Public Communications. Before coming to Earle, he was a photojournalist, worked with a film company as production exec, sound and picture editors, and developed and taught an Adult Education class on video production. In his government-employment capacity, Tony heads up the marketing department, where he has been for 11 years.
A resident of Freehold, Tony is an active member and past chairman of the borough's Neighborhood Pride Committee, and a member of both the borough's Community Information and Historical Preservation committees.
Monty Dunn comes to the newfound hobby with a suitcase full of talent and experience. A California native who spent some time in Texas where a national multi-media company had recruited him, he then worked for the US government. He first came to the Garden State in 1998 on a government re-assignment, tasked with creating a marketing department at NWS Earle in Colts Neck. After establishing the department at the Monmouth County Navy station, he was then wooed to McGuire Air Force Base to be Marketing Director and oversee his staff of five who provide services to a customer base of more than 36,000.
An avid follower of all history, Dunn believes every family has a special story to tell, and the fascination of the story should be preserved for future generations. Like his partner, he is obsessed with the idea that "everyone has a story to tell" and "everyone's story is important not only to himself and his family, but to his grandchildren and their children as well."
While history books will preserve the overall history, Burnin Daylite is dedicated towards preserving the personal history as told by the people who know it best...the men and women who have lived through it.
The firm has undertaken video biographies, a technological way of preserving stories through voice and video. For just under $300, DiFlumeri and Dunn visit a person in their own home, guide them through pertinent questions that tell their stories, and videotape and record them for preservation on a DVD or VHS format. The process takes approximately an hour, followed by the team's editing of the program, providing appropriate background music, and inserting photographs for a sophisticated, professional presentation that will last forever.
Dunn said he never had the opportunity to learn all the stories of his own grandparents, and therefore sees Burnin Daylite's production of family videos as "something other families can preserve; I know how important it is to pass special stories from one generation to another." The video presentation also allows story tellers to incorporate their favorite family photographs, both of themselves or their ancestors, depicted in the video while their voice-over gives the details.
"People, even people who are in the business of talking to people every day, tend to freeze up when they see a camera or have a mike attached to them," the experienced marketing director pointed out, "our expertise and professionalism allays their concerns and enables them to tell their stories in a relaxed frame of mind."
Actually, it's probably the pair's friendliness and interviewing techniques that result in the perfection of the finished video. Both are genuinely interested in a person's background; they really do want to hear the stories of the soldier who fought in World War II or the Vietnam vet who came home a different person. They want to revel in the memory of a grandmother sharing some secrets of her teenage years with great grandchildren yet to be born.
Just as every person has a unique and interesting story to tell, so, too, does every state. In addition to their other ventures, Burnin Daylite is currently self-producing a documentary series highlighting the countless tales the make up the story of New Jersey. Entitled "Threads," it has already captured the attention of Jersey Network in airing the series once the team produces more episodes.
The foremost goal of "Threads" is to educate New Jersey residents about unique accomplishments, strange occurrences, and little known historical facts about the state and its people. The overall objective is to stimulate interest in the uniqueness of the state, create a desire to visit the locations highlighted by each episode, and reaffirm the positive aspects of the Garden State.
"We are very excited about this particular project, Di Flumeri said, "Among other things, we believe the program will help to counter the unflattering image our state has suffered for years. It's a great and diverse state, and people should be more aware of that. Moreover, its residents should be proud of that."
"We just become the vehicle for people to share their lives with those they love," Dunn said.
Dunn and DiFlumeri worked together when Dunn was marketing director at NWS Earle. When Dunn transferred to McGuire in Wrightstown, and DiFlumeri stayed in Colts Neck, they continued to communicate on a professional basis. When they realized their talents and interests in video presentations and history could be combined to offer something special to others, they formed Burnin' Daylite. The rest is history.
Now six years old, the company has done commercial videos both here and on the West Coast, and is currently completing historic videos for municipalities and historical commissions in New Jersey. The owners decided to expand their projects to include the personal interviews after their research showed there is few companies in the country that offer the service. "And none do it with the élan and professionalism that we pour into it," Dunn laughed. "Creativity always comes out better when you actually enjoy what you are helping someone else create."
While the videos are generally made by the first or second generation of a family, frequently it's the younger generation who gives a gift certificate for them to their parents or grandparents.
"Gone are the days of Brownie cameras and scratchy 8 mm film," Dunn said. "Today's families want a professional and lasting reminder of the people and events that have made them what they are. We're here to provide that."
Further information on Burnin Daylite and its historic projects is available by calling the company's cell phone at 609-489-1733.
