How It All Began…
Photo by: Olson Design Photography
From a very early age, my parents told me to find something I love to do and then find a way to get paid for it. Their advice and creative encouragement is what led me to a love for wedding and event planning. My mom actually loves to remind me of an excerpt she wrote in a scrapbook in the early 2000’s. You know, when people used to scrapbook!
She had all of these pictures from my monkey themed birthday party and next to one of the pictures she wrote, “Joelle facilitated her whole day. She told people when to do what and kept things going.” And not much has changed all these years later.
I’m still planning events and telling people what to do!
I know I’m not alone when I say that I love weddings. I love love, I love fancy dresses, and I love gathering lots of people together to celebrate. My love for wedding planning doesn’t come from the extravagance and wonder of a big wedding, though. I love wedding and event planning because I love seeing ideas come to life. There is something so special about sitting down with a couple right after they get engaged and talking to them about their dreams. I learn so much about them! We talk about how they met, the things they like to do, the food they eat, the places they shop, and talk about what makes them who they are. After talking through these things, it gives me SO many ideas about how to design, plan, and coordinate their wedding day to reflect what they love and to reflect who they are.
It’s so special to take details about their love story and intertwine them into their wedding day. I get to help couples tell their love story through their wedding. This is what I love about wedding planning and this is what keeps me going.
I love looking back over my childhood and my adolescence and seeing how there were threads of event planning from a very young age. I’ve evolved from my monkey birthday planning days (although, if you need someone to throw you a monkey party, I got you!), but I think the spark and the joy from designing and planning an event is the same now as it was when I was 8 years old.
I worked for a wedding planning company in Charlotte, NC for almost four years before I decided to launch my own company. I learned SO much from working for someone else and my old boss invested so much in me. Starting my own company was in the 5 year plan for me, but in 2020 so many different doors opened and starting my own company became the “now” plan. I’m incredibly thankful for all the opportunities I have and I can’t wait to see where Joelle Parks Events Co. goes.
xo,
Joelle
