This former New Yorker is always the first one to find order in the chaos onsite (and has a blast doing it!). After graduating from SUNY Fredonia in upstate New York, Alyse moved with friends to Sin City eventually working for TBA Global and becoming the Director of Operations for their Las Vegas branch. Four years ago, Alyse visited, fell in love with and then moved to Charlotte, N.C., and began working with Sterling Events to develop their Charlotte office. Today, she manages event logistics and operations for our Charlotte office’s growing list of clientele and says what she enjoys most about her nine years in this hectic industry is that each day is different and that she enjoys what she does and who she works with every single day.
Inside Scoop – Always up for an adventure, Alyse spent a semester in Italy and on a whim, before heading home, spent a month backpacking through Europe which “wasn’t always pretty but sure was fun!”
Andrea Littell – Director of Marketing
When it comes to Sterling, if you’re reading about it, she probably wrote it. Our resident writer is the voice behind our marketing and public relations campaigns. Since completing her B.S.B.A. in Marketing from University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Andrea has immersed herself in the field through various roles from merchandising to corporate communications to special projects management with freelance projects in between. Today, she helps educate our clients on our portfolio of services and is ready to share the “Sterling Story” to everyone she meets. Andrea is also leading the launch of our latest project, the WinMock at Kinderton, a unique special events venue housed in the historic WinMock barn in Bermuda Run, NC.
Inside Scoop – Married to a chef, Andrea spends a lot of her downtime trying (really hard) to harness her deeply hidden culinary talents and hiking with her pet Turtle (he’s a dog by the way).
Ashley Angell – Guest Services Coordinator
This recent Mars Hill College graduate officially joined Team Sterling in May following a successful stint as a summer intern. As a Guest Services Coordinator, Ashley is eager and ready to ensure our clients’ guests have a pleasant event experience from beginning to end. Ashley says building relationships is the best and brightest part of her job, and she loves the opportunity to let her creative side show. We love her positive attitude and willingness to always help.
Inside Scoop – This former collegiate softball player from Midway, NC loves playing outdoors, especially when it comes to her family’s intense bad mitten tournaments… always a sight to see!
Brooke Johnson – Director of Sales, Charlotte
A Salisbury, N.C. native, Brooke decided to stay put after graduating from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, beginning her career as a Women’s Programs Event Manager in the Dean of Students Office. Brooke transitioned into the special events industry a few years later working for Party Reflections, a Charlotte-based event rentals company, as their Business Development and Special Events Manager. Today, as our Director of Sales, Brooke has been a considerable force in not only growing but also strengthening our clients’ understanding of what a Destination Management company can do for a city and their inbound guests.
Inside Scoop – This new mom loves entertaining guests but be forewarned, her nickname is Hurricane. No questions please.
Casey Cheely – Senior Guest Services Coordinator
This Arkansas native is a graduate of University of Memphis, and a recent transplant to North Carolina. Prior to joining Sterling in 2009, Casey was a Business Development Manager for two healthcare clinics and most recently an Event Coordinator for Market America, working on both domestic and international conferences and events. She’s been in the event planning industry field for nearly seven years and says what she loves most is the people – the clients, the guests and her colleagues. Trust us. After one conversation with Casey, you can’t help but feel better with her can-do attitude and easy going spirit.
Inside Scoop – Don’t let the bubbly exterior fool you. This girl is secretly a voracious sports fanatic behind the scenes cheering on her Auburn Tigers and watching the NASCAR engines roar every chance she gets!
Danielle recently made a near cross country move with her husband, two kids and two dogs from Las Vegas to Clemmons, N.C. to head our Meetings division. We are so glad to have her here! Bringing over 17 years of industry experience as well as the designation of Certified Meeting Planner (CMP), Danielle began her career as a Convention Services Manager at the Mirage Hotel, moving on to Caesar’s Palace, transitioning into the role of Director of Catering and Convention Services. Most recently, Danielle was the Owner and President of her own meetings and conventions company, CDS Events. To us, her colleagues, Danielle is the go to girl for implementation which is fitting considering her favorite thing about this crazy business is onsite operations and seeing an event unfold from beginning to end. She said she loves knowing that at each event our attendees see our “Sterling Blue” shirts and always say they know everything will be great.
Inside Scoop - Her first week as a southerner was certainly filled with firsts, including her dogs’ first sighting of squirrels which resulted in her first broken bone resulting in her first trip to the local hospital. Hello North Carolina!
