My journey started in 1984 when I moved to Hawaii from Edwards Air Force Base, California (yes, smack in the middle of the Mojave dessert) and got my first  job as a secretary at the Plaza Hotel by the airport in Sales & Catering.    Previously I worked as a clerk stenographer in Civil Service for a project office, so the change to living in Paradise and working in the hospitality industry was an exciting one.      I worked at this property for a year and then moved down the road to the Holiday Inn Airport in the same capacity, but I had the opportunity to handle all of the catering events and many of my clients following me and I achieved a 32% growth in business within a year.

I will never forget the General Manager when I worked at the Holiday Inn Airport……we sat in an employee meeting and he told them “you are all professionals, and that is why you are here.   You know what you need to do to get the job done and I trust that you will do what it takes to take care of our guests.  If you need to comp a dessert because a guests meal was delayed, you don’t need to go find a manager to approve it, you have the authority to do so.”      This property used to run 120% occupancy (yes, they could turn over rooms 2-3 times with delayed flights) because the staff all worked together as a team.   Front desk clerks used to help housekeeping clean rooms, we used to help bag luggage, if there were 200 guests walking in the restaurant in 20 minutes, we all went to help.      The most important lesson I learned from working at this property was to empower your staff, for if you allow them the opportunity to make decisions on their own, they will appreciate the trust that you have given them and will confidently be able to take care of our valued clients.

After a hotel management change which got rid of 80% of the existing staff, although I was chosen to stay on, I ended up moving to the Holiday Inn Waikiki two weeks later and started off as a Front Desk Clerk and moved up to Assistant Hotel Manager.    I had never worked front desk before, but because I had taken the time to learn the Holidex reservation system when I worked at the airport Holiday Inn, they gave me a chance.       This is one of the reasons why I always stress to learn what you can, when you can, because it will always help you.   Working as an Assistant Hotel Manager you learn how to respond quickly to situations, trouble shoot and listening skills, which are all important qualities of a wedding planner.

At this point in my career I was pregnant with my son and the graveyard shift hours did not agree with my pregnancy and also having my 2-year old daughter at home, so I ended up leaving the hotel and took a few months off.      Now with two kids at home and needing a regular Monday through Friday job, I started working at the Sheraton Princess Kaiulani Hotel in the Sales department where I also had the opportunity to assist with inputting group reservations, preparing group rundowns, conducting site inspections for familiarization tours, learned about marketing strategies from one of the best Director of Sales in the industry and continued educating myself by attending any and all classes that were offered.

I moved on to the Royal Hawaiian Hotel and started as the administrative assistant to the Controller and Food and Beverage Director.  Not one to just xerox a bunch of papers without knowing why, this is where I learned about profit and loss statements, labor costs, budgeting, and worked with all of the restaurant outlets as well as the chefs.       I was fortunate that both of my bosses gave me the latitude to work on projects on my own with very little guidance.   As my desk was positioned in the Executive Office, I also was exposed to all levels of VIPs whether it be hotel guests or our own corporate officers.

Throughout the years at The Royal Hawaiian, my position changed to working only for the Food and Beverage department and then I was combined with Catering.  Once I got the taste of catering, this is when I finally knew what I wanted to do.    I loved everything about it, the menu planning, creating floor plans, seeing the details evolve, the beautiful decort, and helping guests create memories for a lifetime.       At the time I didn’t foresee the Director of Catering or Catering Manager leaving anytime soon, so when I heard about The Kahala Mandarin Oriental, Hawaii opening up, I contacted a sales manager that was there that I had previously worked with at the Princess Kaiulani (another lesson:  always keep your contacts!).

The Kahala Mandarin Oriental, Hawaii  had already established their catering team, but they were looking for a Food and Beverage Administrative Assistant, so I went to apply wearing a hard hat as they were still under construction.      Although I would actually be taking a significant pay cut to take the position, I took a chance as it was an opportunity to open a resort property and as they would be marketing the property, I would be able to assist with their food and wine events.   This by far was one of the best career moves of my life…..

