January 2021 Newsletter

President's Letter

It is with great pride and excitement that I write this letter as President of the National Association for Catering and Events Austin Chapter.  2020 was a rough year for many in our industry.  While we haven’t yet had a chance to fully recover, I’m hopeful that 2021 will bring new light, new beginnings, and many opportunities for growth for our organization, our membership and those in our industry.

As we look toward our chapter goals for 2021, I invite each member of our organization to get more involved with NACE.  I truly cannot describe the impact that being an active, involved member has had not only on my professional life but on my personal life as well.  Please feel free to reach out to any of our board members to discuss how you can get involved.  The relationships that we build and the work that we do truly inspire me to do more and be more, and I have never been more excited for the opportunities that lay ahead of us. With extreme gratitude, I would also like to thank our outgoing 2020 executive board members. Your tireless work and service for the chapter did not go unnoticed.

My goal for this year is to rebuild and recapture what it means to be a member of NACE Austin.  I hope to strengthen ties within our membership at both the local and national level and provide clear direction as we move forward.  I’m extremely excited to get back to in-person events and to execute them in a manner that allows everyone the chance to feel both safe and involved.  

In closing, our chapter bylaws state that our organizational purpose is “to advance the catering and events industry and its professionals”, and there has never been a time when this purpose is more important. I absolutely cannot wait to see what 2021 holds for our organization and each of our members.

If you haven’t already registered to attend our Virtual Board Installations next Wednesday, January 13th, please be sure to do so!  This event is a great opportunity to get to know our incoming executive board, and we’ll have a mini goal session from one of my personal favorite people in the world, Rachel Sheerin.

Josh Hampson
President Elect
NACE – Austin Chapter

Back to top

Calendar of Events

“2020 didn’t go as planned...” is the understatement of the year. Here’s to recovery and to what will hopefully be a promising, productive year for our membership. 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are being cautious and slowly planning out the details for this year's meetings. More details to come on the rest of our programs for the year based on government mandates and recommendations. 

January:
Refresh: NACE Austin Board Installations and Goal Setting Workshop with Rachel Sheerin registration is still open! Saturday is the last day to order a charcuterie board if you want one!
Wednesday, January 13 from 6pm-7pm

Back to top

Meet the Board!

You may recognize these faces from last year, but if not, get to know them a bit by clicking here! 

We have so much fun as a chapter, but even more fun as a chapter board! If you have a little extra time on your hands and want to get more involved we are looking for volunteers to fill the following open positions for 2021:

Programs Co-Chair
Membership Co-Chair
Community Service Chair

Back to top

Cause of the Quarter

We were blown away by the incredible support the chapter received for the B.I.G. Love Cancer Care Holidays in a Box donation program last month! 

Each year we partner with B.I.G. Love to decorate a holiday room at Dell Children’s Hospital and bring gifts, pajamas, blankets, games, hot cocoa and more to the kids and their families. Unfortunately, things inevitably looked different this year, but we are so proud of our NACE Austin community for pulling together to still bring holiday cheer via pre-packaged boxes with decorations for their rooms, stickers, hot cocoa, and more! 

But enough about 2020... We're also excited to announce our Q1 Cause of the Quarter, Central Texas Food Bank!

A donation of just $10 can provide 40 meals worth of food and with their system, they can often supply more food with the same amount of money you would spend at a grocery store picking up canned and dry items to donate, so we strongly encourage financial donations be made here online so that we can contribute financially as a chapter, however we are happy to collect physical donations as well if you decide to pick up some extra at the store or clean out your pantry! Please review the guidelines below on what they will accept. 

We have three drop off locations for physical donations between now and March 31st, 2021! 

Click here for all the details and to learn more about how to donate!

Back to top

Guest Article

This year has been a long and weird rollercoaster ride, has it not?
We’re sure that you’re ready to move on from the giant dumpster fire that has been 2020.

Whatever fun we had while being cooped up in the house – spending time with family, learning a new skill, finishing that one DIY project you never seemed to have time for because of back-to-back weddings and events, completing a professional certification, baking your own sourdough loaves, trying out that art pour thing you kept seeing on social, or getting hooked on watching a flamboyant Oklahoma man pet large cats on your favorite streaming platform (remember that?) – we know that nothing beats seeing people face-to-face; safely distanced and wearing face mask, of course.

As our way to wrap up the year, we teamed up with the International Live Events Association (ILEA) Austin Chapter and the Associated Wedding Planners of Austin (AWPA) to host the Joint Industry Holiday Happy Hour in person on December 7^th, 2020 at the newly-opened Easy Tiger location on 3508 South Lamar in Austin.

Not only was this event a welcome break from the barrage of virtual meetings, the long-standing stress of worrying about our livelihood, safety, and health; not to mention the daily uncertainty of what happens next - but it was also a great opportunity to gather donations benefiting the Austin Food Pantry. It had definitely been awesome to connect and check in with our fellow industry professionals and be able to give back to our community in the process!

While it may have been a challenging year, there is still a lot to be grateful for – our members’ resilience in these challenging times, and our community’s togetherness. So, raise a glass for all the good things, or pour a drink for anything otherwise.

-Julienne Villaran from the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Round Rock

Back to top

Member Monday

If you have not yet had a chance to be featured on the NACE Social Media, we would love to share a post about you!

To be considered for the #MemberMonday of the week on NACE Austin's Facebook and Instagram, please fill out this questionnaire.

Afterwards, please email a photo of yourself to be included in the post to [email protected]

If you're not already following NACE Austin, you can find us on Facebook here and Instagram here.

Thank you for participating! We're excited to learn more about each of you!

Back to top

Thank You to our Sponsors!

Despite the hardships faced by so many in our industry this year, we are so grateful that these companies were still able to provide sponsorship for our NACE Chapter! We couldn't do what we do without your support, and we appreciate your dedication of time and/or services!

Back to top