10th Annual Northern Arizona University Native American Golf

On September 18, 2010 Peak Events had the pleasure of producing the 10th Annual Northern Arizona University Native American Golf Tournament. This is such a fun event and this year, the weather was spectacular, allowing golfers to enjoy Flagstaff at its best. Continental Country Club was the venue for this event and with nearly 100 golfers; the event raised $5,000 for NAU Native American Scholarships.



This was the second year Peak Events produced the golf tournament for the NAU and we enjoyed meeting all the new players as well as reconnecting with golfers from last year. This year’s tournament experienced the same challenges that many golf tournaments have experienced in the last few years. We found that while sponsorship dollars were down, the player’s enthusiasm was up and they were willing to purchase more raffle tickets in an attempt to support the NAU Scholarship Fund.


One of the things that I’ve found interesting is the number of organizations that want to hold a golf tournament because they’ve heard that tournaments make a lot of money. They have and they can, however, before deciding to put on a golf tournament there are a few things you might consider.


1. Has anyone on your committee ever put on a tournament?
Many people think that golf tournaments are a quick and easy means to raise money. First, they take a lot of planning and a lot of time. Second, you must have sponsorships. In order for a golf tournament to be profitable, you must have sponsorships covering the tee prizes, the winning prizes as well as shirts and preferably food. Without sponsorships for all of these, you will at best break even.


2. Does anyone on your committee golf?
 I’m a golfer, as well as my husband. If I had to guess at the number of golf tournaments we’re asked to participate in, I’d say we could easily spend around $20,000 just in entry fees for the two of us. Look at your golfer base. If there aren’t a lot of golfers in your organization – how do you plan to get golfers to play in your tournament verses all the other tournaments they are invited to play? Golf tournaments are usually cause based and although I haven’t seen bad causes, everyone has to pick and chose where they can afford and if they have the time. As much as I’d love to support them all – in this economy, everyone is pairing down. Many golf tournaments were canceled this year or scaled back considerably because there are too few golfers to support too many tournaments.


3. Are you charging too much for the course and the type of food served?
I’ve seen some tournaments charge a stupidly high amount of money for a public course you can play any day of the week. I’ve also seen tournaments charge very low for a private course in hopes of getting more golfers. Sometimes this works, sometimes it backfires. I’d rather charge a little low and over deliver, than to charge too high and have people walk away feeling like they didn’t get their money’s worth. Golfers are picky. They will applaud and become quite loyal to a tournament they feel is loyal to them. They will turn if they feel they are being nickel and dimed or if they feel as though they are being taken advantage of in the name of fundraising.


4. Are you planning on having raffles?
Everyone loves to win, the more raffle prizes, the more raffle tickets sold. I’m torn on the silent auctions. I’ve seen them successful and then I’ve seen people put out the same old thing year after year expecting to make what they did the first year. If you’re building a loyal golfer base – give them variety. People will bid on new and exciting things, but if it’s the same old products, people will pass that up first. Silent Auctions need their own committee in my opinion. You need to be getting unique items that everyone wants to bid on.


I love golf and I enjoy tournaments (more so when I win), however, I am always cautious when groups think this will bring in big bucks year after year. A golf tournament takes a lot of time and a lot of relationship building in order to be successful. If you do decide to put on a tournament, make sure you have a lot of dedicated people working with you and remember, a tournament is only as good as the golfers are treated.


Debbi

First Annual WE Fest

On August 21, 2010, Peak Events had the honor of helping to produce a festival new to Flagstaff. 2010 marked the 35th Anniversary of Aspey, Watkins and Diesel Law Firm, and instead of throwing a party for top clients, they decided to give back to the community that has given them so much.

The First Annual WE Fest was a celebration of Flagstaff and the wonderful things that make living here so special. Held in downtown Flagstaff at Heritage Square and AWD’s building, the event was free to the public and offered food, music and great information about some of our local non-profits. Everyone who attended was given an opportunity to win a pair of customized bikes by taking a tour of the booths. Local Non-profits were invited to participate and educate the public on how they work hard to improve life in Flagstaff. Well priced food and sodas along with talented local musicians rounded out the beautiful summer afternoon.

Working on a corporate celebration is just plain fun. The WE Fest gave people in Flagstaff a chance to meet the attorneys at the firm, because they all participated and were selling sodas and walking around talking to everyone. I’m pretty sure the lawyers accounted for most of the gelato sold at the festival and it was fun to watch them work together putting on this festival for a community they obviously care deeply for.

