Blue Beacon Events

03/29/2022

Blue Beacon Events is celebrating 2️⃣ years in business! 🎉 It’s a celebration in so many ways—it’s the bonds, the trust, the commitments, and the people that have made us work, helped us grow, and will allow us to continue to flourish in the future.

Thank you for the incredible investment and support you’ve shown us 🙏 Cheers to 2 years! ✨

02/28/2022

In their commitment to promote legislation, policies, and programs that strengthen families and support healthy childhood development, Families Forward Virginia and Early Impact Virginia recently worked with Blue Beacon Events to produce 8 statewide virtual sessions to advocate for families and elevate the parent voice. During the Virginia General Assembly, elected officials attended each regional “Virtual Visit” to hear firsthand from program staff and parents in their districts about economic support and the impact home visiting has made in their lives.

Families Forward Virginia and Early Impact Virginia’s focus on providing an effective advocacy platform remained at the forefront while Blue Beacon:

✅ established a detailed timeline and workplan
✅ coordinated the registration process
✅ prepared an extensive program outline
✅ defined a clear marketing and communications plan
✅ managed technology logistics including live simultaneous language interpretation and translation
✅ developed evaluation criteria and analysis

Well-planned, well-executed events can play a key role in moving your organization’s mission forward. Let’s work together to maximize your impact with an event that gives back.

02/18/2022

Conference planning for The Virginia Fund Raising Institute this July is in full swing! 🤸‍♀️ Drawing more than 250 attendees, VFRI is the premiere educational event for development and nonprofit professionals in the Commonwealth.

Blue Beacon Events is excited to be working with the Committee again this year to energize, educate, and empower great fundraising and nonprofit management. Stay tuned for updates in the planning process and go to vfri.org for more info about this awesome event!

VFRI is thrilled to welcome Logan Herring to Richmond to kick off our 30th annual conference on July 20, 2022. An inspiring speaker who attributes his success to those who helped to guide him along the way, his goal is to now pay it forward. Logan is excited to join us to discuss fundraising leadership, perseverance, and strength in community.

Logan is the CEO of The WRK Group (The Warehouse, REACH Riverside, and Kingswood Community Center). He started his work in the Riverside neighborhood of Wilmington in 2016 as the Executive Director for Kingswood Community Center (KCC), which serves the young and old alike through important services including an early learning academy, before and after care, and a senior center. In his role as CEO, he was responsible for overseeing one of the most ambitious development projects in Delaware, the $250 million revitalization of the Riverside neighborhood.

To learn more about Logan's impressive work and his opening keynote presentation at the conference, visit www.vfri.org.

Register TODAY to secure the early bird rate before the special pricing ends on April 15th. We can't wait to see you there!

https://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/eventReg?oeidk=a07ej15j2oaddba954d&oseq=&c=&ch=

01/31/2022

Are you ready to jump back into but not sure where to begin? Maybe your signature could use a refresh or in-person are calling your name. Navigating the intricacies of can be daunting and time consuming, but they don’t have to be.

A can free up time, offload stress, and SAVE YOU MONEY. Check out the blog for 5 reasons why working with an expert is a smart investment: https://bit.ly/3AXCOcY

Need help planning your next event? Reach out to get started ➡️ [email protected]

12/30/2021

Not gonna lie, it’s been a wild ride, 2021 🎢 The past year has brought many challenges, but also many milestones for Blue Beacon Events. Without a doubt, the best part was partnering with these inspiring organizations:

AFP, Central Virginia Chapter
Bewellva
Early Impact Virginia
Families Forward Virginia
The Virginia Fund Raising Institute

Thank you for the transformative work you do in our communities. Excited for what’s in store for 2022! Cheers to the New Year ✨

12/15/2021

New year, new trends! 📈

What are some of the biggest event trends expected to emerge in the coming year and beyond? As we gear up for 2022, take a look at some surprising and not so surprising industry shifts being predicted 🔮

In this post, you can learn about the rapidly changing event industry trends for 2021 and beyond.

11/10/2021

Thank you, Octavia, for your incredibly kind words! I had the best time working with the BeWellVA group 😀

11/05/2021

Does the phrase fill you with dread or optimism? With the ever-evolving landscape during COVID, many organizations are considering dipping a toe into hybrid waters.

If you’re contemplating putting on a dual virtual and in-person event, here are 5 best practices to think about from CraftJam Founder and CEO, Nora Abousteit:

🔑 Rethink your Search Engine Optimization and Public Relations efforts to reach new audiences
🔑 View virtual and in-person events as complementary, not competitive
🔑 Utilize the same systems and event partners for virtual and in-person events
🔑 Communicate with your registered guests
🔑 Recognize the limits of technology and adapt

Read the full Eventbrite blog post for more advice and reach out with any of your hybrid questions!

