The Organized Partner

We had an absolutely terrible experience with Jody, which culminated in her quitting very unprofessionally four months before our wedding.

While she is very organized, she really only wants to plan a wedding on her terms and with vendors she knows. If you're interested in a fairly straight-forward, cookie-cutter wedding, she likely would do a good job. But my husband and I were interested in having our own personality and values reflected in the ceremony and reception and she had no interest in collaborating with us. She also was extremely resistant to letting us pick out any of our own vendors, including our photographer who we brought from Chicago who was better than anyone she referred us to and had a different feel than her photographers. (And turned out to be absolutely the right choice for us.) But she was nervous to step outside her comfort zone and try anything different.

She was somewhere between difficult and nasty on almost all fronts. In one example, we were trying to set up our tasting, which needed to work around a 3-week trip that I was taking out of the country. I was very clear about the dates that wouldn't work, yet Jody kept suggesting dates while I was going to be away and then had the gall to get angry at me for being difficult to pin down. This was only one example of the extremely frustrating experience we had with her.

It was all capped off by her quitting in an enormously unprofessional way four months before the wedding. She then refused to give us the contact info for vendors whom we'd already been working with through her. It was absolutely infuriating and astoundingly unprofessional.

However, we ended up having a fantastic experience at our wedding with a very easy going day-of coordinator who understood our style and was eager to work with us to get what we wanted. We learned a lesson that we didn't need a full planner, just a coordinator. However, in our interview with Jody -- at which we very clearly explained what we wanted our wedding to be like and how involved we planned to be -- she told us that full planning services were the right fit for us and that she would make sure that we got the wedding we wanted, not what she wanted. All of that proved untrue.

Again, if you want a pretty standard wedding and are happy turning control over to Jody, she will do a fine job. But steer clear if you have any of your own opinions or priorities.

Listen to Jody, she knows what she's doing!! Our wedding was more perfect and beautiful than I could have ever imagined. I came to Jody 5 months pregnant and living in the Detroit area. I did not have the time or know-how to plan a wedding and Jody was an angel sent to us! We wanted a very small, quaint wedding in South Haven, MI and that is exactly what we got. While our event was small, it was classy and extremely well put together. Jody worked with our tight budget and truly gave us the most for our money. The flowers, decorations, musician, and photography were stunning. The day of the wedding we didn't have to do a thing and everything was coordinated flawlessly. Jody is worth every cent and then some! We have her to thank for a lifetime of memories of our special day!

Where can we begin? Jody took everything we wanted to do for our wedding and made it happen. For example we wanted a Caribbean style steel drum band for our beach ceremony in Michigan. Where can you find that here? Jody had it booked a few days after we asked if it was a possibility. Any request we had she had the right vendor lined up for us. No endless searching and price comparisons, no leg work, it was just done.

It's not just finding vendors. She has vetted all of the vendors she works with and knows exactly what you are going to get. No bad surprises. Everyone she works with are true professionals and have a strong working relationship with her. Everyone is also formally contracted in writing so there are no surprises later.

Jody is always reachable, personable and meticulous in everything she does. Every little detail is thought of. In a wedding, you want someone detail oriented working with you.

Even with having Jody planning a wedding is still stressful as there are a lot of decisions to make. However, I couldn't imagine not having her on our side and working with us. She has so much experience to draw upon that she shares to make sure you know what you are getting yourself into before you make a decision and mentions alternatives you may not have considered so you can make the best decision. She will keep you on track, on budget and make sure that you are getting the things done when they need to be done so there is never any scramble.

In the end, you won't be surprised by anything other than how your wedding has surpassed your expectations. She will take your vision and turn it into reality. It is clear she loves what she does and it will come through on your wedding day.

We could not have done it without her!

As you can see by the fact it took me over a year to complete this review, I'm not always the most organized person on the planet. My husband and myself both working full time and have very hectic schedules outside of work. We felt that a wedding planner would be a great asset to us as we began planning since we did not want to compromise on the quality of our wedding. Jody was recommended to us by a friend and I truly couldn't be happier with the service she provided. Her organization and recommendations were invaluable to us, and our wedding day was absolutely perfect. Jody also saved the day when literally minutes before the ceremony the train on my dress got torn. She had a sewing kit on hand and was able to fix my dress in time so that no one could even tell it had ripped. She was prepared for every situation, and knowing she was there allowed me and my husband to relax and enjoy our wedding day together. I cannot speak highly enough of Jody and what she was able to do for us.

The Organized Partner was a major asset to our wedding. As the business name implies, Jody is extremely organized and well prepared. She was very professional and responsiveness was not an issue. If we did not get directly in contact with her, we were frequently given a call back or sent an email within hours (or even minutes). Further, her network of vendors was excellent. Because she had such good relationships with her vendors, she was able to call in favors and likely saved us more than she charged us for her services. The Organized Partner was an excellent value.