With this economy, I know a lot of companies have downsized their staff and as a result their celebrations. But while the bottom line is always important, it’s also important for people to share in celebrations and build camaraderie. Watching the AWD group pitch in and haul ice, sell sodas and clean up the park, it dawned on me: AWD wasn’t just throwing a great community festival; they were enjoying each other’s company and in doing so, strengthened their own community of employees.


Peak Events had a great time working on this event and enjoyed all the people who came out and celebrated this landmark anniversary.

Event Day Vendors:

Venue: Heritage Square, Flagstaff

Event Planning: Peak Events

Event Design: KD Event Design

Photographer: Melissa Dunstan Photography

Floral: Glamorous Occasion's

Rentals/Tenting: Tri Rentals

Debbi

Baby Shower

So this past weekend we planned our cousin’s baby shower. Our Cousin Lisa lives in San Diego and is having her first and what she says her only child.

We started with a “theme” which basically went off of the amazing bedding from Target she picked out. She ended up going with one that had different colored pinks and browns that focused on tulips, it was adorable! So we went to About Memories and More to create some invitations. Kirsten was amazing and because mom and I aren’t so talented in the scrapbooking arena, we hired Kirsten to put together these amazing invitations.

After one short week, we picked them up and sent them out! We were so excited!!! People called to RSVP, telling us how much they loved the invitations. Then it was onto the actual planning of the event!

First we had to decide what food we were going to cook and serve at the event, what kinds of centerpieces we were going to put together, if we needed to rent any tables and chairs, what linens, favors, games, etc!

The week of the event we went grocery shopping here in Flagstaff (sales tax is cheaper than in California), started packing and loaded up the car. Now the baby shower was going to be held at my cousin’s amazing house and we ended up staying with her. The baby’s room is so cute; they have all the furniture in, replaced all the knobs with pink flowers, and put a mural on the wall! I’ve visited my cousin numerous times because to be honest she is more of a big sister than a cousin to me, however in all the times I visited her she never cooked for me, so we had no idea what kind of cooking tools she had.

So mom and I pack up the ice chest full of food, and then we start in on the kitchen supplies. We ended up taking knives, forks, serving dishes, etc. All because we had no idea what she had. My dad asks when we are loading up the car, “do you need the kitchen sink?” Very funny dad! We also load in two tables, vases (because Peak Events has them), pillows and of course clothes, lots of clothes.

Earlier that week, my friend Jessica came over to help me make a diaper cake for the event. Her little sister had a baby boy and Jessica made an amazing cake, so I asked for her help. We ended up using 72 diapers, a blanket, and more. 

So now that mom’s big expedition is loaded with baby shower stuff, we were off and running! Almost 8 hours in the car, was a lot! We stopped in Kingman at a random truck stop, where you could buy just about anything, including knives, car stuff, NFL mugs and jeans!  Then we entered California, I am driving and after Lake Havasu there is a check point. We start to approach and my mom says “Oh my god, they might take our lemons” I had to have given her the strangest look, mostly because I was so confused as to why California would want our Arizona lemons and the fact that if they did I was sure California had plenty of lemons. We pass through not a problem, of course, and I turn to my mom and say “WHEW we still have our lemons!” She wasn’t amused. Although we did laugh for quite some time! We decided to go through Barstow because silly us, we thought we needed to hit up the coach outlet store. The second we walked in we were pushed and shoved by all the people. We couldn’t get out of there fast enough. That totally turned us off to the rest of the outlet stores, and we ended up grabbing some food and gas and hitting the road. We continue on our way, through California Traffic and construction. We finally made it to our cousin’s house. It was so nice to see her – big belly and all! We unloaded the car and proceeded to have a drink and go to dinner. We ended up at this amazing Italian restaurant where we all ate WAY too much food.

The next day mom and I wake up early to finish preparing the food for the baby shower (if you don’t already know, my mother is an amazing cook). We mostly wanted to finish early because we wanted to go to the BEACH! Again, after all the times I’ve visited my cousin, not once have we gone to the beach. So we all load up into her cute little prius and hit Coronado! What an amazing place and can I just say I want to own a house right on the beach there! And I will do it, eventually. We walked along the beach taking pictures. 

