Intersections in Cause Marketing

about the

Speakers

Roe Chlala, our event hostess is an award winning wedding planner and Co-Founder of Festivities.  

Love of craft, love of hospitality and love of community define the long-standing brother/sister team that is Festivities. Since 1984, Bill Kaliff and Roe have created a multiple award winning business by committing themselves to keeping their company on the cutting edge of the culinary and special event industry, always ensuring that each event experience is detailed and personal. Whether it be a wedding, milestone anniversary, gala fund raiser or casual, fun picnic, the Festivities team offers exceptional food served with style and gracious hospitality. 

Roe’s experience began as she was studying international relations overseas. She became known for her keen eye for detail and lively, international parties. When Festivities opened its doors in 1984, Roe intertwined her gift for creative entertaining with her brother, Bill’s talent for sumptuous food. A Consultant level member and guest speaker with the Association of Bridal Consultants, Roe is Festivities’ Executive Event Consultant and Wedding Designer. Known for her warmth and expertise, Roe is the designer of the “Considered Chic” ™ wedding planning system and the founder of the Festivities Foundation, a non-profit organization whose mission is to support safe and healthy homes by funding programs that provide services to victims of domestic violence. 

Most recently, Festivities has embarked on a soul-searching rebranding that has culminated in a new logo and tagline – Festivities - “food and design for life’s celebrations”.  This rebranding is supported by an expanded new website.  With a 6,000 square foot campus, the company has room for its newest project, a store called “Pass on the Love”, offering gently used items that have been donated from industry partners and private clients.  These items are sold with all proceeds benefiting agencies that support safe and healthy homes, the mission of the Festivities Foundation.

 

Steve Feldman founded Green Demolitions in 2005 in Greenwich, Connecticut.  It has now spread its wings to become Renovation Angel, America’s premier enterprise for repurposing luxury kitchens and interiors.

The Company discovered a market void in America and created a “circular economy” for the renovation industry. In response, Renovation Angel stepped in to transform a wasted resource, thousands of luxury kitchens headed to overcrowded landfills, into millions of dollars of new jobs and funding for other charities.

Since its inception, over $20 million of jobs have been created, over $2.2 million have been distributed to other non-profits and over 37 million pounds have been diverted from the landfills by recycling over 5,600 kitchens. Proceeds earned from selling recycled luxury support life-changing outreach programs with a focus on: at-risk youth, addiction recovery, job creation, and social entrepreneurship.

Donors receive a significant tax deduction and free, white-glove, insured removal.  Renovation Angel is self-sustaining and does not fund-raise or accept government grants.  Steve and his team of professionals have conducted projects for high-net worth property owners including members of the Forbes 400, celebrities, and sports stars. We have received positive national media coverage including: The New York Times, Forbes, Yahoo Finance, CNN, This Old House, DIY, NBC-TV, Success Magazine, Consumer Reports, Wall Street Journal and numerous others.

 

Carolann Grieve is a Senior Wealth Strategist at GenSpring, responsible for assisting families with a wide variety of wealth management needs, including estate planning, tax, financial planning, fiduciary, philanthropy and family governance issues. Carolann works closely with a client’s GenSpring investment strategist and other professional advisors outside of GenSpring

to ensure that all aspects of a family’s wealth management plan are closely coordinated. Further, she is a Specialist in both Family Education and Family Governance and delivers these services to clients across the firm.

In addition, Carolann chairs GenSpring’s Women & Wealth Initiative. Through this initiative, Carolann works with her GenSpring colleagues to create a welcoming environment emphasizing a holistic approach to financial stability, which in turn enables women to live an informed and responsible life with wealth, to feel fulfilled and empowered to achieve their goals.

Carolann was previously Chief Financial officer of Eagle Capital International, an investment firm and multi-family office, where she was responsible for trust and estate administration, tax return preparation, client reporting, technology and human resources. Prior to that, she worked as Director of Accounting at Pantasote, a publicly traded international plastics firm. Additionally, Carolann was Accounting Manager at the International Division of Chesebrough Ponds.
Carolann is a graduate of Iona College where she received her MBA in Finance and her BBA in Accounting. Carolann is a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor.

GenSpring exists to be a collaborative community of individuals, families and committed professionals focused on growing wealth in support of the family’s enduring values.  Our purpose is to objectively manage the issues that keep members awake at night so they can enjoy the moments in life that matter.  GenSpring exclusively serves ultra-high-net-worth clients of SunTrust Private Wealth. 

 

Evelyn Isaia, a successful private wealth manager for over 30 years, most notably as a Senior Vice President with Merrill Lynch, is the Founder of Ratatouille & Company, a sophisticated catering with a social mission.

Evelyn’s professional career found her working with high-net individuals throughout Latin America and Europe. Her extensive travels, personal experiences, and a life-long passion for volunteering her time and skills to improving the quality of life for others is the cornerstone for her transition away from corporate America and into a career that held a deeper meaning for her. Combining her love for the culinary arts and giving back to the community, Ratatouille & Company was formed in 2017 as a way to empower immigrant and refugee women through the food trade and set them on a path to self-reliance and economic stability.

Evelyn is a Partner with Social Venture Partners Connecticut and is on the Board of Directors of the Women's Business Development Council of Connecticut. Working with workforce development departments at nonprofit organizations such as; Building One Community in Stamford, CT; the Connecticut Institute for Refugees and Immigrants (CIRI) in Bridgeport, CT; and the International Rescue Committee in New York, Evelyn and her team have the honor of working with women from across the globe including Syria and Latin America. Fluent in five languages, Evelyn includes the command of the English language into Ratatouille & Company’s training model, in addition to the culinary arts, the art of service, proper etiquette, and setting a room in order to create a spectacular event experience.

Ratatouille & Company is based in Westport, CT and Brooklyn, NY. When not catering fabulous events with her team and trainees, Evelyn can be found practicing Pilates, cooking and entertaining her friends, and enjoying family time with her husband Daniel and their daughter and grandchild.

Orchestrating stylish and sophisticated catered events that incorporate great food and thoughtful service is what has earned Ratatouille & Co. their stellar reputation. The mission of this innovative catering company, however, goes beyond canapés and silver trays. Ratatouille & Co. uses the power of the culinary arts and the hospitality industry to empower women to find their voice and learn a skill set they can use on their road to independence and success. Founder Evelyn Isaia and Partner / Chef de Cuisine Cathy Brower have combined their professional backgrounds to not only cater to a discerning clientele, but to create a teaching platform from which women of all backgrounds can pursue their passion, just as Evelyn and Cathy have done with Ratatouille & Co.

 

Geoffrey Morris is President of TownVibe Media, which creates leading lifestyle publications Fairfield Magazine, Ridgefield Magazine, Wilton Magazine, among other titles, and is Executive Director of the Ridgefield Independent Film Festival, a four-day event of inspirational film, engaging dialogue, and super-fun parties.

Geoffrey is a veteran of the magazine business—he was executive editor at National Review, a senior editor at Reader’s Digest and an editor at MBA Jungle. He has written and edited hundreds of articles, book reviews and editorials.  His work has been nominated for two National Magazine Awards. He holds a BA (philosophy) from Hobart College and an MBA from NYU. He lives in Ridgefield with his wife, Martha, and two daughters.