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All About Earning Your CPCE from Lauren Twichell

A CPCE designation signifies your mastery and knowledge of 8 core competencies as a professional in the catering and events industry. CPCE stands for Certified Professional in Catering and Events. It is a nationally recognized program and you receive the certification through NACE. It truly is the mark of excellence for catering and event professionals!

The 8 CPCE Core Competencies are:

  1. Accounting
  2. Beverage Management
  3. Catering Services
  4. Contracts and Agreements
  5. Food Production
  6. Event Management
  7. Human Resources
  8. Sales and Marketing

I believe that your education doesn’t end after school. Continuing to further your education as a professional is what sets you apart from all the other event professionals out there. The CPCE program allows you to become a trusted events and catering vendor partner and gives you a competitive advantage in the job market.

For me, earning my CPCE is about more than JUST my years of experience and my job title. Having earned my CPCE, I am not only demonstrating my expertise in these 8 subjects of the event industry and food and beverage, but I am also proving to myself, my employers, and my clients that I am an essential and versatile resource when planning and managing an event.

Preparing and studying for the CPCE is definitely something you want to make time in your schedule for. I received my bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston Conrad Hilton School of Hotel and Restaurant Management, so I have had a thorough education in food and beverage safety, policies, and guidelines. But this was over a decade ago! Guidelines and protocols for the catering and events industry have evolved over time. So, I decided to take a Fast Track Course that NACE offers to freshen up my knowledge and I also used the CPCE handbook as a study guide.

On the morning of the test, like anyone else might feel, I was equally calm and nervous at the same time. I knew I was well-prepared, but I was anxious and ready to take the test! I was able to take the test during the NACE Evolve Conference earlier this year that was hosted in Dallas. And sweet Kevin Brant was my proctor.

If you’re interested in receiving your CPCE or you want to learn more, reach out to myself or another board member. As a chapter, we can set up a study group, and plan our own test date in DFW with a local proctor. It’s an incredibly easy process to set this up for our members, and the DFW NACE Board is always happy to facilitate the planning! Also, I want to note, that it was incredibly helpful to have a supportive group of friends and colleagues to study with and to be able to cheer each other on through it all. We were also able to quiz one another!

You can reach me at vicepresident@dfwnace.com

Lauren Twichell, CPCE
Director of Business Development, CN Catering
Vice President of DFW NACE

Meet the Board: Lauren Twichell, CPCE – Vice President

Tell us about your business or the work you do.

I work for CN Catering as the Director of Business Development 

How long have you been a NACE member? On the board?

NACE Member about 7 years and on the board about 3 🙂 

What is your personal motto?

What goes around comes around, treat everyone the way you’d expect to be treated in return. 

What is your guilty pleasure?

I love the spa, like a really nice and unfortunately expensive spa day! 

Which actor or actress would play you in the movie about your life?

Hmm, what a fun question! I WISH it was Tina Fey, but it would probably be Melissa Joan Hart! 

What does true leadership mean to you?

I love trying to ensure all of my friends and peers feel like they know I am always behaving or acting for the greater good. I am always wanting them to succeed and for all of us as an industry to rise together! I think that I do this with my own actions every day and hope my peers feel the same. 

What is in the trunk of your car right now?

Oh, a foldable wagon of course! You never know when you’ll need that bad boy!

Legends of NACE: Leigh Tidwell

Tell us about your business or the work that you do.

I’m the Regional Sales Manager for AFR Furniture Rental – We provide soft seating solutions for conferences, events, and sporting events.

What year did you join NACE? 

2005

How do you define success.

I define success as being a benefit to your community and the world around you.  Setting goals that make the world a better place then utilizing your skills and network to achieve them. 

What would the title of your autobiography be? 

One day at a Time

Tell us your favorite NACE moment or memory.

My favorite NACE moment was when we raised over 2,500.00 for Cafe Momentum to support them – it was amazing! The membership really rallied to the cause. 

Advice for newer members of NACE


Get involved!  You definitely get back what you put into it.  Join a committee – any time spent is well worth it.  

Over the years what is the most important thing you have gained through NACE? 

Leadership skills and friendships that last a life time. 

Meet the Board: Lauren Schmidt, Secretary

Tell us about your business or the work you do.

 I am the owner of two companies, a planning firm called The Creative Touch, Events by Lauren which has been around over 10 years, and a floral design company called Freesia. I intentionally keep the two businesses separate because, well, they are two totally different beasts.  I also love the relationships I have with other planners and I want them to feel comfortable to bring their clients to Freesia knowing that their in good hands with their floral needs and that’s it. On the planning side, our focus is mainly weddings and social events.  On the floral side, we literally do so many fun things from weekly floral/plant design for restaurants, hotels, attorney’s offices and banks.  We design for weddings, corporate events, showers, funerals, you name it…doesn’t matter…where anyone wants flowers, we will create it for them.  We recently made and hand delivered rose box invitations for a client all over the metroplex.

