I am so THRILLED to introduce you to our newest Certified Wedding Planner at Hitch Studio!
Lyric Gruenhagen – Certified Wedding Planner (CWP) • Certified Wedding Venue Professional (CWVP)
When you meet Lyric, you’ll see her sparkling eyes, hear the excitement and gentleness of her voice, and know her caring spirit. She is an absolute joy to work with and one of the hardest workers I’ve met. She would do anything for you. She’s an outstanding team member and always eager to learn more.
Read a little more about her story:
“After joining the Hitch Studio team in 2019, I knew I was part of something special. Starting out as a wedding associate, I jumped right into the behind-the-scenes elements of weddings and loved every second of it. I love working with people and being involved in something as intimate as a wedding. I love nothing more than a long day full of decorating, coordinating, laughing, bustling, dancing, and love. The hard work and long hours don’t scare me – I thrive off of the organized chaos!
I have always been a gregarious person, so it only made sense for me to pursue a Bachelor of Science degree in hospitality management at South Dakota State University (SDSU). I was President of the Eta Sigma Delta Hospitality National Honor Society – Brookings Chapter, and Vice President of the Hospitality Management Club on campus. I absolutely loved the program and all of the amazing people I met in my experience – I never once thought about switching my major.
I have hands-on experience and knowledge of event planning and coordinating through my time at the Swiftel Center in Brookings, SD. Working on their food and beverage team as a supervisor, and occasionally with their operations crew, I have learned a lot about food safety, been ServSafe certified, worked effectively with event managers, and been involved in all of the efforts that go into an event. Teamwork makes the dream work! Lucky for me, Renee and her team (my fellow Hitch coworkers) would often decorate for the weddings being held at the Swiftel Center venue, so I got the best of both worlds on those big days; the Swiftel catering and the Hitch tear-down at the end of the night.
My top 3 strengths are empathy, responsibility, and consistency – the perfect trio for making your experience the best it can be! I look forward to organizing your chaos and creating an experience you’ll remember forever.
I bet you really want to know these 5 interesting facts about me:
1. I am a pro at playing Catan (if you’re unfamiliar, it’s a board game where you can trade resources to build roads and settlements). Sheep for brick?
2. When I was younger, I wanted to work on a cruise ship. Unfortunately, South Dakota has a shortage on cruise ships. And large bodies of water.
3. I love eating raw oysters on the half-shell, and I put ranch dressing on my spaghetti – seriously, try it.
4. It only took me 3 years to earn my bachelor’s degree from SDSU. Thank you, CLEP testing and dual credit courses!
5. I’ve been to Norway and Iceland and would LOVE to go back.”
Please help me in congratulating Lyric on her new certification!!