Five Grain Events, LLC - Chicago, Illinois

Lake C. P.

Joan is an essential extension of our small non-profit team. She seamlessly integrates into our staff and works well with our other consultants to provide detail-oriented, timely direction and deliver results.

We trust Joan implicitly. She is thorough and professional, and has high-functioning executive skills that would be an asset to any potential client. From more intimate events to huge undertakings with 500+ people, we know that we can count on Five Grains to deliver a high-caliber production that our customers have come to expect from her work.

Molly O.

We had our wedding at the end of October 2024 and used Five Grain Events for “day of coordinating” services. I could tell you from my first meeting with Joan and Colleen that I would have nothing to worry about come time for our wedding. Joan and Colleen answered all my questions at that first meeting and also took the time to get to know my husband and I as a couple which was very refreshing in this industry. There was about 6 months between when I signed the contract and when the day of services started and there were a few times I had a couple of questions which Colleen answered without issue over email. When we started the actual “day of” service, Colleen laid out every detail and went over everything that we had coordinated to that point and officially “took over”. She reached out to all our vendors to introduce herself on my behalf and started going through everything and anything I could possibly imagine. She kept my husband and I on track and was always in contact if I ever developed any worries or concerns. On the day of the wedding, she was constantly calm, professional, and friendly which really helped us and the rest of my wedding party know that we were exactly where we needed to be. There were many times throughout the day when I turned with a question and Colleen was right there with the answer. Truly this team will go above and beyond. Shoutout to Jesseca and Marcela whole were Colleen’s two assistants the day of the wedding. They went above and beyond as well in making sure everything was on time. One of them even went and picked up our late night snack as the restaurant did not have delivery. Talk about doing everything! Just one of the many examples of Colleen and her team going above and beyond. I will without a doubt be telling anyone and everyone to use Colleen and Five Grain Events as their coordinator team as I can honestly say everything went perfect. I included the picture here just as the perfect representation of Colleen. She is the person behind the curtain helping everything go perfectly! Thanks again Five Grain Events!

Sinead F.

We were so glad we hired Five Grain Events to coordinate our September wedding at the Chicago Athletic Association. Planning a wedding felt like the epitome of “you don’t know what you don’t know”, so having our coordinator’s guidance on considerations and decisions we needed to make leading up to our wedding day was incredibly helpful. Jennifer our coordinator was incredibly communicative with us, our vendors, and my mother who was hosting our wedding. When there was an issue getting in touch with our florist the week leading up to our wedding, Jennifer was there to help (and calm me down!). When planning our day of schedule, Jennifer suggested that hors d'oeuvres and champagne could be brought to the room I was having my dress bustled in so that my husband and I could have a moment together between our ceremony and reception. Leading up to the wedding we didn’t think we would need that, but Jennifer suggested we leave it on the schedule as an option that we could decide on the day of. I’m so glad she did because that is one of our favorite moments from our wedding day! We cannot recommend Five Grain Events, and specifically Jennifer, enough!

Josh F.

I worked with Five Grain Events and Joan to plan a major annual gala for Evanston Scholars, a nonprofit organization. Joan is remarkably easy to work with, extremely well organized, and efficient. Most importantly, she is a problem solver and makes valuable suggestions and listens to the needs of the organization, making adjustments accordingly. The day of the event she and her team were cool and collected, taking care of business, staying out of the way, but making sure everything went smoothly so staff and volunteers could do their job. I have planned many events over my 24 years in nonprofits, and worked with lots of event planners, and I would definitely recommend Five Grain Events to anyone planning an important event.

Delaney P.

I worked with Joan and her Five Grain Team for our fundraising gala, Anchor Ball. Joan had worked with our community in prior years and proved herself to be a reliable, detail-oriented, and genuinely pleasant person to work with. Joan and her team were hands on, responsive, and listened to our needs throughout the entire planning process and night of. They went above and beyond to ensure we had a very successful event, and we cannot recommend Five Grain Events enough!

Kathleen R.

I cannot express how grateful i am to have had five grains and Colleen as our wedding planner! I underestimated how many logistics would have to be managed leading up to the wedding and on the day of and Colleen and her team made sure my planning process was care free. Truly, i can’t imagine throwing a wedding without the help of someone like Colleen. I did not have any planning related stress and felt so comfortable having her and her team by my side. I loved my wedding day and so much of that is thanks to them making sure it all went smoothly. Thank you thank you thank you!

Clare S.

We worked with Joan at Five Grains to plan our wedding in the North Shore of Chicago and had an amazing experience! We hired Joan for partial planning which included advice on budget, vendors, and a timeline with to-do list for each month during the 8 months leading up to our wedding. She also provided all the day-of planner services for us. She was EXCELLENT! The day felt relaxed and stress-free for me as a bride. She checked in regularly but wasn't overbearing and let me enjoy. We had a slight hiccup with shuttle arrival time which she completely handled without me even knowing about it. I would recommend Five Grains to anyone looking for help planning their special day.

Saint C. P. C.

We've worked with Joan and her team for the past two years on countless events. Our pre-planning meetings covered everything so that there were no surprises on the day of the event. With her extensive knowledge of fundraisers and community events, Joan was proactive in anticipating the needs and hurdles that we could expect. Joan and every one on her team were professional, fun, and excited to help us meet the goals of each event. We cannot say enough good things about Five Grain Events and highly recommend their services for your event needs.