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Staff

Carol Galle, CMP

President & CEO

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  • Left her heart in New York City
  • Began her meeting planning career at General Motors
  • Steals pens
  • Once gave the shirt off her back to a client (literally)
  • Serves as Vendor Vice Chair of University Event Planners
  • Former film critic
  • Dresses her dog in a Halloween costume
  • Collects pink elephants because, if they exist, then anything is possible
  • Onsite must-have: Speakers' cell phone numbers
View Carol Galle's LinkedIn profileView Carol Galle's profile
 

Mike Galle

Creative Director & Executive Producer

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  • Has worked with everyone from Boy Scouts to Bill Ford to the Archbishop Desmond Tutu
  • Hopwood award winner
  • Sneaks candy from the office candy bowl when his wife isn’t looking
  • Formerly ranked in the Western Tennis Association
  • Studied creative writing with author Joyce Carol Oates
  • Believes Bob Dylan is the greatest songwriter of all time
  • Proud PTSA Council president
  • Is resident expert on the latest audio/visual technology
  • Taught English and dug latrines in Africa with Peace Corps
View Mike Galle's LinkedIn profileView Mike Galle's profile
 

Tina Jackman

Meetings & Conferences Manager

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  • Grade school spelling bee champion
  • Expert at technical meetings and tradeshows
  • Spoils niece and nephew just shy of rotten
  • Believes she has the best clients
  • Is a morning person
  • Bakes amazing pumpkin bread
  • Believes life isn't worth living without music
  • Onsite must-have: Post-it notes
View Tina Jackman's LinkedIn profileView Tina Jackman's profile
 

Lindsay Krause

Meeting & Event Manager

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  • Developed an event countdown/task list for the birth of her second child
  • Helped launch Detroit public relations agency
  • Closet fan of Big Brother TV show
  • Creative genius
  • Plans vacations around visits to microbreweries
  • Has a passion to find and tell the "story" of each event
  • Has the most organized CD collection of anyone we know
  • Is former client of Special D Events
  • Onsite must-have: Anti-bacterial gel
View Lindsay Krause's LinkedIn profileView Lindsay Krause's profile
 

Molly Hawkins

Meeting & Event Manager

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  • Met Special D Events' president during a national emergency
  • Loves to organize and be organized
  • Seems to attract meetings in and around Washington DC
  • Mother of two boys (Sean and Chase)
  • Believes that leopard print can be a neutral
  • Can't get enough of the Bravo channel
  • Has the most detailed BEO revisions that we've ever seen
  • Lives her life with Gwen Stefani style
  • Onsite must-have: mini-binder
View Molly Hawkins's LinkedIn profileView Molly Hawkins's profile
 

Bridgette Anderson

Meeting & Event Manager

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  • Loves playing and watching sports
  • Creates spreadsheets for everything (personal and business)
  • Resident expert in Microsoft Project
  • Former lifeguard
  • Lived in six states before 2nd grade
  • Knows there is always room for negotiation
  • Onsite must-have: Mints or gum, someone is always asking for some
View Bridgette Anderson's LinkedIn profileView Bridgette Anderson's profile
 

Alix Chapie

Assistant Meeting Planner

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  • Dreams of touring Europe to study art
  • Obsessed with wearing scarves daily
  • Enjoys taking dog Jack for nightly walks
  • Specializes in working with Special D Events' international clients
  • Spoiled by husband who cooks
  • Onsite must-have: Advil or Tylenol. There is always SOMEONE asking for it.
View Alix Chapie's LinkedIn profileView Alix Chapie's profile
 

Maribeth McGinnity

Office Manager

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  • Believes there is no substitute for quality
  • Can read four 800-page books in three days, while still finding time to spend with friends
  • Has a 98% comprehension level, which makes almost any new job responsibility a cinch to master
  • Is obsessed with Celtic history
  • Thinks Northern Michigan is the most beautiful place in the world, especially in the Fall
  • Is an avid texter, so you will rarely see her talking on her cell phone

 

