KHicks@bookece.com
(843) 810-4572
Kelly comes from a long line of Southern women who have hospitality + party planning in their bones. She considers herself to be a factual straight shooter, with a side of new age bohemian. Born + raised in the South, she was enrolled in her first ballet class at the age of 2 and premiered her first supporting role on a theater stage at the age of 7, as Gretl in the Sound of Music. Dance and musical theater remained a foundation of young life. She performed in nationally recognized travelling dance troupes, community theater and studied voice with Shirlee Teuber Goins of Studio Plus for 4 years in her hometown of Columbia, SC.
A proud graduate of the College of Charleston, Kelly graduated cum laude with a BA in Theater + Dance Performance. In her senior year, she starred + sang in a performance of The Caucasian Chalk Cricle by Bertolt Brecht in which she wrote all the music for the play, using the lines the playwright included in the script. This performance earned her a Kennedy Center Americal College Theater Festival nomination in the Musical Theater Award category. She was honored to perform in the 2003 Spoleto Festival’s revival of Meredith Monk’s Quarry, choreographed and trained by Ms. Monk herself.
After college, Kelly felt the call of the road to follow her favorite band around the country (as of this writing over 148 shows and counting….can you guess who?!?) and went to as many music festivals as she could muster, living on the west coast for the next 7 years. While out west, she studied yoga intensively at the Mount Madonna Center in Watsonville, CA which drew her into the world of kirtan, or ecstatic singing. She sang + recorded traditional style kirtan + spirituals with the Mount Madonna Choir for 3 years before moving back to the South to be closer to family + old friends.
Since 2014, Kelly has held a rich career in the events + wedding planning industry in Asheville, NC. Working as a Wedding + Catering Sales Manager, she was privileged to work with such luxury hotel groups as the Omni Grove Park Inn, Grand Bohemian Asheville + Biltmore Farms Hotels, providing event planning for weddings, galas, conferences and other private social events. In 2020, Kelly went to work full time for Verge Events as a luxury wedding planner, specializing in the Highlands/Cashiers area markets. Her love of organization, an exceptional eye for detail and her enthusiasm for her clients brought her great joy and recognition.
Now, Kelly is thrilled to bring her years of event planning experience and passion for music to the ECE team! Kelly says, “I pride myself in bringing a fresh + fun attitude to every endeavor! I can’t wait to ‘talk tunes’ with you!”.