I started in the Food and Beverage department and was part of the crazy opening team (if you’ve ever opened a hotel before you will understand how intense this can be).    I then moved to Catering manager (after my second try), then was promoted to Director of Weddings where I helped to develop the market from 200+ weddings a year to over 800 when I left in 2006.  I then applied for the Director of Catering position but was advised I didn’t have enough experience and knowledge yet, so I worked with the training director and created a plan to go back to school and work towards the Certified Professional Catering Executive (CPCE) certification which covers all aspects of catering (both on premise and off) which would gain the knowledge while I continued to get more experience.    It took me three years to earn enough points (which included years of experience, education and actively being involved in catering and event associations) and I successfully passed the exam in 2002.

The next time the Director of Catering/Conference Services position opened up, I got the position which is only because of getting my CPCE certification.    As continued education is important, I also went on to obtain my Certified Meeting Planner (CMP) certification in 2005 which is on the Convention Management side of the event world.

I truly loved working at Kahala and for Mandarin Oriental, which truly exemplifies high standards and service.    It was a second home for a long time (I was there 10 years) so it was heartbreaking to hear that they would no longer manage the property after it was sold to private investors, and as the new management company had different philosophies, I decided to leave and start my own wedding and event planning company.

It is hard to believe that it has already been 4 1/2 years since Hawaii Weddings and Events was born.    I never would have imagined owning my own company, but every position that I have held throughout the years helps me in what I do now.     As a small business owner, you not only wear the hat of wedding planner, but you are also the accountant, salesperson, public relations, administrative support and when you fully understand both the front and back-of-the house operations you become a valuable resource to the hotels as well as clients.

So what are the qualities that I look for?     First of all it is passion, no matter what you decide to do in life, you need to enjoy what you are doing.  Wedding planning is a lot of long hours and dedication (more hours than everyone realizes), but it is also very rewarding to be a part of someones’ special day.   I also look at education, experience, willingness to learn, common sense and true desire.  I am willing to “make” the time to mentor those that truly has a genuine interest in our industry, and that is why we offer non-paid internships with our company which allows you to gain valuable “hands on” experience.

To have a business that you love and be acknowledged by one of my event idols, Steve Kemble, otherwise known as “America’s Sassiest Lifestyle Guru” with the Best Catered Wedding Event of the Year, Budget under $25K (our portion of budget, not total cost of event) at the recent National Association of Catering Executives (NACE) Experience Conference in Austin, TX was icing on the cake.

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Marriage License Applications:

Marriage license applications are available in a “fillable” Adobe Acrobat portable document format (PDF) which may be downloaded from their website http://hawaii.gov/health/vital-records/pdf/marriagelicense.pdf

Where to Apply for a Marriage License

In Honolulu – Room 101 (1st floor) of the Health Department Building, 1250 Punchbowl St. (corner of Beretania and Punchbowl Streets).  Monday through Friday (excluding holidays and furlough days), 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.  (currently $60 CASH and also bring quarters for the parking meter (yes, they do check it!)

For those of you that may just not be able to make it during their hours, you may call (808) 586-4544 to get the names, addresses and telephone numbers of marriage agents in rural and suburban areas.

Please easy reference, the Department of Health will be closed:

• Friday, July 16, 2010
• Friday, July 23, 2010
• Friday, August 6, 2010
• Friday August 20, 2010
• Friday, August 27, 2010
• Monday, September 5, 2010
• Friday, September 17, 2010
• Friday, September 24, 2010
• Friday, October 8, 2010
• Friday, October 29, 2010
• Tuesday, November 2, 2010
• Thursday, November 11, 2010
• Friday, November 19, 2010
• Thursday, November 25, 2010
• Friday, November 26, 2010
• Friday, December 10, 2010
• Friday, December 17, 2010
• Friday, December 24, 2010
• Friday, December 31, 2010
• Friday, January 14, 2011
• Monday, January 17, 2011
• Friday, January 28, 2011
• Friday, February 4, 2011
• Friday, February 18, 2011
• Monday, February 21, 2011
• Friday, March 11, 2011
• Friday, March 18, 2011
• Friday, March 25, 2011
• Friday, April 1, 2011
• Friday, April 22, 2011
• Friday, April 29, 2011
• Friday, May 6, 2011
• Friday, May 20, 2011
• Monday, May 30, 2011
• Friday, June 10, 2011
• Friday, June 17, 2011
• Friday, June 24, 2011