View Maribeth McGinnity's LinkedIn profileView Maribeth McGinnity's profile
 

Sharon McMurray, APR

Communications Strategist

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  • Met her husband while cruising Woodward, long before it became the Woodward Dream Cruise
  • Former Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications for Comerica Bank
  • Recently fell in love with golf and now understands the concept of a love/hate relationship
  • Develops strategic communications plans to help clients meet their business objectives
  • Certified Beachmaster, responsible for making sure no one moves the beach while husband is scuba diving
  • Graduate of the Greater Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce Leadership Detroit program
  • Proud mom of two rescued Australian Shepherds, but she doesn't dress them in Halloween costumes
View Sharon R. McMurray's LinkedIn profileView Sharon R. McMurray's profile
 

Jerry Schmidt, CMP

Meeting Planner serving To PLAN Ahead

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  • Met his wife on a blind date
  • Lives by the rule “early is on time, and on time is late”
  • Got a hole in one at the Arizona Golf Resort in March, 2009
  • Goes to college football games to watch the marching band perform
  • Has completed site visits at hotels in Switzerland, France, UK, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Brazil and Dominican Republic
  • Attended a week long “Clown Camp” and is a former member of the St. Paul Clown Club in Minnesota
  • Loves to mow lawns and appreciates a good diamond pattern
  • Is on the perpetual search for a 1909 - SVDB Wheat penny
  • Onsite must-haves: Box cutter and packing tape
View Jerry Schmidt, CMP's LinkedIn profileView Jerry Schmidt, CMP's profile
 

Liz Caldwell

Event Planner

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  • All time favorite activity is skiing powder in a snow storm
  • Large event specialist (has worked six Olympic Games, two Tour of California pro cycling races, a PGA golf tournament and a soccer World Cup)
  • Believes kindness is a business as well as a life skill
  • Wanna be dog owner
  • Once sailed from Hawaii to San Francisco during a major storm
  • Former teen model
View Liz Caldwell, CMP's LinkedIn profileView Liz Caldwell, CMP's profile
 

Brooke Jakobsen

Meeting & Event Planner

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  • Medical meetings expert
  • Former college tennis player with a wicked spin serve
  • Secretly dreams about living aboard a boat
  • Once chased a thief down the street to retrieve her meeting attendee’s laptop
  • Onsite must-have: Box of black Sharpies
View Brooke Jakobsen's LinkedIn profileView Brooke Jakobsen's profile
 

Jennifer Riggs

Meeting & Event Planner

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  • Can create a database or assemble a trade show booth in record time
  • Doesn’t eat red meat, but makes a mean turkey meatloaf
  • Is known for obsessively organized closets
  • Named her daughter after her grandmother (Grace)
  • Is the only one in the office who takes time to say good morning to every person, every day
  • Expert trade show consultant
 

Snickers

Top Dog & Senior Strategist

Snickers
  • Thinks Caesar Milan is overrated
  • Prefers chicken to beef
  • Big fan of the mail carrier, but not so sure about the FedEx guy
  • Has identity issues (unsure if he is a Daschund or a Maltese)
  • Constantly seeks out new ways to appear cute and treat-worthy

http://twitter.com/SnickerzTHEdog" Follow @SnickerzTHEdog

 


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Blog, Tips, & Resources

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Meet The Staff

Carol Galle, CMP

President & CEO

carol-galle
  • Left her heart in New York City
  • Began her meeting planning career at General Motors
  • Steals pens
  • Once gave the shirt off her back to a client (literally)
  • Serves as Vendor Vice Chair of University Event Planners
  • Former film critic
  • Dresses her dog in a Halloween costume
  • Collects pink elephants because, if they exist, then anything is possible
  • Onsite must-have: Speakers' cell phone numbers
View Carol Galle's LinkedIn profileView Carol Galle's ...

Contact Us

Special D Events, Inc.
1229 South Washington Ave.
Royal Oak, MI USA 48067
Phone: (248) 336-8600
Fax
: (248) 336-8610

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