President's Message by Ginia Lucas

So much has been happening with NACE in the past few months that I haven't had time to get out a newsletter, but all of the excitement has given us some amazing events that I just have to tell you about!

In April we were in  Mesa at the Hilton Phoenix East/Mesa and had so much fun with our interactive event that we are excited to do it again next year! May took us to Scottsdale and desk organization at Troon North. The food was fabulous and the sunset worth the drive.

But the highlight of the past few months was the 3rd Annual Event Elements Competition and fundraiser. More on this below, but take a minute to look over all of the designs. What creative Event Specialists there are in Phoenix! We can easily compete with the rest of the nation.

And last but not least was NACE Family and Friends night at the Diamondbacks! We won the game, and were able to relax after all the hard work we have gone through recently.

I look forward to seeing everyone at the Scottsdale Cottonwoods on August 18th.

                                                                                                                             Ginia

Event Elements 2009~World Class Events

Eyes 2 See Photography Pictures of the Winners can be viewed at    http://www.phoenixnace.com/gallery.php?date=062209&dispdate=June 22, 2009

Video link of Event Elements Competition by Eyes to See Phoography http://www.eyes2see.com/Show/NACE/

        Event Elements just keeps getting better every year! In this, our 3rd annual Event Elements, the competition was fierce!

Truly amazing designs that were on all sides of the spectrum. Rio designs ranged from an elegant 'Rainforest Wedding' from Aleasha Shelton to Lucite, feathers and Bling from Jessica Sprouse of the Arizona Grand and Brady's elegant black and red design with mannequin's legs protrudiong from the table.

Both Pacific Events and Amina Michele from Some Like it Classic designed their Paris tableswith a moulin Rouge feel  while Heather Sloane did Elegant Chic in pink  backed by a 15 ft Eiffel tower from Quest Drape. Vivian From Environs Events took Best of show with her Paris table, complete with artists easels on the wall and an artist's palette for their table.

Cairo tables ran the gamut of eras with Tri-Rentals low cushion seating like a modern day Casbah, Merestone's elegant dinner in the ancient Egyption temple, Seville Country Club's tent covered Eye of Ra table and even an Indian Jones table complete with plenty of snakes and dynamite by  Y-Knot Party & Rentals.

The table designs from Tokyo had to be some of the most interesting. Tri- Rentals went traditional black and red with a  towering tree lit by  rice paper lanterns, while Kim McDowell from the Event Essentials designed a whimsical display that played on Tokyo Disney and the Mad Hatter's Tea Party. Encore Creative's first entry for Event Elements created a small enclosure like a Tokyo street cafe, while Brady's Floral Gallery had a towering centerpiece of bamboo and orchids. Of Course, People's Choice went to Cicely Roche-Miller of Life Design Event Planning and Rikki Hernansky, The Invitaition Lady with her Harajuku girl table full of bright colors.

In the cake division , Rio took the big awards. Lance Whipple of The Four Seasons Resort recieved the Best of Show for his inspired bright confection, and Barbara Gardner from Let Them Eat Cake took people's choice for her Lemon flavored design. Teeny Cakes had a traditional red iced cake with black oriental calligraphy and Tammie Coe Cakes had a simple elegant black fondant cake with origami cranes alighting on each level.

Tammie Coe also took first place in the Paris division for her multilayered confection. JW Marriott's Marie Antoinette Inspired cake vied with Windmill design from The Arizona Grand. the Windmill actually turned!

The chef from the Four Seasons displayed a cake with subtle tones and statues representing the huge Jesus that crowns rio, While the Phoenician's chef had a dancing Brazilian covering the front. One of the most interesting cakes was from the Cake Lady whose cake was the body on a stand that looked like a body The whole design looked like a person standing there!

Starr Heiliger from LaStarr Cakes in Ventura, California was our speajer for the evening, and since she knew this was our fundraiser, she donaed her time to come and help us out. Her speech on Confectionary trends brought many rounds of applause and even more ooohs and aaahs.

Special Thanks must go out to our Event Photographer, Stuart Thurkill from Eyes 2 See Photography and Candy Thornton from Easel photography for her photos during the dinner and awards ceremony and pictures from last years event graced our postcards and announcements.