*The above schedule based on information posted on their website as of today’s date.   We are not responsible for schedule changes, please be sure to double check with the Hawaii State Department of Health when making your travel plans.

Additional information may be found on the Hawaii State Department of Health’s website http://hawaii.gov/health/vital-records/vital-records/marriage/index.html

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For many, it is also a day that they are deciding whether or not to honor the memory of parents, grandparents or other close relatives who have passed away.    Contrary to some couple’s beliefs that it may damper the mood, from experiencing thousands of weddings, we’ve found that honoring their memory actually has had a very uplifting effect as they felt their “presence” during their special day.

There are many different ways of honoring their memory and keeping them close to your heart on your wedding day, these are just but a few ideas:

• A locket with your loved ones picture may be attached to your bouquet.
• Cuff links with pictures may be worn by the groom.
• Memory candles with their names may be displayed along with a personal note such as “Keeping you in our thoughts on our wedding day, until we meet again…..”
• Reserving a seat (or seats) at the ceremony and placing  a lei.   This may be preset in advance, or may also be incorporated into your ceremony by either having the groom place on the chairs right after walking in or having the spouse or son/daughter of the loved one carry in the lei and place on the chair after they walk down the aisle.
• Ringing a bell during the ceremony and taking a moment of silence to recognize the loved one and give all those in attendance a moment to also remember one of their loved ones.
• Placing photos of those to be honored in a visible place in the ceremony is another way to recognize those who are no longer with you
• Including their names in your wedding program
• Another sweet way to remember your family is to use something that has been used for generations or has been handed down to you.  Perhaps you can wear your grandmother’s string of pearls or use your mother’s wedding cake topper, or mother-in-law’s sterling cake cutter for the cake cutting ceremony

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Sounds very simple doesn’t it?   Did you know that last minute guest count changes are a constant source of stress for our wedding couples?

How important is it for you to R.S.V.P.  in a timely manner?     The answer is VERY IMPORTANT!

These are but just a few examples of why your R.S.V.P. is so important and the effects of not responding or not attending after providing your response.

• If the couple was gracious enough to invite you to their very special day, you should have the courtesy of responding to them by their response date defined on their invitation, even if it is to say that you regret you are unable to attend.
• Your attendance impacts the amount of food and beverage that needs to be prepared as well as how many guest tables that may be required for seating which in turn affects their floor plan and their seating assignments.
• Be considerate and ONLY R.S.V.P. for the number of guests that have been allocated on your response card (sample picture from DK Designs shown).   It is rude to bring extra guests and expect the couple to pay for them.
• The couple has to finalize their flower orders not later than 3 weeks prior to the wedding day, which means they need to know how many centerpieces they need.
• For off-premise locations, every item that is at the location is brought in, so when the guest count changes, so does the number of chairs that has to be ordered, the amount of chinaware, glassware, flatware, chairs, napkins and if there is a significant change it can also affect the number of tables, linens and/or tent size.
• Many couples also prepare personalized printed materials such as programs, place cards, menus, enlarged seating diagrams, etc. which is is a very thoughtful, but also very time consuming so they are finishing these the month before the wedding.
• Please be sure to only R.S.V.P. if you are actually planning to attend the event.      Did you know that a no-show for just one couple could easily cost the couple between $200-$250 (cost of meals, chairs, flatware, china, glassware, printed materials, flowers for napkins, etc)?

So the next time you are invited to an event, please consider the above and put yourselves in the hosts’ shoes.   Would you like to deal with all of the last minute changes?  Would you like to waste $250?

