About Carolina Green Fair

Charleston Green Fair is supported by a Board of Directors made up of passionate individuals, who believe that by educating both consumers and businesses through the Green Fair Events it is possible to make South Carolina an even finer place to live!  Find out how you can help support The Carolina Green Fair.  We are looking for members of our event committees.  Please contact us at email hidden; JavaScript is required for information on how to get involved!

2012 Green Fair Board Members:

Suzie Webster –Carolina Green Fair, Co-Founder and Executive Director; Email:

Suzie founded the Charleston Green Fair in 2008 by bringing together a group of individuals interested in making Charleston a greener City. Several of those original members are now board members for the Carolina Green Fair.  In addition to the Carolina Green Fair, Suzie coordinates events for the Charleston City Paper and other fundraisers as needed.  She feels her purpose is to bring people together to create fun, educational events that support the community we live in.  She has three daughters from 6-15 years old and a patient husband who puts up with her crazy schedule.

Chris Winn: Event Evangelist, Carolina Green Fair; Email:  

Chris previously produced and managed an 11 city travelling bicycle circus that raised over a million dollars for various bike advocacy groups around the western and mid-western US.  Aside from being a staunch bike advocate, Chris is a fan of quality beers made by quality companies.  He loves long walks on the beach, sushi, hot tubbing, and putting on events that are fun and purpose driven as opposed to revenue driven.

Chris believes that sustainability should be an ecstatic practice and anything we can do to demonstrate that will encourage others to join the fold.

Katie Wells: Board President; Owner, Principal, K.E.W. Solutions, Inc.; Email:   ;

Katie Wells is the President and Founder of K.E.W. Solutions, Inc., a full-service hospitality training company. Ms. Wells is a seasoned hospitality professional. She is formerly the Director of Training for Charlestowne Hotels, the largest hotel management company in the Southeast. During her time there, two of her properties were named in the top 100 hotels worldwide for customer service by TripAdvisor.

Nicole Garrigan: Board Vice President; Marketing & Meeting Management Consultant; Email Address:  ;

Nicole Garrigan’s background is a focused blend of marketing, meeting management and
technical event services. Her strengths lie in having a keen understanding of event logistics
while keeping the client’s brand and goals top of mind.

Meeting and event logistics have woven their way through Nicole’s entire career. She has
delivered event services for gatherings ranging from local corporate luncheons to international
multi-day, multi-venue, VIP-level conferences for 1,500 attendees.

As a consultant for the Pearson Group, Nicole works directly with clients from the site selection
process to post conference evaluation and debriefing. She serves as a liaison to hotels and
venues and works closely with conference vendors in all aspects of the advance planning. She
oversees onsite meeting and event logistics to include event design and setup, registration,
audio visual monitoring, speaker liaison and attendee/guest satisfaction.

Nicole also serves on the Charleston American Marketing Association Board as President-elect,
as well as on the Coastal Butterfly Conservatory Board. She spends her free time teaching her
kids about life and looking for new adventures.

Brian Kurtz: Board Treasurer; Owner, Brian Kurtz, CPA; Email:  email hidden; JavaScript is required

Carolee Williams: Board Secretary;  Project Manager, City of Charleston; Email:  

Carolee Williams serves as a Project Manager for the City of Charleston. The variety of projects over the years is what she appreciates. From supporting the development plans for the International African American Museum, to the crafting of the City’s Downtown Plan, to the creation of City facilities such as the Lowcountry Senior Center, the Maritime Center and the Greenburg Municipal Complex, to working with the Green Committee and City staff on the development of the Green Plan to the launch of the Green Business Challenge. Carolee majored in history at Wake Forest University and got her Masters in Urban and Environmental Planning from the University of Virginia. When not working or raising her sons, she loves to kayak and enjoy the simplicity of life at her 1840′s log cabin.

Anna Richardson: Wedding Event Planner; Email:  email hidden; JavaScript is required

Rebecca Preston Burke, Esq:

Rebecca Preston Burke is an attorney in Charleston, South Carolina, dedicated to helping local food entrepreneurs grow our local foodshed. Growing up in the historically agricultural Pee Dee region of South Carolina, Becky has a longtime love for sustainable agriculture and fresh local food.

