KERRY ANN HAWK

OWNER & DIRECTOR OF SALES

Kerry thrives working on projects full of new challenges because nothing pleases her more than beating the odds. The more daunting the task, the more enthusiastic her acceptance. Kerry has experience on a wide variety of events from weddings to corporate and community events, but events that give back have a special place in her heart. Community outreach is important to Kerry, so she’s served on a few boards over the years. Her favorite place to serve was the Executive Board for Valhalla Tahoe, where she gained a deep appreciation of community arts programs. 

Kerry saw a spark of magic a few years ago at a very special wedding planned by Blue Sky Events. The bride had just been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and the groom was an active duty military serviceman. With medical bills piling up, the wedding the couple dreamt of seemed out of the question. But, an amazing team of wedding creatives and a generous venue teamed up and were able to give the couple a beautiful wedding with 150 friends and family—for free! It’s moments like this that bring Kerry the greatest joy.

Fun Facts about Kerry: 

• When she’s not planning events, she loves being outside in the mountains with her family: swimming in Lake Tahoe, hiking, camping, and backpacking.
• Kerry likes to team up with friends from the wedding and events industry to participate in obstacle races like Tough Mudder and Spartan. Kerry and her friends joke that these kinds of races are a good way to unwind after a busy wedding and event season. Kerry won first place in her age group in her first Spartan Beast Race!
• Kerry believes in love at first sight.

Chelsea Grabham-Mader

EXECUTIVE EVENT PLANNER

A shining example of Blue Sky Events’ commitment to creativity, Chelsea loves projects that allow her to run with her ideas. She revels in breaking the mold to incorporate unique, unforgettable elements.

Chelsea’s creativity is expansive, but she and her team also have the logistical expertise to make big ideas into incredible experiences. For her, it’s an amazing experience to see so many small steps unfold in one amazing event, whether it’s taking months to transform a private residence backyard for a wedding, or taking a day to fully transform a parking lot into a late night playground for a corporate event. Often it takes more time to transform a space or venue than the event time itself, so it sure is magical to see that transformation happen and know that for a short window in time, you got to experience that space like no one else has before. Then, by the next day, tear down has happened and everything is back as it was. An appreciation for all the hard work and processes behind creating a great event is what makes Chelsea one of the most valuable assets in the industry. 

Fun Facts about Chelsea:

• Chelsea grew up in South Lake Tahoe. Not many people can say they were born and raised here. She herself left for almost 10 years after high school with no intention of moving back, but the lake, the mountains, and being near family called her home.
• Chelsea is a total concert junkie. She’s kept almost every ticket from every show she’s been to, and they all live in a shoe box.
• She has 3 rescue animals – a blue heeler dog, a border collie/Australian shepherd mix dog, and a Maine Coon cat.
• Chelsea’s great-great grandfather and his brother started a brewery in Guatemala in 1886, which is still in family-owned operation today as the largest brewery in the country.

Lindsey Johnson

EXECUTIVE EVENT PLANNER

Lindsey is most inspired by the clients that have never been to Tahoe, but are drawn to Tahoe for the same beauty and pace of life that brought her here. It allows her to show them not only the best Tahoe has to offer, but the amazing and talented local vendors as well. Starting with a completely blank slate allows Lindsey to be creative and use her expertise and local knowledge to create an event very specific to the client.

Lindsey strives to ignite a spark of magic at each of her events, but sometimes it comes in unexpected ways. The weather brought the magic to a recent wedding at Squaw Resort in the mountains near Lake Tahoe. For weeks the forecast had been all over the place, so Lindsey made sure that they were prepared for anything. The day started out sunny but sure enough, high winds and threatening clouds rolled in, followed by rain and finally several inches of snow. It could have been a disaster, but Lindsey, her team and all the vendors were prepared. They moved as a unit from Plan A, to B to C, and at the end of the night the bride couldn’t have been happier, saying, “The thing I had most feared ruining our big day became the thing that made it so exciting and magical.” With some expertise and strategy, the magic of a little snowfall made not only the clients’ night, but the guests as well. There were people outside in formal gowns and tuxedos building snowmen and throwing snowballs.

Fun Facts about Lindsey: 

• She is Blue Sky’s resident Disney aficionado! She loves everything from the classics like Ariel, all the way up to Star Wars and Marvel. Years ago, Lindsey was dubbed the “Wedding Fairy Godmother,” which captures the love she has for her two biggest passions perfectly: wedding planning and Disney.
• She has lived in 4 different National Parks: Crater Lake, Death Valley, the Grand Canyon and Yosemite.
• Lindsey spends a lot of time in the kitchen and loves to cook, but baking is a secret talent that she doesn’t share often. She bakes everything from Tres Leches, Butter Cake, to all sorts of cakes and cupcakes.

Aimee Salcido

EXECUTIVE EVENT PLANNER

Aimee is inspired by projects that let her imagination and creativity run wild. She loves it when a client comes with her with the seed of an idea and allows her to nurture and grow it into something that exceeds their expectations. She’s equally inspired bringing crazy ideas to life. The further out of the box, the better!

Aimee knows that a little pizazz can take your event to the next level, and the element of surprise is a great way to do that. For example, she once had wedding clients who were videogame programmers and wanted to incorporate videogames into their wedding day. Aimee and her team transformed the entire ballroom into a retro videogame arcade but kept it a surprise for guests until they were invited inside for dancing and “games” after dinner. When the guests entered the room, they were blown away by the whole thing. At the end of the night, everyone walked away so elated by the whole experience.

Fun Facts about Aimee:

• Aimee is an adrenaline junkie. She has bungee jumped off the world’s first commercial bungee jump site in New Zealand, paraglided through Swiss Alps and has even dared to do cliff diving. 
• She’s competitive. She has competed in half marathons, marathons, triathlons and open water swim competitions. 
• Aimee has traveled to over 15 countries. One of her favorite countries to travel to is New Zealand because of all the outdoor adventures it has to offer.

Tommy Cortopassi

WINE & CULINARY CONSULTANT

Tommy finds inspiration in projects that are considered challenging. Recently he joined Blue Sky in organizing a two-day event that required all team members to excel in each of their responsibilities. Not surprisingly, the team surpassed expectations, resulting in a fluid and engaging event. The planning and execution had been flawless. Even with unexpected challenges, each team member handled their responsibilities confidently, professionally and with immediate resolve.

Fun Facts about Tommy: 

• Tommy has played guitar for many years. He writes songs and sometimes plays in his church band for Sunday services.
• He loves skiing and skis many days every winter.
• Tommy enjoys helping teammates improve upon their restaurant skills. He loves to share his knowledge about food, wine and service from his 40 + years in the food hospitality business.