Helen Apple - Program Coordinator, Charlotte
This Lexington, N.C. native followed her love of the ocean to UNC-Wilmington, where she received her B.S. in International Business and then moved on to Florence, Italy to study and live. Ready for her next adventure, Helen moved to the Queen City to enter the special events world and spent the next few years at Discovery Place, first in Administration and then as the museum's Special Events and Group Sales Associate. Most recently, Helen created an Events and Catering program for a popular uptown restaurant. As one of Sterling’s newbies, Helen says she’s excited to join our dynamic Charlotte team and enjoys combining her knowledge in events, administration and travel to help planners and clients alike.
Inside Scoop - Helen keeps her love for water and travel alive by teaching swim lessons at the YMCA and planning new adventures in her daily life from hiking to cooking exotic food!
Jaime Hankins – Corporate Meeting Planner
Adding a little West Coast flavor to our Southern stew, is our favorite California girl and our lead meeting planner, Jaime Hankins. After graduating from the University of Las Vegas, Jaime parlayed a part-time job at Caesar’s Palace to a full time career as their youngest Catering and Convention Services Manager where she (strangely enough) worked under the supervision of our very own Danielle Strong. She spent a few years helping with freelance contract jobs for Sterling Events while she traveled the country with her husband, Ryan supporting his minor league baseball career. Prior to joining Sterling, Jaime also spent time back in California working as a Sales Manager for the Hyatt Regency Hotel. She says her favorite thing about her role at Sterling is the opportunity to work with such a diverse client base and the travel.
Inside Scoop – We consider Jaime in a league of her own, fitting for this former division one collegiate softball player now proud mother of toddler Ryan Jr. and cocker spaniel, Sammy.
Jan Levine – Managing Director, Triangle
A native of the Triangle Region, Jan has over 20 years experience in the travel, meetings, and destination management industry, as well as the designation of Certified Travel Consultant (CTC). As Managing Director of Sterling Events - Triangle, Jan Levine provides a full range of destination management services utilizing Sterling’s in house resources and local partners. In addition to offering destination management services in the Triangle, she also provides meeting planning and incentive travel services to local clients. Prior to joining Sterling Events, she was the President of Corporate Events & Occasions, Inc., a meeting and convention planning firm based in Cary, NC. Before entering the North Carolina market, Jan served as President of a leading meetings and incentives company in Atlanta, GA for over 15 years. She truly enjoys coupling her unique experience as a meeting planner, travel consultant, and special events coordinator with her local expertise to develop creative, budget conscious programs that maximize her clients’ ROI.
Inside Scoop – A mother of two handsome boys, Jan sent her youngest away to college this year… let the games begin!
Katherine Cornatzer – Director of Creative Services
Not only is Katherine the creative mind behind Sterling’s design work, she’s always the one who keeps us laughing in the office every single day. After obtaining a degree in Graphic Design from Guilford Tech and a Bachelors of Business Administration in Marketing from High Point University, Katherine worked with the Winston Salem Journal as a graphic designer creating print and online advertisements for local companies in the Piedmont Triad. Three years ago, she joined Team Sterling and once onboard, she quickly enhanced the look and feel of our clients’ meetings and conventions both pre-show and onsite. In addition to her actual design work, Katherine manages the production of our clients’ event materials and websites, making sure everything runs smoothly, on point and on time.
Inside Scoop – Katherine is known to make herself laugh, will not get near a watermelon and spends most of her downtime hanging out with her husband, Chad and sassy English Bulldog Lulu remodeling the house she grew up in, creatively making it a home of her own.
Kristen Prestwood – Director of Event Design, Sterling By Design
Not only is she fun to be around, but this girl has an incredible eye for award winning design and brings
fresh décor ideas to the table time and time again. A graduate of the University of North Carolina at
Charlotte, Kristen jumped into the event industry as an intern for a local décor company. After graduating,
she became the company’s event manager, and a few years later, decided to branch out on her own launching
By Design Event Group in Charlotte. After partnering with our Charlotte team for years on projects,
Kristen recently made the decision to start a new chapter in her career by joining the Sterling
family to head up our new event design and décor division, Sterling By Design. Passionate about
producing unique and unexpected events, she finds inspiration everywhere traveling both nationally
and internationally to attend leading design conferences to bring the latest and greatest trends
back home to her wedding, social and corporate clients. Her favorite thing about her job? “Walking
into an empty space and seeing the room come together, hour by hour…watching the things in my head
and written proposals come to life. And the client reactions are always a special bonus!” www.sterlingbydesigngroup.com
Inside Scoop – When she’s not planning events for clients, she’s hosting mini-soirees at home – cooking
and entertaining friends with her hubby Joshua and two furry kids, Duncan the cocker spaniel and baby
Maxine the boxer.
