When people think of February they most often think of it as the month of “Love.” My head automatically starts singing the good old Beatle’s classic “All You Need is Love”
Love, love, love
Love, love, love
Love, love, love
I also think back to simpler times with construction covered shoe boxes that were turned into “mail boxes” where you waited anxiously for cut out hearts and cupids saying “Be Mine.”
There are a lot of other holidays during the month of February. There are ten month long celebrations, including Canned Food Month. There are also 54 daily celebrations during the month. Some days have up to three “holidays” to celebrate. Some of my favorites are:
Thank a Mailman Day 4th
Lame Duck Day 6th
Umbrella Day 10th
Do a Grouch a Favor Day 16th
Hoodie Hoo Day 20th
International Dog Biscuit Day 23rd
National Tortilla Chip Day 24th
No Brainer Day 27th
But I have decided that my holiday of choice this month is going to be celebrated on February 11th. It is “Don’t cry Over Spilled Milk Day!” This holiday is to recognize that everyone spills a little milk now and then. It's a day to be optimistic, think positive, look on the bright side, and to find something good in everything that happens. As the song says: Don't Worry, be Happy! Today is a day to recognize that stuff happens. And, when it does, don't worry, or fret, or cry over it. Rather, take a positive attitude and fix it, or get past it. We all know the concept of the question: Is the glass half full or half empty? The pessimist sees it as half empty. The optimist sees it as half full. It's all an attitude towards life. So you have two challenges: on 2-11-12 plan to have an optimistic attitude and a smile on your face; but your “real” challenge is to keep this positive attitude everyday of the year. Here’s smiling at you kid!

Susan A. Hornsby | Account Manager
Classic Party Rentals
600 Phillip Davis Drive
Charlotte, NC 28217
o: 704.523.9300 | f: 704.523.9355 | c: 704.201.9470
shornsby@classicpartyrentals.com | www.classicpartyrentals.com

We're excited to announce the 2012 Fundraiser! It's going to be 'A Party in The Box'!
Let me explain....
Basically we are going to sell raffle tickets to anyone and everyone to win a party for 50 people. This party will offer incredible vendors, products and services that are all FREE! The great concept behind this fundraiser is that ANYONE ANYWHERE can purchase tickets and win the prize. Teachers, co-workers, your doctor, stay at home mommy friends, your church friends, your parents and family, your yoga instructor, your neighbors.......anyone! The 'party' will have a few exclusions to respect those of us in the wedding/events industry so that the winner doesn't have their party on a busy June Saturday night.
Want free advertising? We are looking to finish our list of donors for this party. The raffle will last the entire year and we'll announce the winner early 2013. To those that donate to the 'box', you'll receive basically free advertising for all of this year. Your logo will appear on the official Party in a Box website, all marketing materials, the Charlotte Chapter NACE site, Twitter, FB, just to name a few.
Things to remember:
**this is a party for only 50 people (so if you donate you will have an idea of the cost involved)
**you can donate services and product from your own company or self
**if you have a company/industry that can't provide tangible services, you can give coupons for other prizes...example: "a $250 donation towards a photobooth" or "a gift certificate to a local spa"
**ANYONE can donate: we are offering donor spots to NACE members first; then we'll go outside of NACE for donations.....again, you don't have to be in the 'industry' to donate either. If some random business wants exposure, we can find a way for them to donate (perhaps your chiropractor wants some advertising this year.....we'll be creative in finding a donation for them!)
If interested, please contact Heather Bryson of Carolina Wedding Design ASAP. 704-502-3866 or heather@carolinaweddingdesign.com
We are very excited about this new NACE Fundraiser and are very hopeful this new concept will raise LOTS of money for our local NACE Chapter, allowing us to really expand the content of the monthly meetings and offer more National Speakers and trips to our yearly forum. Furthermore, by getting the NACE name out there, it will create more education and repsect by our future clients and more brides will look for the NACE members when selecting their wedding and event vendors. We need to teach them that NACE offers the BEST professionals and is an organization that's highly respected.
And yes, as a NACE member and/or donor YOU TOO can win the Party in a Box!
I hope to hear from you soon!
Heather Bryson
Fundraising Chair 2012

The Charlotte chapter currently has 77 members.
Please welcome Jillian Shue from Total Event Productions and Maddie Phillips who will be replacing Laura Egan at The Marriott. Stay tuned for news on the spring membership drive. I will share that information as soon as it becomes available.

Thank you!  

Gail Buff 

Cheesecake Etc.
1635 Galloway Rd.
Charlotte, NC 28262
704-509-2020

www.cheesecakeetc.biz

NACE Membership Benefits
with
Carolina Bride Magazine

As a NACE member you will receive 50% off the annual, standard advertising
rate when 4-6 members participate in a full-page, group ad in CBM!*

How does this benefit your business?
• NACE group presence lowers individual ad cost
• Added exposure for your business as a professional who supports NACE
• Additional marketing benefits with Carolina Bride magazine include:
~Monthly bridal lead list
~A listing and link on CarolinaBride.com
~A listing in the Carolina Bride directory index
~Distribution of your ad at area bridal shows
~Ad design services

Easy steps to how this works:
• Decide commitment level among peers.
• Contact Amy with “the” plan
• Amy works with individual businesses to collect contracts, advertising materials and payment
• Deadline for contracts, ad materials and payment is February 27, 2012 for the April/June 2012 issue

