One of the interesting sidelines of being a fan of Clay Aiken is that he has introduced many people to his fans.  Some are friends who have known Clay since he was in school.  Others are new friends who Clay has met through his work in the entertainment and the humanitarian world.

On Friday, Clay tweeted about his friend, Nick Leisey.  It seems his good friend just announced his engagement to the beautiful Courtney. Be sure and look to the right of this blog to see Clay’s tweet which includes a picture of the happy couple.

Nick was Clay’s Personal Assistant for a few years and toured with Clay at least four times.  Nick chose to return to school and received his master’s degree in Salem, MA and became an elementary school teacher in Boston. He currently works as a Global Citizenship Fellow for UNICEF.

The following biography of Nick is posted at SCHED

Nicholas Leisey is a passionate advocate for human rights and utilizes his natural instincts for civic engagement and grassroots mobilization to engage multiple communities around the country to unite on behalf of the world’s children.

After earning his degree in public relations from East Carolina University, Nicholas spent several years working with children’s programs for various non-profit organizations and NGOs. He has managed youth programs for the YMCA and The John F. Kennedy Center, coordinated initiatives and development activities for the National Inclusion Project and participated in UN sponsored field visits to Uganda, Indonesia and Malaysia. In addition to his work with non-profit organizations, Nicholas also holds a master’s degree in elementary education and has spent three years working as an elementary school teacher for the Boston Public Schools system.

Nicholas is currently the Global Citizenship Fellow for the U.S. Fund for UNICEF based in the New England Regional Office. This role allows him to cultivate relationships with community and faith-based organizations, inspire volunteers to engage their communities with UNICEF’s campaigns, catalyze school partnerships by challenging educators to focus on global issues in the classroom and promote the adoption of global citizenship for individuals within the greater Boston community.

Congratulations, Nick.  You and Courtney have a large family of friends who wish you all the best!

Another of Clay’s friends was also in the news Friday.   Arsenio Hall and Clay became good friends when they were both contestants on the reality TV show, Celebrity Apprentice in 2012.  Clay and Arsenio seemed to enjoy each others company and seemed to work well together.

On Friday, Cynthia Littleton, Editor-in-chief: TV – Variety reported that there was some turmoil surrounding Arsenio’s TV talk-show:

“The Arsenio Hall Show” has made a big change at the top, with exec producer/showrunner Neal Kendeall stepping down.

Eric Pankowski, senior VP of programming and development for “Arsenio Hall” distributor CBS TV Distribution, will step in as interim showrunner while Hall mounts a search for a new exec producer.

“Arsenio Hall” bowed Sept. 9 to promising ratings but viewership of the late night syndie talker has dipped since then. A source indicated that Kendall’s exit was spurred in an effort to find a better creative fit for the comedian.

I wish Arsenio only the best.  I never enjoy seeing someone disappointed in the way a dream job turns out.

Have you watched Arsenio’s show?  If so, do you enjoy it?  Would you like to see Clay as a guest on the show?