 Then had a great lunch and margaritas. We had a few things we had to pick up at the store, so we ended up going to the store on the way home. None of us were hungry for dinner, so we just hung out that night.  Well actually we were talking about what things my cousin still needed, and she mentioned the car seat and stroller – in that same moment the door bell rang and they both had arrived! A little freaky. Well of course, we dove right into them both. They got the Orbit Baby – and can I just say WOW! This is a car seat and stroller in one and it rotates 360 degrees. We had the best time playing with it. 

 Saturday finally came and it was BABY SHOWER TIME! The shower started at 11 am, of course we forgot some things, and had to go to the store AGAIN. We finished all the food, and decorations.

We ended up doing the following for food… cucumber dip with pita chips, spinach dip in a bread bowl, grapes, strawberries, pasta salad, tuna salad, tri tip sandwiches, lemon bars and truffles. 

My cousin’s friend, Darci was in charge of the party favors. She did such a great job. She ended up painting individual pots, putting ribbon on them, and planting a flower inside them. Then she added a cute pink baby sucker to them all AND live lady bugs. Now she arrives with all the plants and then tells me we need to put these 1500 live lady bugs into these cute pink bags. HAHA – she didn’t account for the fact that they fly. 

Now, the baby shower was so much fun! We had no food left, which I guess is a good thing. And we went through so much booze, I was shocked! We had pink slushes that were a big hit, wine (red and white) , beer and champagne.

My cousin opened all her presents, she got some VERY cool stuff and I think is set for the first few months on just about everything.  Everyone had a great time, Lisa and Sean ended up getting some great stuff and managed to see some great family and friends before the big day – one month from the baby shower.

We ended up spending a quite night at the house, eating ice cream and feeling the baby moving around.

Unfortunately we had to leave Sunday morning and drive the almost 8 hours back home… my beautiful cousin will be having her baby girl in the next few weeks. We are so excited! I’ll be sure to post updates.

Lisa, we love you so very much. Thank you for letting us be a part of this amazing time in your life. We can’t wait to meet your new bundle of joy!

Jennifer

Honeymoon in Paris

The City of Lights is notoriously romantic and expensive. Here are tips for a dreamy Paris honeymoon that won't leave you broke.


Travel during the shoulder season. You can save 10 percent or more on lodging if you travel in April, May, November or December.


Skip the breakfast upgrade. Hotels' continental breakfasts can cost up to $30 a person per day, which is a waste. Adorable patisseries are on every corner, and $10 will get you a couple of pastries and two creamy cups of cafe au lait. Which means more money for dinner!


Take the Metro. Dont' worry about a rental car, best used in the countryside, not the city or expensive taxicabs. The Metro train is easy to navigate and has stops near all the popular monuments. Buy a pack of tickets, and each one-way ride will cost about $1.65.


Visit websites first. Once you've decided what you want to do, hit an Internet cafe; some attractions and tours offer discounted rates you'll find only online.


Get your free on. Some of Paris' prettiest sights don't cost a thing. Wander past the Champs-Elysees, Luxembourg Gardens or Eiffel Tower.


Enjoy your honeymoon!!!




(Courtesy of Destination Weddings and Honeymoons, April 2010 edition)

Summer Solstice Party

Oh my! The summer solstice party is a growing. I sat down with an initial list and had about 150 people on the list. Now, I’ve had parties this big in the past and although I’ve enjoyed them, I just didn’t know if I wanted this party to be one of those. So, I got it down to about 60 people and was feeling very pretty good until I started running into people and realized I’d forgotten a BUNCH of folks. So then I went back to the drawing board and we’re up to around 174 and I need to pare down AGAIN!



So, today I’m going to talk about whom do you cut and who do you leave on your invitation list! If I were to put it out there to all the people I know casually, professionally, family, and friends the numbers could hit astronomical numbers. But I can’t afford to have a party for that many people – at least not until my daughter gets married. So, where do you begin when you’ve got too many names and not enough dough?


First I write down all my dearest of friends. The ones who I enjoy being around and can’t live without. In all honesty – this number is only around 15. Then you add the friends you don’t see very often, but when you do see them you remember how much you enjoy them. Then you add in the friends that are a little more on the fringe, not because you don’t like them, but because life, work, things get in the way. Forget about all the “shoulds” you know, the ones who you work with, are in organizations together and are friends of friends. This is your party and it should reflect the kind of energy you want. So, with all of that – I’m at around 75. Good number. Not everyone will attend, but I bet I have around 50 who are there. And that’s a nice size party for my backyard and my budget.