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To date we have made donations to:

• The National Kidney Foundation
• Autism Society
• National Tourettes Syndrome

For new bookings made in in the month June, our donations will be made to the American Cancer Society. Recently one of our vendors lost his sister and another lost his father-in-law to the disease and we would like to honor their families and the memory of their loved ones.

• For My Peace of Mind – You save $50 and we donate $50
• Lanikuhonua Package – You save $50 and we donate $50
• Lokahi Package – You save $100 and we donate $100

All packages are listed on our website http://www.hawaiiweddingsandevents.com/wedding_services.htm

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BLACK – General events * RED – SUNSET Events * BLUE – Waikiki Shell events * MAGENTA –Park Events

HOLIDAYS

11^st King Kamehameha I Day (Friday)

WAIKIKI SHELL FACILITY

TBA

KAPIOLANI PARK ACTIVITIES

TBA

SUNSET ON THE BEACH ACTIVITIES

TBA

PARADES AND STREET CLOSURES

June 5, 2010 Saturday
10:00AM Starts
12Noon Ends

HONOLULU GAY Pride Parade sponsored by Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG).  The event is expected to have 20 marchers, 2 floats, 10 vehicles, & 1 band. It will start at Ala Moana Beach Park (Kkhd entrance), to Ala Moana Blvd., to Kalakaua Ave., to Monsarrat Ave.,  to end at Queen Kapiolani Park. Contact:  Carolyn Golojuch 672-9050, Fax:  672-6347.

June 6, 2010  Sunday
6:00AM Starts
9:00AM Ends

HIBISCUS HALF MARATHON sponsored by The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.  The event is to have 800 runners.  It will start at Kapiolani Park, to Kalakaua Ave., to MonsarratAve., to Paki Ave., to Diamond Hd. Rd., to 18th Ave., to Kilauea Ave., to Waialae Ave., to Kalanianaole Hwy., to Kealaolu Ave., to Kahala Ave., to DiamondHd. Rd., to Kalakaua Ave., to end at Honolulu Marathon Finish line. Contact:Raul Torres of Boca Hawaii LLC 223-2622.

June 11, 2010 – Friday
7:00PM Starts
11:00PM

Street closure time be confirmed, but usually it commences from about 4pm

PAN PACIFIC FESTIVAL http://www.pan-pacific-festival.com/

***June 12, 2010 Saturday
9:30AM Starts
2:00PM Ends

KING KAMEHAMEHA CELEBRATION FLORAL PARADE sponsored by King Kamehameha Celebration Commission. The event is expected to have  6,000 marchers, 50 vehicles, 10 floats & 8 bands.  It will start at  Ft. DeRussey, to Kalakaua Ave., to Ala Moana Blvd., to Punchbowl St., to King St.,to end at Iolani Palace King St./Richards St., Contact: Niniau Simmons 586-0333.

June 13, 2010 Sunday
5:00PM Starts
8:00PM Ends

Pan-Pacific MATSURI Waikiki PARADE sponsored by Kintetsu USA International Express. The event is expected to have  2,000 marchers, 19 vehicles, 3 floats & 4 bands.  It will start at Kalakaua Ave. at Saratoga Rd./Fort DeRussy, to Kalakaua Ave., to end at Queen Kapiolani Park.   Contact:  Yasuyuki Ishizuka 926-8177 x 279.

June 19, 2010 Saturday
9:00AM Starts
11:00AM Ends

HONOLULU GAY Pride Parade sponsored by Honolulu Pride Festival Foundation.  The event is expected to have 300 marchers, 18 vehicles & 1 band. It will start at Ala Moana Beach Park (Kkhd entrance), to Ala Moana Blvd., to Kalakaua Ave., to Monsarrat Ave.,  to end at Queen Kapiolani Park. Contact:  Pat Miller 861-3888, Fax: 680-7817.

