Oracle your chapter newsletter
SPRING 2022
President's Letter
Dear MPI Oregon Chapter Members,
 
As my last President’s letter, I’m going to do exactly what you’d expect of me, and get all gushy on you. What we have done this year has exceeded all expectations. We kicked off my presidential year with the merging of the Aloha and Oregon Chapters, a union that has fostered community and based us in hope for the future. From there, we continued to soar, receiving the 2021 Top Performing Chapter Award, a designation that is hard to achieve and yet another marker of our dedication. Recently it was announced that we are the MPI Global RISE Membership Achievement Award winner, an award we have strived for as long as I can remember. Those accolades show others on the outside just what we on the inside have always known, we are special. While the awards and accomplishments are something we should all be proud of, and believe me I’m insanely proud of them, I’ll be honest when I say I’m more proud of you. Showing up to the virtual and in person education, supporting our fundraising efforts, leaning on one another for connection and so much more.
















You had faith in this organization when it was easy to lose and that will be my biggest takeaway this year. Thank you, and I hope to see you in person at the MPI Awards Gala and Auction at the Best Western Hood River Inn on June 16th, or at WEC (World Education Congress) in San Francisco from June 21-23!


Rindi Cerelli, CMP, DES
MPI Oregon Chapter President 2021 – 2022
503-201-9290
Are you ready to celebrate??
Our Annual Gala is on June 16th at the Best Western Plus in Hood River. We are celebrating all we’ve been through this year- getting back to in-person meetings, getting back to work, our chapter won a RISE Award, and MPI’s 50th Anniversary.
Join us as we honor and thank the 2021/2022 out-going Board of Directors and all the award nominees and winners, and also celebrate the incoming 2022/2023 Board of Directors.

Bring out your Gold – to wear and to spend! We will highlight Gold and Blue to honor MPI’s 50th Anniversary.

And, of course, we will have our Silent and Live Auctions. So many great packages already, just a peak at some of the donations:
  • The Portland Trail Blazers
  • The Hilton
  • Wine & Rose Festival
  •  Best Western HR
  • Great Wolf Lodge…

If you are interested in donating a package for either the live or silent auction, please contact Royce Mason at RPS Events (royce@propshop.com).

Call the Best Western Plus Hood River to reserve your room today: hoodriverinn.com or
(541) 386-2200.
Global Meetings Industry Day Recap
We hope everyone had a great time at our special, in-person Global Meetings Industry Day (GMID) on April 5th at the Oregon Convention Center.

Yes, GMID was on April 7th, and huge thanks to the Oregon Convention Center for hosting us on the 5th, so we could have our full day of education, and enjoy the entire day on GMID with our global MPI members on the 7th. The Oregon Convention Center also hosted the happy hour with outstanding food, as usual. Did you get a chance to try to the bruleed s’mores??

It was so great to see so many properties, destinations and venues participate and spread the word that business is open. The day was planned out so that all attendees would have plenty of opportunity to visit and chat with each marketplace sponsor.

Thank you to all our marketplace sponsors who helped make the day interactive and successful:

  • Soul Community Planet/Salishan
  • The Bidwell Marriott Portland
  • Washington County Visitors Association
  • Spirit Mountain Casino
  • Salem Convention Center
  • Seaside Civic and Convention Center
  • Inn Ventures
  • the Nines
  • RPS Events
  • Radisson Hotel at the Airport

We appreciate the support of our members and sponsors!
Congratulations to our Scholarship Winners!
 
Last month we announced our scholarship winners - Brie Shimada, Jennifer Cox, Joslyn Stout, and Nathan Carlson. We look forward to your support of MPI Oregon/Aloha during the upcoming chapter year and hope to see you at our next event!

⭐ Brie Shimada, PRA Business Events ⭐
Our one lucky winner of the complimentary scholarship. Brie is a previous dedicated member of the MPI Aloha Chapter and is looking forward to getting back into MPI and helping rebuild the Aloha Chapter in the coming years.

⭐ Jennifer Cox, RPS Events ⭐
Winner of a $100 discount on her renewal. Jennifer has been a dedicated MPI member since 2002 and has helped on multiple committees throughout the years, most recently with the virtual MPI Cascadia in March. She’s incredibly thankful for the professional and personal relationships she’s built over the years with MPI.

