Join us on Tuesday, January 24th at 5PM for your Ventura NACE Awards Gala at the beautiful Wood Ranch Golf Club!  Wishing everyone a great 2012, and let's make this a great year!

- Suzi Haydon; Ventura NACE President

Formal supper club attire requested.

2012 Meeting Locations Needed! 

If you would like to show off your food, service, and property, please contact Kim Ritchey.  Our 2012 monthly meeting dates are ready to book!

KRitchey@cpventura.com

805-652-5144

The December 2011 Caroling Cruise (unofficial meeting):

Thanks to organizer and Hospitality Chair, Lisa Cohen, a few of us started the Holidays with a very simple old school pleasure!

The Caroling Cruise was the perfect way to start the Holiday Season!  You can't go wrong with Seasonal Decor, a sip or two, and silly fun with friends and family! 

I was still smiling the next day.

- Vonette Yanaginuma
Photo Credits: Bud Rizzo

Your name and title:
Jennifer Diehl, Event Sales Director

Years of experience (optional):
22

Types of events that your location specializes in?  What is unique about your location/services?

Wood Ranch Golf Club specializes in offering a variety of events that suit all needs. From corporate meetings and golf tournaments, to wedding ceremonies and receptions, from Grad Nights/Proms to Charity Fundraisers and Black Tie Galas. Wood Ranch Golf Club offers a unique ceremony setting featuring a beautiful gazebo and gardens overlooking our golf course, hills and lakes. Our ballroom features floor to ceiling windows that showcase the beautiful Simi views. We are centrally located to Hwy 23, just off of 101, near the Ronald Reagan Library.

Maximum number of guests (or an overview of have many rooms your have available, do you have a ceremony site, etc…)? Our Gazebo Lawn can accommodate a reception style event up to 600 people, our ballroom can accommodate up to 360 for dinner.

How or why did you get into the catering/special events industry?
I started at American Express Travel & Incentives when I was 22, and loved planning the Incentive trips for our corporate clients, especially being able to create from afar, travel to the location, which happened to be worldwide, and see the events succeed. I loved the challenge of putting together events that the clients dreamed about and seeing the results. From that position, I moved to San Diego and worked for PRA Destination Management, a nationwide (now a worldwide partner with Allied) DMC franchise, as Senior Account Manager. There I created the first “Street Scene” for a worldwide tech company. It was so fun working the logistics and partnering with the City, the Police and Fire Departments! This one event went on to diversify into what most in the area know as the music event of the year in San Diego. From PRA, I then moved on to work with Hornblower Cruises & Events as the Associate Director of Sales, traveling nationwide to bring recognition to this company. We relocated from San Diego in 2010 to Westlake Village because of a job for my husband.

What do you love about your job? I love my sales team that I work with. I am very fortunate to have found amazing and talented people at Wood Ranch Golf Club, and I couldn’t be so successful without them.

Any funny stories that you would like to share?  (PG-13 rated, please!):  My husband and I have a one year old kitten, a Pixie Bob breed, and she loves to boogie board in our pool! Her name is Kammendeka, which is Lakota Indian for “jack rabbit eater.” And we do feed her rabbit.

Holidays in January 2012:

New Year’s Day, January 1

National Fiber Focus Month

National Glaucoma Awareness Month

National Gourmet Coffee Month

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, January 16

March of Dimes Birth Defects Prevention Month

Chinese New Year, January 23

Amelia Earhart Day, January 11

- Submitted by Valerie Vollmer, Catering Celebrations, thank you!

"Play to win."

All the best,

Matt Graumann, Newsletter Chair

President
Suzi Haydon
805-495-6421 x229
shaydon@eaglegolf.com

1st Vice President
Kim Ritchey
Kritchey@cpventura.com
805-652-5144

Past President
Jeff Namson
jeff@thecappuccinoclub.com

Programs:

LaStarr Heiliger
lastarrcakes@sbcglobal.net
805-642-2814

Valerie Vollmer
valerie@cateringcelebrations.com
805-495-3469

Heidi Whitcomb
vrparty@aol.com
805-644-4496

Membership
Dave Burns
Cover2covermusic@gmail.com
805-492-8150

Hospitality
Vonette Yanaginuma
818-365-4065
vonharp@mac.com

Hospitality
Lynn Kenton
805-901-5444
lynn@lynnkenton.com

Hospitality
Lisa Cohen
lisacohenskin@prodigy.net

Hospitality
Portia Bray
portiagypsy@msn.com

Hospitality
Erika Harding
805/641-3900
erika@architexturesalon.com

Secretary
Janis Winchester
conejorentals@verizon.net
805-496-2586

Newsletter
Matt Graumann
Matthewgraumann@sbcglobal.net
805-581-5455

Event Professional Showcase
Bruce Barrios
805-658-7565
djbrucebarrios@aol.com

Awards Chair
Jeff Miller
jsmiller@callutheran.edu
805-493-3765

Treasurer
Bridget Donlon Partida
805-388-5000
bpartida@spanishhillscc.com

Golf Fundraiser Chair
Debbie Heaslip
805-551-1509