***June 20, 2010 Sunday
7:00AM Starts
9:00AM Ends

ALOHA STATE GAMES 10K RUN sponsored by Aloha State Games. The event is expected to have 200 runners. It will start at Queen Kapiolani Park, to Kalakaua Ave., to Diamond Head Rd., to 22nd Ave., to Kilauea Ave., to Elepaio St., to Kahala Ave., to Diamond Head Rd., to end at Kalakaua Ave. Honolulu Marathon Finish Line.  Note:  Entire route on sidewalk/shoulder area except street crossings.  Contact:  Joan Davis 535-9070.

***The following is an event held outside of Waikiki but will impact traffic greatly due to street closures.

Please be aware of these closures and inform your staff and guests.

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No matter what you do in life, you should be respectful of another person’s time.      I had the opportunity to hang out after our National Association of Catering Executives (NACE) meeting the other evening with some event professionals and one of the topics of  our discussion was how much time was wasted due to clients’ arriving late or worse yet, not at all.

Many don’t realize that in addition to 60 minute meeting time that we are allocating for you, we also have travel time to get to the location (which in my case ranges from 30-45 minutes) and as we arrive early to ensure we are on time, that’s easily another 15 minutes, plus the drive back.     So a one hour meeting time, in truth is taking between 2 hours and 15 minutes to 2 hours and 45 minutes of time out of our day.  Many clients associate delayed responses with “island time”  but our ability to get back to you in a timely manner (other than when we have events of course) is adversely impacted by each meeting that starts late.

I’ve also had a few clients that were purposely going to start their ceremony late.     There are several reasons why you should always start your ceremony on time.  First of all, you should respect the time of those guests that did arrive on time to attend your special day.    Secondly, often times ministers do have another wedding to attend to and they schedule their time based on your ceremony start time.    As a coordinator, i know from experience that starting on time sets the pace for the entire day, if you start on time, the day is relaxed, it is when things are running late that the stress factor sets in.

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“Live a balanced life – learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.” – Robert Fulghum

Those that know me well know that I pretty much work every day, which could be considered a workaholic to many, but I really don’t see it that way.     I started Hawaii Weddings and Events a little over four years ago and I could not imagine going back to the structured environment of the corporate world.   Although as a small business owner  I have many hats (sales, marketing, controller, public relations, logistics, troubleshooter, event manager, etc.)  I still do work hard, but I have so much more flexibility in my life and am able to have more balance between my personal and business life.  Although I still put in long hours just as that is the nature of my business,  it is wrapped around doing things that I want and love to do, which in turn makes me more productive and happier.

For the first time in my life, I am able to plan trips when I want to go versus when I am “allowed” to go.   With modern technology, I am blessed to be able to work from a home based business which allows me to take a break to walk the dogs, go the movies at the spur of the moment with my daughter, do my shopping during the “off peak” times of the day (which is a huge time saver), meet clients in a mutually convenient location and I even was able to meet clients in the Bay area while getting my son settled in at college.    Another benefit is to my clients, as I am able to keep my pricing fair and reasonable as  I don’t have to pay for office space which is a fee that is built into others pricing.

So how do you live a balanced life?     It actually does take work, as it is very easy to get caught up with work (or wedding planning) and forget about everything else.  I enjoy reading motivational quotes and one of my favorite blogs is Zen Habits as it is a constant reminder of what is important in life.  A great article is on  http://zenhabits.net/balance/

So no matter what you are doing, take just a moment to learn how you can live a more balanced life…..you’ll be glad you did!

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Most people don’t know about or understand the disorder, we only know from own personal experience that the “tics” have changed over the years and tend to come out more when he is over tired and stressed.   When he was younger, my son actually was made to run laps at soccer practice because he kept making noises and the coach thought that he was mocking him.      Later our son told us about the extra laps at practice so we told the coach the noises were not something that he could help and told him about the disorder.     The coach apologized profusely and really felt bad because he actually knew someone that had Tourettes in a severe form and didn’t recognize the milder symptoms in my son.    Recently my daughter noticed a student in one of her classes that displayed some symptoms so rather than punish him, she started researching more about the symptoms so she would understand and could help.