Sarah Alexander – Senior Registration & Hotel Coordinator
If you don’t know how to make it work, Sarah probably does. At least that’s how we feel here at Sterling! After graduating from North Carolina State University with a B.S. in Animal Science, Sarah quickly realized that although she loved working with animals she might enjoy it more as a hobby and get back to the event world where she spent most of her weekends and after school time. Prior to joining Sterling, Sarah worked in multiple positions for a premier local catering company specializing in private events and fine dining. She spent her first year at Sterling in our Destination Management division working closely with inbound clients, and has most recently been our go-to person in Meetings for all things hotel and registration. What does she like most about Sterling? The camaraderie! She says “we’re friends and coworkers which makes for an incredible support system that I think helps all of our abilities and creative juices flow as strong as possible”.
Inside Scoop – If she’s not at Sterling, she’s in boots and jeans riding and showing Reining horses (and cleaning stalls whether she likes it or not!)
Sara Wiles – Manager of VIP Services
Our resident Boca girl is a graduate of Florida State University with a degree in Recreation and Leisure Services Administration with an emphasis in Event Planning. She has been actively involved in the planning and execution of corporate and social events since her days as a Seminole working as both a public relations and special events intern. She has also helped coordinate special events for numerous non-profit organizations including Susan G. Komen’s Race For The Cure, Make A Wish Foundation and The Brad Johnson Celebrity Golf Tournament benefiting the Ronald McDonald House. Following the successful implementation of our enhanced VIP program, Sara was recently promoted to be our super fabulous Manager of VIP Services providing our clients and their guests with super tailored service. Sara works with planners and clients alike on exclusive VIP services including luxury suite reservations, private transportation management, golf arrangements, spa bookings and private dining arrangements. Her objective is to help your VIP’s feel extra pampered during your group’s trip.
Inside Scoop - This newlywed, whose last name recently changed from Weil to Wiles – try remembering that one!, is the mother of a furry son, Rocky and is our in-house fitness guru, always keeping the rest of us in line and in the know.
Susie Lamb – Group Travel Coordinator
If we had to pick the most popular person here at Sterling it would probably be Susie. Her bubbly spirit is infectious and her thirty plus years of travel experience is invaluable to her colleagues and clients alike. Short of being an actual pilot, she’s nearly done it all in the airline industry – from flight control to reservations to agent and she once even helped with an emergency landing in Atlanta (although she would prefer never to do that one again!). One of her most memorable experiences was participating in an evacuation flight simulator where she performed as an attendant and as a passenger – certainly gave her a new perspective. What has kept her in the industry, even through its evolution? She says it’s the relationships you build and the intrinsic rewards you receive hearing the great stories and feedback after a successful trip. Plus – you can’t beat the travel and adventure experienced all over the world!
Inside Scoop - This pint-sized pistol has been riding Harley’s for over ten years, loves to garden and can decorate a house for the holiday’s like nobody’s business.
Traci Ireland – Group Travel Coordinator
With a degree in Travel & Hospitality and over 16 years of experience in the travel industry, Traci has taken on full spectrum of roles in group, meeting, leisure and incentive travel and is always ready to help our clients and their guests move seamlessly from point A to point B. As a member of our Travel team, she helps our clients with both their international and domestic group travel arrangements and is also responsible for making sure our clients’ travel dollar is maximized through diligent research, negotiation and recommendations. She says her favorite part about Sterling is working with such a diverse group of people with a high level of customer service and a true passion for what they do!
Inside Scoop – This mother of two enjoys spending time with her family cooking it up in the kitchen.
This former New Yorker is always the first one to find order in the chaos onsite (and has a blast doing it!). After graduating from SUNY Fredonia in upstate New York, Alyse moved with friends to Sin City eventually working for TBA Global and becoming the Director of Operations for their Las Vegas branch. Four years ago, Alyse visited, fell in love with and then moved to Charlotte, N.C., and began working with Sterling Events to develop their Charlotte office. Today, she manages event logistics and operations for our Charlotte office’s growing list of clientele and says what she enjoys most about her nine years in this hectic industry is that each day is different and that she enjoys what she does and who she works with every single day.