Licensed to practice in 2009, Becky is a member of the South Carolina Bar Association and the Charleston County Bar Association. When not practicing law, she enjoys spending time with her husband, Cory, and their two dogs.  She continues her love of learning about local food by working on the Roti Rolls truck, moonlighting at HUSK Restaurant in downtown Charleston and volunteering with groups such as Lowcountry Local First.

Courtenay Speir: Director of Development, Coastal Conservation League; Email: ;

Courtney came to CCL from Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, where she was Senior Manager for Strategy.  Prior to Lincoln Center, Courtenay worked for Sotheby’s Auction House and in arts management and conservation in New York.  Courtenay holds a BA in Art History from Fordham University, and a Master’s in Public Policy from New York University. She enjoys opera, symphonic music, travel, backpacking, running and tournament golf.

Erin Pabst : Community Relations, Alcoa; Email: ;

Erin grew up in Laurens, SC and graduated from Presbyterian College. She moved to Charleston in 2004 and worked for the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce in the Public Policy division before accepting the role of Communications Specialist for aluminum manufacturer Alcoa, Mt. Holly,  in the fall of 2008. Involved with the Public Relations Society of America and Charleston Young Professionals, she also serves as the Communications Committee Chair for the Presbyterian College Lowcountry Alumni Chapter.

Erin enjoys running and biking, spending time with friends and family, and shopping (using reusable bags, of course!). She wants to contribute her efforts to help spread the word about sustainability with the belief that once people try to make little changes to be more “green,” they’ll be hooked!

Greg Garvan: First Affirmative Financial Network; Email:  

Nancy Carter: Production Coordinator; Email:

Nancy is passionate about healthy lifestyles, positive work, and our environment.  She has a bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and years of experience in restaurant and hospitality management as well as small-business ownership.  Most recently, she served as Marketing Specialist for Charleston County Environmental Management.

Long ago she left graduate school at Columbia University to “join the carnival” and spend the next 15 years travelling throughout the Northeast, growing a family and successful business while broadening her life experience.   She still loves the creativity and vitality of fairs, and “Green” makes it all so Good!

Robert Hy Gorman: Financial Planner, Northwestern Mutual;  Email: ;

Rob Gorman was born in Mississippi and moved to California at the age of 6.  He spent his childhood as a professional actor in Hollywood and left the entertainment business to attend college at Wake Forest University.  With a degree in Business and a concentration in IT and Finance, he accepted a position at Blackbaud as their Accounting Analyst.  Rob left Blackbaud in 2004 to start his own financial service practice at Northwestern Mutual Financial Network in Charleston.

Stacey Elicker: Principal/Strategic Planning – Little Highrise ;

Stacey has been in the advertising and interactive industries for more than ten years and has worked on both the creative and business sides of the business. Her primary concentration has been in multimedia, website design, and online advertising campaigns.  She was nominated for the Marketer of the Year Award in 2010 by the American Marketing Association and serves on many organizations in the Lowcountry including the Junior League of Charleston, Medal of Honor Convention 2010 Web Committee, and the Center for Women.

Stacey Rafalowski: Director, Earth Force; Email:

Toni Reale: Owner, Blue Planet Green Events; Email:  

Dr. Brian Class: Owner, Maximized Living Health Center; Email: email hidden; JavaScript is required">email hidden; JavaScript is required

Dr Brian Class is a wellness physician who resides in Charleston, South Carolina. Dr Class is an official physician to the USA  Athletes. He brings the message of true natural health and Olympic level living back to his practice where he teaches his patients and the community to live to their optimal levels, free of medications and surgeries. Dr Class is a well known radio show host to “Maximize Your Health” on 94.3 FM WSC Saturdays at 10am. He and his wife Nina are the founders of a local health center in Mount Pleasant, where hundreds of families have come to find true health, new found hope and ways to maximize their lives to the fullest potential. Through nutrition, lifestyle classes, detoxification and spinal correction they help families achieve maximum health from within.

Joan Traylor: Membership Director, South Carolina Hospitality Association;  Email:  email hidden; JavaScript is required