We always wanted our son to live a normal life and didn’t want any special treatment so we never told anyone until after the incident at soccer practice.     My son’s symptoms peaked when he was about 10 years old when he would open his mouth and bite very hard, to the point he could have bitten his tongue off.  It was both scary and frustrating because you just have this overwhelming helpless feeling, and it was the first time that he actually asked about the medication.  Fortunately the symptoms subsided and although he still has a mild form of the disorder, it has never stopped him from leading a normal life and I couldn’t be more proud of the young man he has become.   He is one of the lucky ones, there are some people that have very severe cases and it is only by continued research that they will be helped.

What is Tourettes?

Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (Tourette Syndrome or TS) is a neurological disorder which becomes evident in early childhood or adolescence before the age of 18 years.  Tourette syndrome is defined by multiple motor and vocal tics lasting for more than one year.  The first symptoms usually are involuntary movements (tics) of the face, arms, limbs or trunk.  These tics are frequent, repetitive and rapid.  The most common first symptom is a facial tic (eye blink, nose twitch, grimace), and is replaced or added to by other tics of the neck, trunk, and limbs.

These involuntary (outside the patient’s control) tics may also be complicated, involving the entire body, such as kicking and stamping. Many persons report what are described as premonitory urges — the urge to perform a motor activity. Other symptoms such as touching, repetitive thoughts and movements and compulsions can occur.

There are also verbal tics.  These verbal tics (vocalizations) usually occur with the movements.  These vocalizations include grunting, throat clearing, shouting and barking.  The verbal tics may also be expressed as coprolalia (the involuntary use of obscene words or socially inappropriate words and phrases) or copropraxia (obscene gestures). Despite widespread publicity, coprolalia/copropraxia is uncommon with tic disorders.

Neither echolalia (echo speech) or coprolalia/copropraxia is necessary for the diagnosis of Tourette syndrome.  However, for a confirmed diagnosis of TS both involuntary movements and vocalizations must be present.  Echo phenomena are also reported, although less frequently.  These may include repeating word of others (echolalia), repeating ones own words (palilalia), and repeating movements of others.

Although the symptoms of TS vary from person to person and range from very mild to severe, the majority of cases fall into the mild category. Associated conditions can include attentional problems (ADHD/ADD, impulsiveness (and oppositional defiant disorder), obsessional compulsive behavior, and learning disabilities.  There is usually a family history of tics, Tourette Syndrome, ADHD, OCD.  Tourette Syndrome and other tic disorders occur in all ethnic groups.  Males are affected 3 to 4 times more often than females.

Most people with TS and other tic disorders will lead productive lives.  There are no barriers to achievement in their personal and professional lives.  Persons with TS can be found in all professions. A goal of TSA is to educate both patients and the public of the many facets of tic disorders.  Increased public understanding and tolerance of TS symptoms are of paramount importance to people with Tourette Syndrome.

The disorder was named for a French neuropsychiatrist who successfully assessed the disorder in the late 1800’s:

For more information, see http://www.tsa-usa.org/index.html

The Tourette Syndrome Association, Inc.(TSA®) is a 501(c)(3) organization, qualified to receive charitable contributions in accordance with IRS regulations

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First we define what they envision, the number of guests they anticipate, if they have determined a budget and where they anticipate their guests to stay while on Oahu.

The easiest question to answer is what they envision, which often starts with outdoors, oceanfront, private, etc.  The number of guests is one of the hardest questions for couples to answer, especially for destination weddings as it can easily range by 25-50 guests depending on the time of year and where their guests are coming from.    We’ve had some weddings that anticipated 80 guests and ended up with 120 and others that anticipated 125 and ended up with 75.

The reason we ask for the budget is to help guide them to the properties or facilities that are appropriate to their needs.    If a client holds back on what they are really willing to spend for a location, then they are sacrificing the number of options that will be available to them.

Beautiful Lanikuhonua ‘Where Heaven Meets the Earth” (florals by Su-V Expressions)

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