Jody made planning an out of state wedding so easy. She for an inexpensive way for me to have my dream beach wedding. Her choice of vendors for my event were great and I didn't have to go through all the hassel of picking them for my big day. Whoever says wedding planners are expensive, obviously don't know their true value!

Jody was an asset in our wedding planning. She was helpful, articulate and knowlegible in all aspects. She is highly recommended by Dan and me.

Sincerely,


Bonnie Grevengoed

Jody exceeded our expectations for our Wedding. She invested the time to understand who we were as a couple and then created/planned a wedding that was perfect in every way. I would highly recommend Jody. She is responsive, professional, flexible and great value.

I would most definitely recommend them to any of my friends or family members getting married. It was so nice to be able to trust them and not have to worry about one detail that day!They can do it all, or just for the day....whatever your need!

I cannot imagine having planned our wedding without Jody! She kept me on track every step of the way. I had many personal details that I wished to work into the wedding, and Jody helped to make it a reality. She connected us with quality vendors who matched our style, personalities and needs. With Jody's professional, experienced and thoughtful support, we were able to enjoy a wedding that far exceeded our expectations. Everyone had an incredible time, especially me and my husband. If you are considering cutting costs, do it elsewhere in your budget. Working with Jody may very well be the best value of your wedding.

Our wedding day was perfect! We receive comments frequently from friends and family what a great wedding...it has been described as beautiful, elegant and a lot of fun. The vendors that were used were top-notch...Dorothy's Florals, Holly for photo's, Veronica for the cake and we can't forget the South Haven Conference Center...very professional and everyone did an outstanding job. Jody, you were more than a planner, you became a friend. Joe and I treasure your friendship and will have beautiful, lasting memories of the day you put together for us. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Joe (George) and Lynn Francis

Jody's efficiency, knowledge, experience, personal touch, moral support and humor were all we needed to have the perfect wedding day. No detail went unnoticed; no questions went unanswered; no problems went unsolved; no needs went unmet - even fixing the bride's dress half way during the reception! We are so thankful for Jody, her services and expertise. Suzi Brundage

Jody of the Organized Partner is FANTASTIC, I would recommend her services to anyone planning a wedding. We planned ours from California and Jody took care of everything - the services she provides are worth triple what we paid - there is no way we could have pulled off our wedding without her. She recommended a photographer who was fantastic, and when our reception venue unexpectedly closed down she was ready with a backup plan that same day; she had already made the calls to find other available venues and get pricing, etc. We had some unusual requests like a trolley, a beach ceremony and even my favorite ice cream for the reception, but Jody did all that and more. She was there to help me coordinate every last detail and honestly, I never had to stress about anything, which was priceless considering the distance and time difference between me and my vendors. Hire Jody if you want a fantastic wedding!!!

Hiring Jody to ensure the flow of the day and coordinate vendors was, without doubt, one of THE smartest choices I made for my wedding day. She helped me find a few key vendors (decorator, baker & florist) who responded to my requests as wonderfully as she did. I had numerous compliments from my guests about how seamlessly the day flowed. Jody helped ensure that all my hard work prior to the big day was orchestrated flawlessly allowing me to focus on things a bride really should focus on, spending time with family and friends, focusing on the importance of the ceremony, etc. Worrying about caterer or floral concerns never entered my head, because I knew Jody had it covered.

I strongly encourage hiring Jody! Reread that last sentance!

Trust me, I know the high costs associated with a wedding makes one consider cutting corners and just doing it yourself. Don't! You want to focus on being a bride; you want to focus on remembering the wonderful moments of this most important of days. You do not want waste any of this day coordinating vendors or making sure your guests are cared for. Let Jody do this. I assure you, she will take care of you. She'll take care of everything!

Jody was excellent. Organized, friendly, competent and truly dedicated to making our wedding weekend a success. I would not have wanted to do it without her.

Jody planned our Dream Come True Wedding! It's 6 months later and people are still talking about it and my family still always ask about Jody. I can't say a bad thing about her, her organization or her professionalism. We couldn't have done it without her!!!

Jody was one of the best parts of our wedding day! We were very nervous that there was going to be something that went wrong on our day, but there wasn't, or at least if their was she kept it from us to make it so we were not stressed out. It was a pleasure to work with Jody and I would highly recommend her services to anyone and everyone I know!!

It is such a pleasure to work with Jody from The Organized Partner. She goes above and beyond to make sure her clients receive the best service. I know when Jody is in charge of a wedding every detail will be covered and I never have to worry about any last minute surprises. She is very detailed and covers all aspects of a wedding. I would highly recommend her to any bride & groom getting married.