Lilybrooke Staffers

Ever wonder what an Event Planner is? Or how it all comes together? Well...it takes a team of dedicated, fun, creative people. We are doers. We are problem solvers. And we don't understand the word "no." Every situation has a way of being resolved, but many times, no one wants to be responsible for making the decision. An event planner not only makes the decision, they see to it that the decision works with the overall plan and tweaks every situation as needed throughout an entire event.

There's no better compliment than to hear how "easy everything was" or that "everything was flawless." There is no such thing. But if something appears seamless to our guests, then our job was done correctly. The food is often delayed so someone has to tell the Best Man that his toast will happen shortly. Or that the First Dance or Cake Cutting is coming.

Sometimes our tasks are not as glamourous. The restroom is out of toilet paper, it's about to rain, the father doesn't have time to finish all the tasks he thought he would have time for on his daughter's wedding day.

At Lilybrooke, we are an extension of all your event needs. If it happens the day of your event, it is our problem to solve. It becomes our job description whether we signed up for that problem or not.

Below are a few fun examples of being caught in the act.

Lana making sure everyone has an umbrella.

Bob our film crew during the "Take 5" news taping.

Gift Bags take an army of people to assemble, sort and deliver!

Groomsmen could almost have one person assigned to them just prior to the ceremony. No matter how smooth the rehearsal, more direction is always needed for our supportive team of guys.

Of course you alway need someone with the bride at all times to not only help her with anything (and any vendors) while she is getting ready, but to keep in communication with the staff at the church to be sure the bride arrives at just the right time! Lucy was every bride's best friend this summer.

Walk thrus always include notebooks full of notes, measurements and small details. Every comment could play into a much larger role later on as the entire look is pulled together.

If you've ever stood in a wide open space trying to contemplate what a large tent full of flowers, tables, chairs, candles and 200 of your closest friends looks like, then you understand this photo.

The chairs look pretty when they are finished, but it is almost its own science to get them picture perfect.

Pat helping to determine the amount of light that will be needed if it's too cold and the dark drapes need to be closed.

Nils helping out a proud father on his never-ending to-do list.

It takes a lot to get a tent and the rental items to go from this...

To this!

We love what we do. And we have fun doing it.

Endurance

One of my favorite nouns is Endurance.

I’m not sure if it’s really endurance, competitiveness, or a hatred of wasted time, but I find most situations in life as a challenge that I want to achieve. It may be in the form of a staring competition with my dog. Getting ready to go out in record time. Or finding the perfect lemon to pair with my Skyy. Maybe it’s none of the above and just that I love life and want to be awake, alert and ready for anything life tosses my way.

The dictionary claims that patience is a synonym for endurance, but I’m not so sure about that.

When you enter my home, a hand-painted quote on the wall reminds me to “Live Deliberately”. This is not only a homage to Thoreau, but to the person who introduced those words into my life. Every day I attempt to Live Deliberately and hope that I make an impact with the people that I encounter.

I spent the past six days inside a building in Detroit, MI, working for a corporate event from 5:30 am - 9:00 pm every day. I call that endurance. Or a test there of. I wish that I had been born to see Detroit in it’s glory, but since all that is left is a shell of a once-grand city, I use my imagination and my steadfast positive attitude to see it in my mind’s eye. The bright gold of the city’s building’s shining off the water; the Motown Music blaring from new, shiny cars as they parade up and down Woodward Avenue. It really is a magical city and for anyone who has never been there, it is a hidden treasure. But you have to live there to understand what I mean.

As of today Detroit has a 28.5% unemployment rate. That’s for another blogger to tackle. But I call that an endurance that makes my complaining of long work hours unacceptable.

I heart Detroit. I am happy to have spent three years living in one of its suburbs and I am happy to have so many great friends who I can visit when I am in town.

Again. Call it endurance. Call it competitive. Or simply call it life, but Live Deliberately.