NACE - Group Advertising Options
Option #1, Shared Vendor Ad:
• 1 - Full-Page, full color advertisement of 6, 1/6 of page ads
• Dimension of the 1/6 ad layout is 2.367 in x 4.837 in vertical (see media kit for layout display sample)
• Advertisement cost is $325 per issue to commit to a 4x agreement
• Ad would be run-of-the-book (placement not guaranteed)
• 6 vendors must participate
• Ad materials, first issue payment and contracts due February 27, 2012
• Added Value with this package:
o A listing and a website link on www.carolinabride.com
o Index listing in Carolina Bride magazine
o A monthly “Bride Lead List”
o Complimentary copies of each new issue for your customers
o Distribution of your ad at the August 2012 Bridal Showcase held at the Charlotte Convention Center
o Complimentary ad design services (2 proof max)

Option #2, Shared Vendor Ad:
• 1 - Full-Page, full color advertisement of 4, ¼ of page ads.
• Dimension of the ¼ ad layout is 3.65 in x 4.837 in (see media kit for layout display sample)
• Advertisement cost is $480 per issue to commit to a 4x agreement
• Ad would be run-of-the-book (placement not guaranteed)
• 4 vendors must participate
• Ad materials, first issue payment and contracts due February 27, 2012
• Added Value with this package:
o A listing and a website link on www.carolinabride.com
o Index listing in Carolina Bride magazine
o A monthly “Bride Lead List”
o Complimentary copies of each new issue for your customers
o Distribution of your ad at the August 2012 Bridal Showcase held at the Charlotte Convention Center
o Complimentary ad design services (2 proof max)

*One-time offer.

FS Food Group Employment Opportunity
“Come Join Our Team”
An exciting opportunity exists at one of Charlotte's premier catering companies. FS Food Group and Plate Perfect Catering seek a qualified catering sales representative. Our concepts include; Mama Ricotta's, Cantina 1511, Paco's Tacos & Tequila, Bad Daddy's Burger Bar and Midwood Smokehouse. For more than a decade, Plate Perfect Catering has been making events memorable with fresh foods, innovative presentations and unsurpassed service.
Most desirable candidates must have 3-5 years experience in catering sales, be proficient in; Caterease, MS Office Word, Excel & Outlook, detail oriented & available to work nights and weekends. Prior work experience in the hospitality field, specifically in the catering or event industry is preferred.
Interested applicants should email their resume to bsmollett@fsfoodgroup.com

Compensation: $60,000-$100,000/year + Benefits, based on experience

Social Director Ad

Carmel Country Club has an exciting career opportunity for a Social Director. Carmel has earned recognition as a Five Star Private Club and was named the number 13 private club in America by Club Leaders Forum. We take great pride in our wonderful facility and the memorable experiences we create for our membership everyday. In this critical role the Social Director promotes the club’s dining facilities for private banquets, business and social meetings and other member related activities. The Social Director is actively involved in the operations of all events, as well as being present for events, providing leadership and support to the Banquet Department and clearly has a direct impact on our member satisfaction levels.

In this highly visible role excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to build long lasting relationships are essential. Responsibilities include promoting, advertising and marketing the club’s social facilities, and capabilities to all members; helping members to arrange banquets, luncheons, meetings, weddings, dances and other social events; planning guest events; working closely with the Executive Chef to determine selling prices, menus and other details for catered events; provides necessary information to and coordinates event planning with production, serving and housekeeping staffs; arranges for printing of menus, procuring decorations, entertainment and other special requests; maintains past and potential client files, schedules calls or visits to assess ongoing needs of prospective clients for catering services; involved in the development of catering budgets and responsible for achieving budgetary goals; manages banquet billing and client correspondence; stays abreast of the competition and leads a small team to achieve stellar results. The Social Director position is a high volume event planning position with catering sales that exceed $1.6 million in revenue.

We require a minimum of 5 years experience in event planning and previous experience in the country club industry or hotel industry is preferred. This key position requires excellent sales skills, the capacity to connect with members and vendors, impeccable organizational skills, a creative flair and eye for detail; the ability to adapt quickly to change, and a strong desire to provide our members with top notch events and exceptional service on a consistent basis. A four year degree is required. We offer a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits. Please visit our website at www.carmelcountryclub.org/ to see our Clubhouse and various meeting rooms.

For consideration please submit your resume and salary requirements to recruiter@carmelcountryclub.org

FS Food Group Employment Opportunity

“Come Join Our Team”

An exciting opportunity exists at one of Charlotte's premier catering companies. FS Food Group and Plate Perfect Catering seek a qualified catering sales representative. Our concepts include; Mama Ricotta's, Cantina 1511, Paco's Tacos & Tequila, Bad Daddy's Burger Bar and Midwood Smokehouse. For more than a decade, Plate Perfect Catering has been making events memorable with fresh foods, innovative presentations and unsurpassed service.

Most desirable candidates must have 3-5 years experience in catering sales, be proficient in; Caterease, MS Office Word, Excel & Outlook, detail oriented & available to work nights and weekends. Prior work experience in the hospitality field, specifically in the catering or event industry is preferred.

Interested applicants should email their resume to bsmollett@fsfoodgroup.com

Compensation: $60,000-$100,000/year + Benefits, based on experience