About Us

Melissa Porter

Porter spent the early part of her career planning elite cocktail parties and luncheons, bridal shows, weddings, and fashion shows in major cities across the Midwest. For eleven years, Porter worked as an event planner and ultimately the festival director for the City of Asheville, North Carolina. She was directly responsible for 5 festivals and consulting and permitting 100 other events annually with a combined attendance of over 500,000 people. Porter managed 6 staff members and served as the key media spokesperson to major media across the Southeast. Her accomplishments include director of Bele Chere, the largest, free, outdoor street festival in the Southeast, founder and director of the Asheville Film Festival, and securing over $1 million in funding for city-wide festivals.

Areas of special event management, festival and fundraising expertise include event logistics, vendors, sponsorship development, volunteer recruitment and management, community relations, marketing, public relations and event design. Managing nearly 800 events including weddings, festivals, community celebrations, corporate events and fundraisers has established Melissa Porter as one of the premier event planners in the region.

Becca Stefan Knuth

Having worked in the entertainment industry for most of her career, Knuth's solid background in organization and logistics led her to become an event and meeting planner for Wildfire Marketing, LLC. This opportunity has allowed her to hone her skills which can be effectively utilized by any organization. She has planned and implemented major events from BB&T Grand Openings to tailgate parties for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as well as many weddings and special events. Knuth has produced corporate meetings, charitable events, and parties for organizations such as Hanes Brands, BB&T, and Wrangler. Before entering into the event & meeting planning industry, Knuth was an Assistant Director on Feature Films for a number of major motion picture studios.

Cristin Lee 

Cristin Lee makes the presentation of perfection seem effortless.  What goes on behind the scenes is her responsibility; no detail too small not to be an opportunity for excellence.  Logic and resourefulness are essential for any gathering, from the choice of location to the pivotal point where the bride's dreams come true. As an AmeriCorps volunteer in CA, Cristin recognized her passion to help others.  After returning to the East Coast, she was fortunate enough for this to be the basis for a career involving community based event planning for the Town of Fletcher, NC and the City of Asheville.  Over the past eight years, Cristin has organized charity golf tournaments, parades, holiday festivities, and critical components of Asheville's largest festivals including Bele Chere, the Mountain Sports Festival and the Asheville Film Festival. Cristin is the client's champion no matter what obstacles arise.  She is calm and dependable while never forgetting that while her job is based in the realities of the event, the reason she is there is so that others can celebrate.

Allison Moore

Allison, originally from Greensboro, NC is an Appalachian State University grad with a major in Music Industry Studies. She began her career in the radio industry where she began organizing and planning events for the top two stations in the Triad area. She went on to pursue event planning in an unexpected place, Minor League Baseball. As the special event planner for the Greensboro Grasshoppers, Allison coordinated the 2008 South Atlantic League All-Star game as well as countless fundraisers, weddings and corporate events at the ballpark. When Allison is not working at Asheville Event Co. she is pursuing her other passion, music. She can be heard singing and playing her guitar at local establishments in Asheville.

Cortney Jackson

Cortney Jackson considers herself a "Bridal Concierge," there for whatever the special couple needs for one of their most important days. With the combination of creativity and organization, Cortney's philosophy is to plan for the best and be prepared for the unexpected. Her easy going style means the last minute details don't prevent a beautiful day from turning into something else.

Cortney's focus on service and details comes from the many years she spent working with her mother, designing spaces, decorating model homes and organizing special events for family, close friends and dear clients. Her love of design and focus on serving people and their individual needs propelled her to study interior design at Appalachian State University. Now with over 12 years of experience in both Interior Design and Wedding coordination, her passion now lies in giving each client a memorable experience and does everything in her power to make ensure every detail is perfect and every moment is beautiful.