Testimonials

To Whom It May Concern:

Planning an executing a successful event is no small feat. To start with, you've got to be adept at "herding cats." (Strong-willed, highly opinionated cats, by the way.) Next, you need to be incredibly detail oriented as even one small misstep can mean the difference between a good and great event. You need to be tenacious, particularly if the event is a fundraiser, because convincing people to support a particular cause is seldom accomplished with one letter or one phone call. The best event planners, therefore, are experienced and determined on one hand, gracious and artful on the other.

Carol McKean is, without question, the best. When she plans and executes an event, it runs like clockwork. It meets or surpasses its fundraising goal. And, most importantly, the event itself is a perfect complement to the mission of the organization it supports. Time and time agian, I'm told that Carol's events aren't just beautiful, they're meaningful. Guests walk away with a true sense of mission. When that happens, they're far more likely to return year after year.

With Carol, no detail is too small. No hurdle is too high. No goal is unattainable. And no event is forgettable.

I worked with Carol McKean Events on the Spring Celebration sponsored by Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Boston.

My involvement was that of the representative of the honoree, A. Raymond Tye.

The planning of this event started in March, 2009. Carol drove the entire process, from fundraising, media, printing for the event, location, catering and the evening's agenda. This was perhaps the best fundraising dinner I have attended.

Carol prepared numerous schedules for the fundraising committee and was sure to follow-up with committee members on their assigments. This was most important. That's what we were there for, to raise money.

The evening itself went off without a hitch, not an easy task for an event with 525 people attending.

I am pleased to recommend Carol McKean events for any event plannig task.

Thank you so much for running another great show, and helping to drive the success of this year's Spring Celebration. We have generated some real momentum over these last few years, and I can say with certainty that we could not have done it without you. So thank you once again.

Congratulations on leading us to another successful event. This has been the third year in a row that you have guided, managed, and led us to what has become a premier dinner event.

Three years ago, you helped us develop our inaugural event that turned out to be the largest dinner held in Boston with over 1400 guests in attendance. The night was a spectacular success. If the judgment was made based solely on the setup of the room, the ambiance, stage setting, and program itself, it would rate a ten. However it would leave out the attention to detail that you brought with your experience.

The highlights of that event: Over 1400 people attended a cocktail party; had a great meal, served almost stealthily by the facility staff; a program comprised of a number of speakers, along with a video that you helped develop; the evening ended by 9pm. No back up at registration, no back up onleaving, and finishing on time. Quite amazing!!

The purpose of the dinner has been to raise much needed funds to support our retired priests. You have been with us each step of the way, working with volunteer committees and staff to accomplish our goals.

In each of the last three years, this dinner has become even better with the same precision, but also increasing the fundraising bar to a million dollars, almost unheard of in today's economy.

Carol, thank you for all your help. We look forward to working with you for next year's dinner.

It truly has been a pleasure.

On behalf of everyone associated with the inaugural St. Mary's Gala, I wanted to extend our sincere appreciation and congratulations to you for staging a truly spectacular event

As with any first-time venture, we approached the Gala with a fair degree of trepidation. We understood the stakes were high, since if the event were not successful there would not be a second one. Having worked with you in the past, I was confident that would not be the case.

The Gala was an unqualified success on several levels. That it raised more than $337.000 makes it the largest single fundraising event in the history of the school. Almost as important as the financial implications, however, is that we wanted the Gala to make a statement about St. Mary's. Simply put, we were after the Wow factor. Thanks to you, we got it.

My favorite part of the evening was watching the reaction of attendees as they entered the St. Mary's gymnasium, which, in the case of those familiar with the school, looked like something they had never seen before. For those visiting for the first time, it looked like nothing they would have ever expected from a high-school gym.

From the transformed gym, to the searchlights outside, to the mammoth projection screen to the five-star menu, your attention to detail was phenomenal. All who attended were exposed to a St. Mary's they had never seen – or even imagined. That is exactly what we were trying to accomplish.

It was a pleasure working with you again, Carol, and I am already looking forward to next year's Gala, which, with you steering the ship, will be bigger and better than the first one. You are the consummate professional, and anyone planning an important event would be wise to enlist your services.

I just wanted to commend you on the outstanding job you did in your role as event planner for our recent St. Mary's Inaugural Gala. The recommendation by the Agganis Foundation for this role certainly lived up to their high praise. Your performance was perfect. Your organization skills, ready & prompt accessibility/responsiveness, coordination of the caterers and audio visual function, excellent update reporting and under budget delivery was superb. I would not hesitate to recommend you highly to any potential client you may have in the future. Feel free to have them contact me directly if needed. I look forward to working with you again next year's Gala. Thank you so much.