Next week – I get to budget for my 50 friends I think will attend and I’ll talk invitations and themes.

Deb

Summer Solstice Party

Hi Everyone and welcome back to the blog. Here in Flagstaff, the sun was shining all weekend and the weather was nothing short of fantastic. I got to spend all day Saturday making my front yard presentable, clearing away the leaves and cleaning up trash that obviously came in on a wind gust and was trapped for months under our 12 feet of snow. Now that the snow is melting, and the front yard is fixed up, I can concentrate all my evenings and weekends on the backyard and getting everything ready for the Summer Solstice party.



The Annual Summer Solstice Party is by far my favorite party of the year. There is nothing that brings me greater joy than bringing together all my friends and family to enjoy perfect weather, great food and a good time.


This year’s Summer Solstice Party is going to be the best one to date. (okay, I say that every year – and every year I’m right!!!) It’s only April, so I do have some time and time is one thing a planner will consider a gift. I’ve got a few months to continue with the backyard and more than likely I’ll be “redecorating” right up to the moment people arrive. So, what am I doing a few months out? Here’s my list for this week:


1. Make guest list and design invitations. I haven’t decided if I want to mail them out, use facebook, use email or a combination. My first choice is to go to About Memories and More and let Kirstin help me design the perfect invite, spend a few evenings putting them together and then mailing them out. While this is my first pick, I don’t have everyone’s address and I don’t want them to think I’m only inviting them “after the fact”. So, I either have to get everyone’s addresses and thankfully there is enough time, or email everyone.


2. I’m trying to envision how I want the party to look. Now, I’d love to have fresh cut flowers everywhere, but my gardens won’t be producing “cut” flowers until August, and I’d rather invest in perennials than flower arrangements. Last year I had a total garden theme even using terra cotta planters to hold food. BTW – if you soak the terra cotta in ice cold water for an hour before serving it will help keep your food cold. But the lining of the pots was time consuming.


3. Next I’m thinking about the menu. I’ve already gotten requests for some of the appetizers and I know Satchmos BBQ is always a hit, so food I can wait until June to work on.


4. Seating – This is always a challenge with a party. If you make sure everyone can sit and enjoy their food, then you run the risk of everyone clumping into groups. I try to have seating vignettes throughout the yard and that way people can still mingle. I’ll have to visit the budget for this one.


5. Entertainment – do we all mingle which is always fun, and I try to have some great outdoor games available and set up, but do I want to go DJ and possibly have dancing? Again, I must check the budget and make sure it’s the feel for the event.


Well, these are just a few of the things I’m working on for the party – next time I’ll bring in more things to consider.


Take care and MAKE YOUR LIFE AN EVENT!!


Debbi

Spring in Flagstaff is Here

Happy Spring! The winds are howling, the temps are hovering in the 50s and the last thing anyone wants to do is go outside. However, I’ve been stuck inside for so long I’m willing to brave the 60 MPH winds and get back to life in the yard.
While writing this blog, I thought it might be fun to kick off the outdoor entertaining season. There is no place I’d rather entertain guests than in my backyard in the summer. The beautiful flowers, the green grass and all the trees seem to form the perfect outdoor room and I only have to add a few perks at the beginning of the summer and it’s ready at a moment’s notice.
Here I am talking about summer entertaining and it’s only April. In Flagstaff, we’ve had over 140 inches of snow and my backyard isn’t up to snuff, and so April is the month I spend getting it all put back together. I stepped out on the back deck this morning and began the making a list of what I need to do to get everything ready for May.
First up…. The decks need to be power washed and if needed stained. Now my lower deck will be fine with a good scrub, but my upper deck needs to be stained. It’s been a hard winter and last year’s stain didn’t hold up as well as I’d have liked. Once the decks are cleaned and polished, I can start pulling out the furniture. I always like to take hot soapy water and a sponge and wipe down all the tables and chairs – that way if a guest shows up and wants to sit down, a family of spider webs along the bottom of your chairs won’t be a worry. I also do a good scrub to the fabric cushions. They should all be outdoor fabrics and they can handle and usually need to be cleaned.
Once your deck and furniture is cleaned – it’s time to decorate! I like to start with lighting. I’ve done everything from tiki torches to outside twinkle lights to paper lanterns to candles. Try and look at your yard as a room and throw in some up lighting by the trees, hang lights from the tree branches and then treat your actual entertaining spaces as a living room. I’ve added overhead lighting, candlelight and mood lighting where appropriate. If you’ve got outdoor outlets plug in a lamp or two.
Now that the furniture and lighting is dialed in, it’s time for the accessories. I’m a huge fan of fabric. I’ve taken something as simple as a canvas drop cloth, painted it and then used it as swags on my upper deck, then gone in the opposite direction and swaged fabric from my pergola. The effect is dramatic and also defining. When people step outside, I like to set it up as an outdoor living space – I’ve got a dining space, a conversational area and then off the master bedroom, I usually place a chaise, complete with eyelet pillows and a throw for warmth. I like to move my indoor plants outside for the muted sunlight and suddenly the upper deck goes from blah to a warm and inviting place, ready for my girlfriends to come over for an afternoon of wine and relaxation.
Get your backyard in shape and then you can entertain at the drop of a dime. Always keep a nice bottle of wine on hand a few entertaining staples and if Mother’s day finds the celebration at your house, you can smile and welcome the celebration.