CraftJam found success with virtual events and plans to continue livestreams even as in-person events resume, opting for a hybrid business model.

11/01/2021

Grateful to work with organizations like Bewellva, a collaboration of the seven Community Services Boards from Virginia who bring awareness to the increasing number of deaths by su***de and promote wellness for life.

For su***de prevention month in September, Blue Beacon helped expand Bewellva’s reach as a local community resource through custom advocacy materials and an online discussion featuring Oprah’s newest book, “What Happened to You?” The webinar served as an open forum for candid dialogue and conversation surrounding trauma, resiliency, and healing.

Proud to partner with such an important coalition providing vital support to our region!

09/13/2021

Have you heard the good news? Nonprofits are now able to add a 'Donate' button to Zoom events. 🤩

This is a big game changer for virtual fundraising!

The new feature lets donors make a gift without leaving a virtual event. It also gives them the option to share their names and email addresses with the nonprofit receiving the donation.

08/11/2021

👏 A big thank you to BigTree for all of their incredible work on developing Blue Beacon's logo and website. Their expertise and creative design talents are unmatched. I highly recommend Heather and Nate for any web and graphic design needs and am grateful for such a wonderful experience working with them.

Check out more about what went into the design process and their services here: https://bigtree.us/portfolio/blue_beacon_events.html

Meet Blue Beacon Events. They bring a soft guidance and exceptional organization to in-person and virtual event planning for nonprofits and service-minded organizations.

We created their logo and brand feel with the driving words: calming, whimsical, professional, powerful yet gentle, and genuine. Read more about the brand development here: https://bigtree.us/portfolio/blue_beacon_events.html.

Need help navigating your organization’s next event? Contact Sarah at Blue Beacon Events to open up possibilities for your event to be special, engaging, interesting, and unique.

Need a logo for your next event? Contact us, we’d love to hear about it and see how we can help.

07/28/2021

Curious about the types of events and partners Blue Beacon collaborates with? Here’s an example!

For 28 years, The Virginia Fund Raising Institute has held an annual conference with educational workshops and keynote presentations designed to inspire and equip development professionals, board members, and executive directors to excel in fundraising and nonprofit management.

For all those years, it’s always been held in-person. For year 29, VFRI decided to make the online leap.

Their biggest concern? How to provide a valuable and engaging experience despite the pivot to virtual. We worked together to think creatively and incorporate components that ensured the conference was interesting, interactive, and worthwhile for its attendees. The biggest takeaway? It’s possible! The event was met with overwhelming praise from participants about its success.

Are you contemplating going virtual? I can help! Send a message to find out how.

07/08/2021

Throughout my career journey, I kept coming back to the same conclusion. Making a difference is what’s most important to me. The average person will spend 90,000 hours at work over a lifetime. Why not spend those hours making the world better?

This is the reason Blue Beacon Events collaborates with nonprofit leaders; to create partnerships that cultivate change.

Ready to maximize your impact with an event that gives back? Contact me today to learn more about how we can work together.

06/23/2021

It’s no surprise that virtual events are on the rise. Wild Apricot even reported that in 2020, the number of organizations planning a virtual event doubled.

Going virtual is a great alternative, but what challenges are organizations facing? I’ve heard from several that audience engagement has been a real struggle, especially when it comes to navigating networking online. Can it be done and done successfully? It can!

Check out the blog for a few tips about how to make virtual networking something your attendees actually want to participate in. Do you have any other tips you’d suggest not on the list?

How do you make virtual networking at an online conference enjoyable? There is hope my friend! Here are tips for forming meaningful connections at an online event.

06/15/2021

Welcome to the official page! Here you’ll find company updates as well as tips, tricks, and insights about how to make your event exceptional.

I’m Sarah Westphal, founder of Blue Beacon Events, an unconventional event planning and management company proudly serving nonprofit and service-minded organizations to empower their mission and strengthen their community impact.

A few facts:

🔹 We were formed RIGHT before the pandemic hit in March 2020

🔹 My passion lies in contributing to meaningful work in the community, supporting as many causes as I can to advocate for real, positive social change

🔹 Event planning is something I accidentally fell into while working in the nonprofit sector, but has become the basis for work I enjoy doing the most

And a random one (because why not):

🔹 I have an abnormal obsession with Wheel of Fortune and being a contestant on the show. Ask me about my audition attempt back in the day…

To find out more about my background and Blue Beacon's services, partners, and past projects be sure to visit my BRAND NEW website at www.bluebeaconevents.com.