When it comes to Sterling, if you’re reading about it, she probably wrote it. Our resident writer is the voice behind our marketing and public relations campaigns. Since completing her B.S.B.A. in Marketing from University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Andrea has immersed herself in the field through various roles from merchandising to corporate communications to special projects management with freelance projects in between. Today, she helps educate our clients on our portfolio of services and is ready to share the “Sterling Story” to everyone she meets. Andrea is also leading the launch of our latest project, the WinMock at Kinderton, a unique special events venue housed in the historic WinMock barn in Bermuda Run, NC.
This recent Mars Hill College graduate officially joined Team Sterling in May following a successful stint as a summer intern. As a Guest Services Coordinator, Ashley is eager and ready to ensure our clients’ guests have a pleasant event experience from beginning to end. Ashley says building relationships is the best and brightest part of her job, and she loves the opportunity to let her creative side show. We love her positive attitude and willingness to always help.
A Salisbury, N.C. native, Brooke decided to stay put after graduating from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, beginning her career as a Women’s Programs Event Manager in the Dean of Students Office. Brooke transitioned into the special events industry a few years later working for Party Reflections, a Charlotte-based event rentals company, as their Business Development and Special Events Manager. Today, as our Director of Sales, Brooke has been a considerable force in not only growing but also strengthening our clients’ understanding of what a Destination Management company can do for a city and their inbound guests.
This Arkansas native is a graduate of University of Memphis, and a recent transplant to North Carolina. Prior to joining Sterling in 2009, Casey was a Business Development Manager for two healthcare clinics and most recently an Event Coordinator for Market America, working on both domestic and international conferences and events. She’s been in the event planning industry field for nearly seven years and says what she loves most is the people – the clients, the guests and her colleagues. Trust us. After one conversation with Casey, you can’t help but feel better with her can-do attitude and easy going spirit.
Danielle recently made a near cross country move with her husband, two kids and two dogs from Las Vegas to Clemmons, N.C. to head our Meetings division. We are so glad to have her here! Bringing over 17 years of industry experience as well as the designation of Certified Meeting Planner (CMP), Danielle began her career as a Convention Services Manager at the Mirage Hotel, moving on to Caesar’s Palace, transitioning into the role of Director of Catering and Convention Services. Most recently, Danielle was the Owner and President of her own meetings and conventions company, CDS Events. To us, her colleagues, Danielle is the go to girl for implementation which is fitting considering her favorite thing about this crazy business is onsite operations and seeing an event unfold from beginning to end. She said she loves knowing that at each event our attendees see our “Sterling Blue” shirts and always say they know everything will be great.
This Lexington, N.C. native followed her love of the ocean to UNC-Wilmington, where she received her B.S. in International Business and then moved on to Florence, Italy to study and live. Ready for her next adventure, Helen moved to the Queen City to enter the special events world and spent the next few years at Discovery Place, first in Administration and then as the museum's Special Events and Group Sales Associate. Most recently, Helen created an Events and Catering program for a popular uptown restaurant. As one of Sterling’s newbies, Helen says she’s excited to join our dynamic Charlotte team and enjoys combining her knowledge in events, administration and travel to help planners and clients alike.
Adding a little West Coast flavor to our Southern stew, is our favorite California girl and our lead meeting planner, Jaime Hankins. After graduating from the University of Las Vegas, Jaime parlayed a part-time job at Caesar’s Palace to a full time career as their youngest Catering and Convention Services Manager where she (strangely enough) worked under the supervision of our very own Danielle Strong. She spent a few years helping with freelance contract jobs for Sterling Events while she traveled the country with her husband, Ryan supporting his minor league baseball career. Prior to joining Sterling, Jaime also spent time back in California working as a Sales Manager for the Hyatt Regency Hotel. She says her favorite thing about her role at Sterling is the opportunity to work with such a diverse client base and the travel.
A native of the Triangle Region, Jan has over 20 years experience in the travel, meetings, and destination management industry, as well as the designation of Certified Travel Consultant (CTC). As Managing Director of Sterling Events - Triangle, Jan Levine provides a full range of destination management services utilizing Sterling’s in house resources and local partners. In addition to offering destination management services in the Triangle, she also provides meeting planning and incentive travel services to local clients. Prior to joining Sterling Events, she was the President of Corporate Events & Occasions, Inc., a meeting and convention planning firm based in Cary, NC. Before entering the North Carolina market, Jan served as President of a leading meetings and incentives company in Atlanta, GA for over 15 years. She truly enjoys coupling her unique experience as a meeting planner, travel consultant, and special events coordinator with her local expertise to develop creative, budget conscious programs that maximize her clients’ ROI.
