Club + Resort Business’ Second Annual Awards recognize Hampton Hall Club in Bluffton, S.C. for organizing a series of monthly outdoor concerts in the parking lot to help sustain a sense of community and keep its operation going; and Champions Run in Omaha, Neb. for hosting “Burger Mania,” the largest drive-thru event the club has ever held.
The December 2020 issue of Club + Resort Business features the 2020 Innovation Awards, recognizing club and resort properties that have conceived and implemented concepts that have paid real dividends in the form of enduring member and guest satisfaction and loyalty.
These properties were recognized for innovative achievement in the Special Events category:
Like many club-management teams, the staff of the Hampton Hall Club in Bluffton, S.C., quickly responded to the challenge of the pandemic by coming up with innovative ideas to help to sustain a sense of community and keep its operation going.
In addition to virtual cooking, wine dinners and trivia events, the Hampton Hall team also organized a series of monthly outdoor concerts in the parking lot, assigning spaces by families and practicing social distancing by utilizing every other space, with a minimum of 10 to 12 feet between resident groups.
“Residents brought their own lawn chairs and were also provided with a pre-ordered picnic basket menu, which was then delivered to them in their parking space,” reports Loraine Ellis Vienne, CCM, CAM, Hampton Hall’s General Manager/Chief Operating Officer.
“These events followed all of the social-distancing guidelines provided by the Governor’s office in the state of South Carolina, and sold out at the maximum participation of 250 residents monthly,” Vienne says. “It provided people with an opportunity to feel engaged while at the same time feeling safe in their own space outdoors.”
As the concert series extended into the fall, Hampton Hall tied the monthly schedule into a Halloween “Spooktacular” celebration with individual trick-or-treat stations for attending families, and attendees got into the full spirit of things with costumes and all-out decorations for their assigned spaces.
“The concerts have been a huge success for us, and we will continue them even after COVID,” Vienne says.
Who says the pandemic put an end to big events? It didn’t stop Champions Run in Omaha, Neb. from having “Burger Mania,” the largest drive-thru event the club has ever held. Responding to a promotion for $5 burgers, members and their kids drove through the lot to get their dinner—and much more.
“We had beer carts, bars, scavenger hunts for the kids, live music, a Dog Food Truck and more,” reports Champions Run’s Ben Lorenzen. “Members were able to enjoy the comforts of the event from their own cars. We sold 1,024 burgers, 430 chicken sandwiches and 420 pounds of fries in just under three hours. It was a wild event.”
Caption: “Burger Mania” stacked up to be the largest drive-thru event ever held at Champions Run.
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