How long have you been a NACE member? On the board?

I have been a NACE member since at least 2008…so 12 glorious years. On the board? I have served on the board for 5 of those years. Once I had my littles, I took a bit of a break, but now I’m back!

What is your personal motto?

“Where there’s a will, there’s a way.” 

What is your guilty pleasure?

I have a few…is that bad??? I love wine & cheese….anytime, for any reason.  I love cheddar & sour cream chips….ahh I cannot keep my hands out of the bag.  And I really do love to binge watch Netflix series…I’m always bummed when there isn’t another season to pull up on a favorite show.

Which actor or actress would play you in the movie about your life?

Hmm, that’s a toughie. I would have to say Sandra Bullock because her character roles always have a quirky, yet strong independent and loving spirit about them and I think she could pull my personality off easily.

What does true leadership mean to you?

True leadership to me, is being a servant leader. I’ve always been the type that if I knew my boss’ had been there, done that and gone through it themselves then I had that much more confidence and respect for them and was more willing to go the extra mile. I have done that throughout my career and my team knows that I will step in to help out whenever needed.  I also strive to teach them the tools to be successful and work independently on their own. And to know that they matter, their input matters. I believe that’s part of how we as a company become more successful and efficient. 

What is in the trunk of your car right now?

A box full of pine cones…prepping for the holidays!

Legends of NACE: Wendy Timson

Tell us about your business or the work that you do.

Director of Sales for Shag Carpet Prop Rentals.  We are a rental company that provides unique props and décor to create fabulous events

What year did you join NACE? 

June of 2006 – wow, it has been a long time

How do you define success.

When you feel fulfilled in both your personal and professional life

What would the title of your autobiography be? 

Planning for Others:  A Life in Events

Tell us your favorite NACE moment or memory.

Winning the NACE National Member of the Year award.  I was up against some pretty amazing others in the industry and wasn’t expecting to win.  I felt so honored to be recognized in that way on a National level.

Advice for newer members of NACE

Don’t under estimate the power of connections.  When you know people and you help each other out and can count on each other you can achieve just about anything for your clients.

Over the years what is the most important thing you have gained through NACE? 

Friends and Colleagues all over the US that I can reach out to for advice, guidance, friendship and a good laugh

Meet the Board: Luke Wilson, Director of Ways and Means

Tell us about your business or the work you do.

Luke Wilson Events is a wedding planning and design company specializing in destination weddings in the United States with a focus in the Southeast.

How long have you been a NACE member? On the board?

Since June 2019, Since January 2020

What is your personal motto?

“Do the most!” What this means to me is that everything I touch I really want to do to the absolute best of my ability.

What is your guilty pleasure?

Lavish vacations.

Which actor or actress would play you in the movie about your life?

I have never thought about this before and so it is a very interesting question! I don’t even know who I would pick.

What does true leadership mean to you?

True leadership to me means stepping up to the plate when things aren’t always going so well! As a wedding planner, I often use the phrase “you don’t hire a wedding planner for when things are coming up roses”.

What is in the trunk of your car right now?

Absolutely nothing! I am a hyper organized person and cannot stand to have Mess or Clutter anywhere.

Member Spotlight: Jonathan Goldwater

Tell us about your business or the work you do, including what you provided at the event you most recently sponsored.

GladTower provides photography to document events and fun services designed to ‘bring smiles to faces.’ The Photography work includes: Special events, golf tournaments, meetings, product, group photos and head shots. And, my Fun Services are focused on adding creativity and quality to the occasion.  Many of you will have enjoyed being part of a Green Screen photo you might have enjoyed pushing your BBF into the gaping jaws of a giant white shark, or maybe you played the role of the hapless person being pushed into that sharp-toothed mouth with a look of terror on your face. FlipBooks are fun and still bring smiles to faces. However, my newest service the PicsOnDrinksTM is something that was created for a client who requested ‘something special, something different.’  At the gala my team did PicsOnDrinks which was very well received and met the goal of bring smiles to faces.

What do you love most about the work you do?

To work with the company and do events, you must do a great job and genuinely enjoy people.  At the end of the event I want to hear ‘the time just flew by’ and that they had a ‘great time.’  When team members are happy, they share the warmth, the guests smile more and all have more fun.  I enjoy that warm feeling where we work together as a team enjoying our time together and providing services that share the joy.  One day Janie asked if she could work with Nica because she hadn’t seen her for a while and wanted to catch up.  It was wonderful, they had a great time and the client was very happy with the personable team I’d sent to the event.  This is what puts a smile on my face.