⭐ Joslyn Stout, Holiday Inn Wilsonville ⭐
Winner of a $100 discount on her BRAND NEW membership. As a newcomer to the industry, Joslyn is excited to kick start her career with MPI, make new connections and better herself for her career. Welcome to the family!

⭐ Nathan Carlson, Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront ⭐
Winner of our final $100 discount on his BRAND NEW membership. Nathan is a 12-year industry vet in a new role. He’s excited to learn more about the group meetings and events industry with the help of MPI.
MPI Oregon Needs You

“You get what you put in is so true. The opportunities to volunteer with MPI are vast with varying levels of time commitment. There is something for everyone and I continue to encourage everyone to get involved. You won’t regret it.” – Amy Hildahl, Oregon Chapter volunteer
It is no surprise that our chapter couldn’t find the success we have had without our amazing volunteers. We have had so many volunteers throughout our almost 40 years (more on that to come!) and we would love to add your name to the roster. There are opportunities within Finance and Fundraising, Membership, Communications, and Education. If you’re interested, please reach out to President-Elect, Greg Heinze for a conversation and together we’ll find a place that fits you! 
MPI Oregon/Aloha Member Spotlight
 
Meet Lee-Ann Choy
President, Pacific Rim Concepts LLC

Lee-Ann was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. She currently resides in Kaneohe in the heavenly place called Ho’omaluhia - I mean… look at this view!

She graduated from the University of Hawaii School of Travel Industry Management with a Food & Beverage Hospitality emphasis and is the current President of the TIM Alumni Association. Lee-Ann is a professional conference organizer and has owned her own business since 2000. She’s been in catering, convention and event businesses since 1988 when she started her career at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. Then, she opened the Hawaii Convention Center as the first Event Manager in Hawaii. Her company focuses on local professional and government organizations, many of which cover the area around the Pacific; niche in marine and fishery sciences, conservation, environment and health. Their most memorable event was bringing the International Union for Conservation in Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress to Hawaii in 2016 with over 10,000 delegates. Her company is a full-service meeting and event coordinator from A to Z.

For fun, she enjoys traveling. Her most memorable trips include Israel and Jordan, and a trip to Petra - Footsteps of Jesus; and eating in Singapore and acting like a Crazy Rich Asian. When she’s not traveling, she enjoys taking her dogs to the beach, hiking and sewing.

The scariest thing she’s ever done was organize Hawaii’s largest shopping expo - Made in Hawaii Festival - in the trail of the pandemic in 2021. They had a 3-week shotgun start until event day with 250 exhibitors and over 20,000 attendees. There were COVID testing and vaccination requirements, timed entry, plus, all the normal infrastructure needed to build the expo! She worked through line queues, box office ticket sales and management, contact tracing and unprecedented labor calls. It was quite the feat!

Welcome to the MPI Oregon/Aloha Family, Lee-Ann!
MPI Oregon/Aloha Member Spotlight
 
Meet Christine Garcia
Event Coordinator, Argyle Winery

Christine was born and raised in Portland, Oregon and currently lives in Wilsonville with her husband, son, daughter and dog. She graduated from University of San Francisco with a degree in Hospitality Management which led to her working at California Pizza Kitchen, Pastini Restaurants, San Gabriel Country Club, The Bohemian club, Waverley Country Club, and the Old Spaghetti Factory before finally settling into her current role as Event Coordinator for Argyle Winery in February 2022.
For fun, she likes to read, travel, cook, and spend time with family and friends. She loves Disney, Star Wars, and anything nerdy. With the pandemic coming to a close, she’s excited to start working on her bucket list goal of traveling the world with her kids!
Welcome to MPI, Christine! We’re excited to see you at our next in-person event and to have you on the membership team!
Q4 Anniversary Milestones

25 years
Barbara Mulligan
Kimera Coady

20 years
Jennifer Cox
Andrew Lockwood

5 years
Amanda Houghton
Curtis Frye
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MPI Oregon | www.mpioregon.org