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A Monthly Newsletter
MARCH 2014
Issue 01
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Greetings!
I'm very excited to launch our monthly newsletter for our friends and neighbors! My team and I are looking forward to giving the community a closer look at the inner-workings and exciting developments here at Willowdale Estate. Look for updates on our property, the culinary team, stories about recent events, and new information about what's happening here at the estate.
As I reflect over the past 7 years, there have been so many wonderful experiences since I first opened Willowdale in 2007. I can hardly believe that we are now in 2014 starting yet another exciting year of weddings and events! It has been such a pleasure getting to know so many of you in the community, and I've loved building a fantastic team of individuals whose creativity and commitment to excellence have helped me to establish the kind of company that fulfills one of my passions - bringing people together to share in life's celebrations!
Sincerely,
Briar Rose Forsythe - Owner / CEO
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 Our New Look - Introducing a NEW Logo and Website!
In 2014 we are proud to launch our new branding, which pays tribute to our historic background and highlights our modern business approach for Weddings & Events. Along with our fresh logo, we have a new stream-lined website that features quick and easy links to our Signature Events Series, updated photos, and expanded offerings for events at Willowdale Estate. Be one of the FIRST guests to visit our new website: WillowdaleEstate.com
We hope that this website is more user-friendly and informative for all of our visitors and guests of the estate. Let us know what you think!
Feature contributed by Sarah Boucher, Sr. Sales & Marketing Manager
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 Let's Give Them A Wedding! On January 24, 2014, Willowdale Estate was honored to host a very special event. It all started one month earlier as news had spread about a young man and his bride-to-be.... Jenn and Erick had planned an August 2014 wedding but when Erick received devastating news about a terminal illness, the wedding was cancelled. The wedding community bonded together for a truly amazing response.."Let's Give Them a Wedding"! Briar Forsythe, owner of Willowdale Estate, instantly agreed that she would be involved and the Venue was set! The wedding was planned in less than a month with help from the Willowdale Planning and Culinary Teams, as well as many other outside vendors who pulled together to make Jenn and Erick's Dream Wedding come true. Willowdale Estate and the entire staff donated their time, energy, resources, and enthusiasm to make this event a perfect one for Jenn, Erick and their friends and family. The compassion, generosity and spirit of the entire wedding industry makes this a truly inspirational story, and one we are proud to be a part of! Feature contributed by Belinda Lane, Sales Manager |
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Open House Events at Willowdale Estate
Willowdale started 2014 off on the right foot with our January Wedding Open House, playing host to more than 60 newly engaged couples and their families. Attendees had the opportunity to sample passed hors d'oeuvres and Willowdale baked goods, explore the mansion and the grounds, and gain valuable insight about hosting their wedding at our beautiful venue!
Couples also got to take home a Willowdale Estate bag chock full with goodies, including vendor information, a newly-branded Willowdale water bottle, wedding magazines and much more.
We still have a few 2014 Mansion Wedding dates left in November and December - perfect for couples that are looking for holiday themed wedding! Check out this recent winter wedding for more inspiration from Zac Wolf Photography.
The next Wedding Open House is on Tuesday, May 20th from 6pm-8pm. Contact our Sales Team for more info at: Info@WillowdaleEstate.com
Feature contributed by Kaitlin Umbro, Sales Manager
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Willowdale Kitchens
In 2014 Willowdale Estate will host a series of exciting new culinary events! We thought our first newsletter would be the perfect opportunity to introduce our executive chef, Benjamin Lightbody (pictured left), who has been part of our culinary team for the past three years. When we asked him to share his background and philosophy on food he said the following... "I started my culinary journey 12 years ago. Since then it has lead me through many prestigious restaurants where I have added depth to both my palate and culinary repertoire. To me, cooking is a way to excite others and bring people together through one commonality. Creating food has also acted as a catalyst for me for connecting with my local surroundings, and the bounty that is available from local farmers and our community. Being a chef means so much more than just preparing food for consumption; it is the ability to constantly chase perfection, a constant march forward to create something that evolves into memories for others."
As the first of our new culinary events, Willowdale Estate opened its doors on February 14th to the North Shore Community to host its first ever Parisian-inspired Valentine's Day dinner! This sold-out event featured a three-course menu that was "très magnifique", including dishes like duck confit croquette, duet of beef with roasted tenderloin, braised short rib ragout, and lemon tarts accompanied by lavender-honey crème fraiche! The night ended with a house made dark chocolate truffle prepared by Willowdale Kitchens (pictured below).
 If you missed us on Valentine's Day, be sure to buy tickets now for our Willowdale Kitchens Chef Tasting event, which will be a preview of farm fresh flavors of Spring! Join us in our state-of-the-art Test Kitchen in The Coach House at Willowdale Estate. Small groups of 10 will dine with our chef and get an up close and personal look at techniques and ingredients that can take food to the next level.
Menu Preview
warm spring vichyssoise
mint glazed rack of lamb, minted peas, grilled spring onions
strawberry - rhubarb 'pie'
Get tickets while they last! bit.ly/WillowdaleMarch16
Feature Contributed by Kaitlin Umbro, Sales Manager
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