Which best describes you? Iphone/Mac, Iphone/PC, Android/Mac, Android/PC?

Both do the job.

When you’re not working, what are you doing?

Walking the dog, meeting with friends, movies, reading.

Tell us one thing on your bucket list.

 Galapagos Islands – I’ve always wanted to see those strange and wonderful animals in the wild.

Is there a song you wish they would stop playing at events?

Anything by Nine Inch Nails

If you had one extra hour of free time a day, how would you use it?

 I guess spend more time with my NACE friends.

Legends of NACE: Luana Stoutmeyer

Tell us about your business or the work that you do.

I am a musician with Center Stage Band. I play with my jazz group of 2-6 players with the options of keys, bass, drums, guitar, sax, trumpet, trombone, violin.  I also play solo piano/keyboard. We play for parties, weddings, private events

What year did you join NACE? 

June 1988

How do you define success?

Success is certainly different to everyone, but for me, success is doing what you like or even love and earning enough money to support this. That doesn’t mean you are always in the best place, but if you are creative, and not afraid, you can get there.

What would the title of your autobiography be? 

Never Think You Are Less

Tell us your favorite NACE moment or memory.

So many!! At one of the national conferences Kevin [Brandt] and I were setting on the ground watching fireworks and I remember saying “Do you believe this-we are the luckiest people in the world.”

Advice for newer members of NACE

Never be shy-approach all of us-tell us what you do and why we should work with you. Get on committees and be visible. Be confident! Spend money—go to the National Conference. It is an investment in your connections with us.

Over the years what is the most important thing you have gained through NACE? 

Confidence. I am never afraid to meet new people, I am never afraid to be rejected—it’s ok,  and I am never afraid to “ask for the order.”

Meet the Board: Constance Crouch, Co-Director of Programs

Tell us about your business or the work that you do.

I am the director of Special Events for the Fashion Industry Gallery. We are a Wholesale Apparel Market specializing in Women’s Contemporary apparel, and outside of our in-house markets held five times a year we host private and public events in our 25,000 square foot event space.

How long have you been a NACE member? On the Board?

I have been a NACE member since 2018 and this is my first year on the board. I have been on the Fundraiser Committee for the past few years too.

What is your personal motto?

To not let things out of my control cause me added stress.

What is your guilty pleasure?

Dirty Martini’s

Which actress would play you in the movie about your life?

Probably Hilary Duff or Reese Witherspoon only because I get that I look like both of them.

What does true leadership mean to you?

To hold myself to a higher standard and lead by example.

What is in the trunk of your car right now?

Dog beds and blankets

NACE Webinar Series

Stay Productive, Build Skills, Set Goals, & Prioritize Self-Care

**Monday, April 20th – Thursday, April 23rd**

NACE and the Foundation of NACE, along with NACE Business Partner, Wedding Industry Speakers, is bringing a webinar series to you the week of April 20th.

Best of all, all four of the webinars are FREE to all NACE members, and non-members alike!

There is a great line-up of both topics and speakers. Meghan Ely will be the facilitator of the series. 

FREE for everyone!
You must register for each day separately at the links are below. Don’t forget to share with your friends and colleagues!

**Schedule for the week of April 20th**

Monday, April 20th
PRODUCTIVITY
Featuring Elizabeth Sheils on Mastering Email Once and For All, Jen Taylor on Setting Client Boundaries + Expectations during COVID, Renee Dalo on Connecting on Camera and Kevin Dennis, CPCE on Tech Apps – Managing from Home.
Register for Monday here

Tuesday, April 21st
BUILDING SKILLS
Featuring Michele Loretta on Cash Flow During Crisis, Brittny Drye on Getting Published, Leah Weinberg on The Psychological Impact of COVID on our Clients and Emily Sullivan on Finding Your Niche.
Register for Tuesday here

Wednesday, April 22nd
RECOVERY
Featuring Lisa Anhaiser on Goal Setting for Event Pros, Christie Osborne on Preparing Your Marketing for Recovery, Kinsey Roberts on Managing Your Business Reputation During and After COVID-19 and Aleya Harris on Future Proofing your Business with Email Marketing.
Register for Wednesday here

Thursday, April 23rd
RECHARGING
Featuring Eddie Zaratsian on Seeing/Finding Inspiration during COVID, Bron Hansboro on Self Discovery during COVID, Jose Rolon on Wellness During (and After) COVID, and Meryl Snow on Getting Ready for the New Normal.
Register for Thursday here