The Arizona Grand Resort designed the whole menu around the four 'elements' and graciously hosted us for the evening. our AV couldn't have been done without Swank Audiovisuals, and Angie Van Daele from the Wedding Chronicle designed our postcards and programs.

More thanks go out to the following rental companies for their continued donations to NACE:

Kool Party Rentals, Tri-Rentals and Y-Knot Party & Rentals.

Thanks to everyone who made this another amazing event! See you all next year for another exceptional Event Elements!

Interactive Tabletops

In April, NACE Members gathered at The Hilton Phoenix East/Mesa for an interactive design brainstorming event.

Utilizing an idea direct from NACE Nationals, we set each table a random task to design an event around a specific word. After a 20 minute design session at each table, a spokesperson (or group) got up and presented the overall design to everyone.

What truly clever people our organization has! Such unique designs, presentations and ideas came from all of the groups that we have listed all of the themes on our website at:

http://www.phoenixnace.com/meetinginfo.php?id=49&date=2009-04-21&p_or_f=p

Click on any of the links to read the ideas and while you're there, take a look at the photo gallery for someof the great themed tables that were set for dinner. They were a great collaboration between the unusual and elegant rentals by Tri-Rentals and coordinating themed centerpieces and flowers by Y-Knot Party & Rentals.

Jimmy Davenport from Citron Sound added his own sense of style to the festivities, and a signature drink from www.drysoda.com was a delicious beginning to an exciting, educational and  fun-filled evening. 

Desk for Success! May NACE

Professional Speaker, Eileen Roth , author of Organizing for Dummies   showed us all how to orgai=nize our space and desks for maximum efficiency and minimum mess. “Desk for Success” gave us ideas on how you would  feel if our desks were clear when we walk into our offices?  Tto be less stressed, more productive, and save money,  take a look at your desktop.  Do you have items at your fingertips?  Do you have items that you rarely use taking up valuable space?  Do you have a bulletin board or cubicle wall with papers all over it that you need for reference?  In this workshop we learned: 1) WHAT to keep and what not to keep on your desktop, 2) How to utilize the REMOVE™ principle to decide WHERE to place items, AND 3) How to establish a Personal Reference Book for reference material you need frequently.

Eileen Roth is a productivity expert and her expertise stems from over 15 years in office administration.  She named her business Everything in its Place® because she truly believes that will make you more efficient which will in turn make you more productive.  She specializes in Office Organization, Time Management and Student Organization, speaking or consulting to corporations and schools as well as consulting with individuals and students to be better organized.  Eileen has appeared on Oprah and the Today Show, Event Solutions, Convention Forum, Self, Real Simple, Reader’s Digest, Women’s Day and Men’s Health.

Our tantalizing menu for the evening  was: Hors D’oeuvres – Assorted mini quiches, Melon wrapped prosciutto, and Spanakopita.  Salad – Mixed baby greens, roma tomatoes, hearts of palm, hothouse cucumber, sweet potato chips and sherry vinaigrette.  Entrée – Chicken Saltimbocca: breast of chicken with sage, proscuitto, and fontina cheese served with scallop potatoes.  Dessert – New York cheesecake with fresh berry coulis.

ARAMARK at ASU Tempe Campus (www.aramark.com) is looking for a Catering Sales Coordinator. The position is Full-time, Monday through Friday. Benefits are provided. Please contact Jim Emmons at emmons-jim@aramark.com if you are interested in learning more about the position.

Anthem Golf & Country Club (www.anthemclubaz.com) is seeking a Private Events Assistant. Accepting resumes only; please email resumes to anthemreservations@gmail.com.

Creations in Cuisine Catering (www.creationsincuisine.com) is seeking experienced Banquet Captains, Executive Sous Chef, Garde Manager Chef, Wait Staff, Bartenders, Cooks & Warehouse Assistants/Drivers. Please submit resume and experience to: accounting@creationsincuisine.com.

Y-Knot Party & Rentals is taking applications for this position through 9/15/10 in person only.  They are currently searching for a Sales/Setup person.  Preferred skills include basic computer skills, phone etiquette, banquet setup, and some design skills.  1127 W. Main ST, Mesa, AZ 85201 480-967-4495 talk to Ginia Lucas.