By Renee Tucci AIFD PFCI
A new flower frontier has been forged! From October 13th-15th, AIFD members and friends checked into the Hilton Bonnet Creek Resort in sunny Orlando Florida.
On the agenda; the fall National Board meeting, a PFDE®, a day of education for those in attendance, and concluding with a delicious dinner among new and old friends!
First up; the National Board met in-person for the first time in many, many months. An aggressive agenda was handled with guidance from Stringfellow staff, teamwork, and insight from the volunteer leaders. The center of the room was filled with beautiful, jewel-colored blooms, designed for us to enjoy by Past President Jackie Lacey AIFD.
While the board was meeting, preparations were well underway to set up for the PFDE by Membership Chairman Damon Samuel AIFD. Damon and his hardworking committee undertook this enormous job, under unprecedented circumstances, to help our eager testers get one step closer to their goal of becoming accredited. 41 testers took on the challenge and completed tables that were a joy to view at the reception on Friday evening.
The day of education brought together superstar designers who put their best on display to spread inspiration!
While the stage programs were delighting the audience, the hardworking membership committee was guiding a sharp team of evaluators as they worked through the PFDE tables.
After the educational programming, the PFDE reception began, and attendees enjoyed touring the tables and chatting with the designers. Hearing the processes they followed during the intense 4-hour testing time is fascinating. At the time of writing this article, the candidates are anxiously awaiting their results.
A networking dinner followed the reception. Janet Black AIFD, Laura Parker AIFD, Deb De LaFlor AIFD and Jackie Lacey AIFD were among the speakers honoring those that worked tirelessly to produce this event.
Of special note are the sponsors and supporters that sent invaluable contributions.
The Sunshine Bouquet company sponsored many of the florals seen here in the centerpieces used for the farewell dinner. Design direction on these creations came from Jackie Lacey AIFD.
One of the many highlights of the event was handing our extra blooms off to Random Acts of Flowers at the conclusion of the Summit. They happily repurposed our extra blooms and shared them with those in need of flower therapy!
The Summit was a delightful way for us to gather together in the wonderful Hilton, our host for the 2024 Symposium. As usually happens, some of the most exciting ideas came from the networking huddles that happened between the sessions. All of this only makes us all even more excited to gather in Las Vegas on July 4th 2022 for ROOTS!
Will we see you there?