What's in your bag?

Kirsten with About Memories and More posted a blog about her purse and I decided since I'm not feeling very well today that I would play along. And its another excuse for a Blog I have been meaning to write.

Here is my purse, and its my mom's. I love her purses! I enjoy purses a lot, and I like expensive ones, but I save those for boyfriends (now all ex boyfriends) to buy them for me. Its an evil plan. I am currently in search of a dark purple purse, but no luck. Well that's not true, I need a purple purse under $30.

Basic things are in my purse. A notepad and paper - because it seems I am always running from meeting to meeting. I usually have my calendar too but that's on my desk to update for the week. I have lipstick even though I wear the chapstick more. Asprin because you just never know. Trident gum. Eye Drops. Kleenex. Nail File. Comb. Powder and a brush to apply it (I get shiny throughout the day). And my dooney and Bourke Wallet - I love it. It smells like leather everytime I open it. No cash - I never carry cash. Pretty simple.

What's in your bag?

Best of Flagstaff Blog

As some of our readers may know, Peak Events was won Best Event planner this year! The readers of the Arizona Daily Sun vote in different categories on who they feel are the best in their area. Peak Events came out on top for Event Planners! Needless to say, all three of us were beyond excited! We have the newspaper insert listing us as Best Event Planners, I just need to get it framed! Now, this is the first time we’ve won Best Event Planner, might be because this was the first time we heard they even HAD a category for Best Event Planners. Well along with getting mentioned in the newspaper, we got invited to a dinner where we would pick up our award. Again, very cool! So we got all dressed up and ready to go! We show up, pick a table, which I might add we had ALL to ourselves and was in the FRONT row! We got a glass of wine, picked up some food and waited. We waited as other people were called and politely clapped. Then we looked at each other and decided that Deb should be the one to accept the award because there really was no need for all three of us to go up there. Well just when we couldn’t wait anymore, our name was FINALLY called! Mom got up, Christina and I yelled and clapped really loud. We were all so proud of ourselves. After last year, we needed this big boost! She brought it back to our table and we all took turns looking at the pretty paper that said OUR NAME! We kept it safe on a chair away from any beverages. The night continued with more presentations and then it was onto giveaways! And who doesn’t like giveaways! Well Christina won $20 to La Fonda’s, mom won a free cigar and I won the best prize EVER! ¼ page COLOR ad in the daily sun!!!!







We left that night feeling pretty proud of ourselves! Now, we just need to get that darn piece of paper FRAMED!

Findlay Volkswagen Grand Opening

Hi All,



I was going to blog about Flagstaff Blues, Brews and BBQs, however, I don’t have enough things nailed down for it to be a truly worthwhile effort – therefore I’m going to talk about our Grand Opening for Findlay Volkswagen.


On January 29th, the Findlay Family welcomed Flagstaff to a Grand Opening showcasing their wonderful Volkswagen autos. It was a fun night with Big Willie and the Polkameisters playing great German songs while people mingled around the cars and ate some wonder appetizers by Jotini’s on the Green.


Volkswagen’s colors are Blue and White and so we chose blue tablecloths on both the high tops and the tables set for people to sit and relax. Findlay Volkswagen played the perfect hosts with Robby and Sandy Findlay welcoming guests and participating in the Chicken Dance to the delight of the crowd.


To all that attended –thank you. For all that missed this fun evening stop by the showroom and test drive a Volkswagen.


Next time I should have more on Blues, Brews and BBQs.

Deb