Over fifteen years ago I started a small boutique catering company with an exceptional chef, Simply Bliss Catering. When I realized event planning was my passion I shifted gears and joined a dedicated event planning / fundraising firm. There I learned the fundamentals of event planning for everything from galas to golf tournaments, from intimate cultivation events to festivals. I also sharpened my skills as a fundraiser, coordinating independent donor campaigns and peer-to-peer fundraising. Ten years ago I decided to open my own event-planning firm and immediately was contracted as the Finance and Event Director for the successful re-election campaign of Oakland Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan. Since then I've orchestrated countless weddings, bar/bat mitzvahs, and private events as well as working with amazing organizations such as San Francisco LGBT Center, the San Francisco Film Society (and the San Francisco International Film Festival), TNDC, UC Berkeley Alumni Association, Earthjustice, Oakland's Art and Soul Festival, the Art in Nature Festival, the Pan African Family Reunion, and the Housing Trust of Santa Clara County on fundraisers, conferences,  galas, opening night parties, cultivation events, and festivals.

 

In my free time I'm a filmmaker with Light Show Pictures, a published writer and poet, a dog-lover, and a dedicated, but thoroughly amateur cook. I try to spend my days doing things passionately. I believe that true vision starts with passion!

 

-Alicia Kester