Whiskey Festival 2019 !!
It was an incredible experience. I was on the main floor of the Fairmont assisting with the registration process, so I didn't get to see the ballroom until later in the evening.
First of all, I have to say there is something about the staff at the Fairmont. Whether they are serving you an appetizer, clearing your plate away, opening doors for people, or taking away the garbage I was accumulating, everyone was fantastic. I probably interacted as much with the staff as I did with anyone. Each interaction was great and I felt their superior customer service was genuine. Whatever their HR department is doing, they should keep doing it. I was just a volunteer but I felt like a celebrity.
Secondly, when you volunteer with Sports Manitoba, you get quite an education. What I mean is that you get to experience Rick, Sport Heritage Master. He is such a positive man with time for everyone, but the real education is watching him and his wife, Jan, interact. When I grow up, I want a husband who treats me as respectfully as Rick treats Jan. Such a wonderful partnership. If you can't learn a leadership lesson from Suzanne, Special Events Manager, then you are just not paying attention to her. An amazing tireless transparent positive leader. And, if you are around Suzanne, you are guaranteed to be having more than a few laughs. You also get to meet Richard, the Gallery Coordinator. You only have to have one conversation with him to realize someone taught him some valuable life lessons. He is respectful, analytical, values people, and values sport in life. He makes me feel good about the future, that there is passion out there. I'm giving him a pass on being a passionate soccer fan. I live with one of them. I don't understand it, but I'm not going to hold it against anyone.
What makes the Whiskey Festival so great is that it is probably the only event in Manitoba where people are early. VIPs were let in at 6:30 pm, and regular ticket holders were let in at 7:30 pm. VIPs were registered as early as 5:30 pm. I love it !! I'm one of those OCD types when it comes to time. If I am not early, alert the authorities, I'm in a ditch somewhere. To see everyone early or at least on time was fabulous.
When I finally got to see the main ballroom, I was unprepared. What an amazing experience. First of all, the buffets were world class. How can you go wrong with a "build your own perogy" buffet? It wasn't just snacks, it was a full 7 course meal. Imagine any type of food. It was there.
So many exhibitors. So many opportunities for participants to sample their products. So much information. 10X the AirMiles at the mobile MLCC. Although, I don't think the airmiles were the real draw. Regardless, I think the Province made out ok.
The best thing was, including exhibitors, there were about 400+ people in the ballroom, and everyone was happy. If a couple of people over-indulged, I didn't notice. It was just such a supportive happy environment.
One of the best parts was when the evening was coming to a close and people were coming to get their safe ride home in terms of a taxi chit. All of us females at registration got very sincere hugs and thanks from the participants. One group of three guys said that only one lives in Winnipeg, and the other two come specifically for this event. One noted, "we figure we have to see each other once a year, so it works out well, if we can combine that visit with whiskey." We had to write out the addresses and my favorite destination of the evening was "Andy's house." Can you be more specific? Yeah, his house is about two blocks from a 7/11. Luckily, Andy was there, and although he didn't know his address, he had his ID with him. It was a great time.
Near the end of the evening, a gentleman came up to me and commented on my lovely purse and asked if it was Michael Kors. I was flattered. I have a very nice purse but it doesn't have "MK" so I was flattered with his keen eye. We had a very nice discussion about whiskey and since I had picked up some lingo, I sounded like I knew something. That was only one of my nice conversations. There were so many. A really great two evenings.
Of course, with that many people, and two different nights, there is bound to be one hic-cup. Even that was a valuable lesson for me. 95% of the time was great and 5% was not so great. Yet, when I got home on Saturday, I was focusing on the 5% making it 95% in my mind. So, I gave it a couple of days. Now, happily, I am focusing on the 95% that was fabulous. I will share my 5% privately with the organizers.
I heard someone talk about a potential future event. A Manitoba Sports Trivia Event. I can see Manitoba sports heros, past and present, coming out and asking a trivia question about themselves. It has the makings of a great event. However, my partner and I won't be volunteering at that event. We will be too busy being on the winning team !! Game on !!!
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