I just returned from my first winter wonderland ceremony in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, a quaint historical town built around a beautiful waterfall. The wedding took place at St. Joan of Arc, a local Catholic church and was officiated by a priest who is also a family friend.

I had two months to plan a 150-person destination wedding weekend for Sharise and Tim, who live in Manhattan Beach, California. Quite a challenge, as I had never been to the great state of Ohio.  They chose Chagrin Falls, Tim’s home town, and since the groom had the larger family, they selected a location most convenient for keeping travel to a minimum. 

They had most of their events; rehearsal dinner, welcome night gathering for out of town guests and wedding reception at The Hillbrook Club http://www.clubhillbrook.com

It’s an outstanding club, reminiscent of a fairytale dream princess estate.  The ballroom holds up to 200 people and the tavern 80 people. It was perfect for the rehearsal dinner, which we designed with two long tables of 35 guests each, and a living room that held up to 125; again perfect for our welcome night reception. Their service standards far exceeded my Ritz-Carlton expectations!

I opted not to travel with my team from Los Angeles. Instead, I invited a few of the local top ABC professionals to help: