Happy Friday, everyone! This week was filled with planning, preparation, and working on new projects!

This week, I learned a lot about  the art of preparation and the importance of planning ahead. Week three started off with more planning and new projects for Taste to Remember, an annual Central Ohio fundraiser featuring tasty bites from local chefs and restaurants, drinks, live and silent auctions, along with a wine and bourbon pull, and all the proceeds supporting Children’s Hunger Alliance programs that ensure kids in Central Ohio and throughout the state have access to nutritious food. Thankfully, everything is coming together great, as we are less than 10 weeks away from the big event! 

This week I learned about the art of preparation and the importance of planning ahead, which I thought I knew lots about, but boy was I wrong. This week I was able to attend a meeting with the development team in preparation for Menu of Hope in March 2025. It was great to hear the different ideas bouncing around the room and see how decisions are made. Menu of Hope is Children’s Hunger Alliance’s annual luncheon fundraiser that raises awareness and brings people together from across the whole state of Ohio to learn about how food-insecure children throughout Ohio are receiving the healthy meals they need to thrive. This year is the 30th anniversary of Menu of Hope, so it’s a big deal, so everything is big and better than ever before.

 I was so excited to be included in this meeting because I have a craving to learn what happens behind the scenes and the planning that is involved for an event of this magnitude.  In the beginning, I thought that I understood the importance of preparation, but I have to admit that I had no idea the level of preparation that was required for hosting an event of this magnitude. It’s no secret that preparation is a big part of success .I learned a lot about the kinds of details that go into event planning, especially the aspect of coordinating the collaboration it takes to get the jobs done. I would say the two most important parts of preparing for such a large event are patience and resilience, especially when working with large groups of people. Another thing that I learned was that no matter how much you prepare and how well you know your schedule, there will always be something that goes wrong. Nevertheless, the way you and your team respond when the unknown or the unexpected occurs could be the difference between success and failure for your event. There’s simply an art to preparation. Seeing the behind-the-scenes and the details of preparing for an event of this volume was fantastic and exciting.

I am so thankful for all that I have learned so far this summer and am eager to explore more!