Not only is Katherine the creative mind behind Sterling’s design work, she’s always the one who keeps us laughing in the office every single day. After obtaining a degree in Graphic Design from Guilford Tech and a Bachelors of Business Administration in Marketing from High Point University, Katherine worked with the Winston Salem Journal as a graphic designer creating print and online advertisements for local companies in the Piedmont Triad. Three years ago, she joined Team Sterling and once onboard, she quickly enhanced the look and feel of our clients’ meetings and conventions both pre-show and onsite. In addition to her actual design work, Katherine manages the production of our clients’ event materials and websites, making sure everything runs smoothly, on point and on time.
Not only is she fun to be around, but this girl has an incredible eye for award winning design and brings
fresh décor ideas to the table time and time again. A graduate of the University of North Carolina at
Charlotte, Kristen jumped into the event industry as an intern for a local décor company. After graduating,
she became the company’s event manager, and a few years later, decided to branch out on her own launching
By Design Event Group in Charlotte. After partnering with our Charlotte team for years on projects,
Kristen recently made the decision to start a new chapter in her career by joining the Sterling
family to head up our new event design and décor division, Sterling By Design. Passionate about
producing unique and unexpected events, she finds inspiration everywhere traveling both nationally
and internationally to attend leading design conferences to bring the latest and greatest trends
back home to her wedding, social and corporate clients. Her favorite thing about her job? “Walking
into an empty space and seeing the room come together, hour by hour…watching the things in my head
and written proposals come to life. And the client reactions are always a special bonus!” 
If you don’t know how to make it work, Sarah probably does. At least that’s how we feel here at Sterling! After graduating from North Carolina State University with a B.S. in Animal Science, Sarah quickly realized that although she loved working with animals she might enjoy it more as a hobby and get back to the event world where she spent most of her weekends and after school time. Prior to joining Sterling, Sarah worked in multiple positions for a premier local catering company specializing in private events and fine dining. She spent her first year at Sterling in our Destination Management division working closely with inbound clients, and has most recently been our go-to person in Meetings for all things hotel and registration. What does she like most about Sterling? The camaraderie! She says “we’re friends and coworkers which makes for an incredible support system that I think helps all of our abilities and creative juices flow as strong as possible”.
Our resident Boca girl is a graduate of Florida State University with a degree in Recreation and Leisure Services Administration with an emphasis in Event Planning. She has been actively involved in the planning and execution of corporate and social events since her days as a Seminole working as both a public relations and special events intern. She has also helped coordinate special events for numerous non-profit organizations including Susan G. Komen’s Race For The Cure, Make A Wish Foundation and The Brad Johnson Celebrity Golf Tournament benefiting the Ronald McDonald House. Following the successful implementation of our enhanced VIP program, Sara was recently promoted to be our super fabulous Manager of VIP Services providing our clients and their guests with super tailored service. Sara works with planners and clients alike on exclusive VIP services including luxury suite reservations, private transportation management, golf arrangements, spa bookings and private dining arrangements. Her objective is to help your VIP’s feel extra pampered during your group’s trip.
If we had to pick the most popular person here at Sterling it would probably be Susie. Her bubbly spirit is infectious and her thirty plus years of travel experience is invaluable to her colleagues and clients alike. Short of being an actual pilot, she’s nearly done it all in the airline industry – from flight control to reservations to agent and she once even helped with an emergency landing in Atlanta (although she would prefer never to do that one again!). One of her most memorable experiences was participating in an evacuation flight simulator where she performed as an attendant and as a passenger – certainly gave her a new perspective. What has kept her in the industry, even through its evolution? She says it’s the relationships you build and the intrinsic rewards you receive hearing the great stories and feedback after a successful trip. Plus – you can’t beat the travel and adventure experienced all over the world!
With a degree in Travel & Hospitality and over 16 years of experience in the travel industry, Traci has taken on full spectrum of roles in group, meeting, leisure and incentive travel and is always ready to help our clients and their guests move seamlessly from point A to point B. As a member of our Travel team, she helps our clients with both their international and domestic group travel arrangements and is also responsible for making sure our clients’ travel dollar is maximized through diligent research, negotiation and recommendations. She says her favorite part about Sterling is working with such a diverse group of people with a high level of customer service and a true passion for what they do!