As an event photographer, we have found NACE, the National Association of Catering & Events, to be a really great organization that has been a home to us for years now. It brings together all kinds of local event vendors to network and inspire and support each other. Various Front Room folk have held a variety of positions within the group and it’s never been short of incredibly rewarding. We are honored to be counted among these local artisans. They actually turned around and honored us by giving us the Spirit of NACE award at the last gala for all that we do to support the organization. That was special.
Now the new NACE season has begun and with that comes monthly meetings with a whole range of programming. It’s hard to believe we are already through the first quarter of the year! As an official event photographer for the group, we are excited to share with you some of the imagery and insights that have come from those meetings. There have already been a host of informative speakers and we still have so much of the year to go! Each meeting features some chapter members addressing the gathering as well as a featured speaker.
January Meeting
- Host: Marriott Downtown
- Floral: Bank of Flowers
- Chairs, tables, linens: Marriott Downtown
Tiara from Events to a T was the member spotlight for the evening. The featured speaker was Dave Larson, who has been the Director of Convention Services at VISIT Milwaukee for over 10 years. In his tenure, he and his team has worked with over 2500 events with over 4 million attendees. Notable events include National Governor’s Association, Connect Marketplace, USA Triathlon, and Harley-Davidson anniversary events. Dave is proud of his work to further the hospitality industry through his work at ESPA and Destinations International.
February Meeting
- Venue: Fiserv Forum
- Catering, chairs, tables, AV, centerpieces: Levy Restaurants
- Linens: Windy City Linen
Member spotlights at this meeting featured Levy Restaurants and Fiserv Forum as the hosts and Meredith from Blue Fancy. The featured speaker was Rachel Sheerin. Rachel is a national speaker, trainer, and sales coach. She runs a coaching firm for passionate professionals in the hospitality industry and creative women entrepreneurs who want to increase their sales, position, position their businesses for success, grow in confidence and focus on their passion. Rachel delivers inspiring keynote talks, engaging team workshops and provides one-on-one training packages that dive deep into topics such as business plan development, ideal client targeting, sales strategies, referral programs, trade show services and more. (And she’s hilarious!!)
March Meeting
- Venue: Arena Americas
- Caterer: Pineapple Cafe and Mexican Grill
- A/V: Majic
- Rentals: Cort Furniture Rental
April Meeting
- Venue: Venue 42
- Catering/Bar: F Street Hospitality
- A/V: Venue 42
- Floral: Alfa Floral and Wedding Shop
- Linens: Windy City Linen
As the hosting member, the member spotlight was Venue 42/F Street Hospitality. The featured speaker was Janet Zaretsky. Janet is a master professional coach, author, and speaker that helps people unleash their brilliance, confidence and visibility in the world. Janet has worked with over 32,000 people in the past 22+ years
A powerful advocate for ending the gender gap, both in pay and influence, her work with women has led her to be a frequent contributor to Forbes and the author of “Where’d My Confidence Go… and How Do I Get It Back?”. Known as The BS-to-Brilliance Master, has a gift for having you unapologetically and confidently express yourself – and succeed! – as the unique and powerful professional you are. She is a two-time TEDX and Keynote Speaker, a corporate trainer and expert in communication and leadership, an International Coach Federation member, Enhanced Conversational Intelligence Coach, Certified in Behavioral Style Instruments, a graduate of Coach U, and a former senior program leader for Landmark Worldwide.
You can find more information at www.janetzaretsky.com.
To see more of our work as an event photographer, please check out our portfolio.