If you thought Marriott telling everyone that their brand is pronounced "chariot" was a big deal, just wait until you hear about their new s [Weekly Sound Check Med-Res with Endless Logo] February 16th, 2020 Are Marriott's New COVID Testing Procedures The Industry Standard? ð¥ The Best of the Best: - Pandemic Events: [Marriottâs COVID Testing Capabilities: A New Standard?]( ⨠We made it easy to learn everything you need to learn about planning a virtual event. All you need to do is sign up for our [Virtual Event Bootcamp]( to receive weekly emails on specific topics like event budget, sponsorships, speakers, and more! Such an Eventful Non-Eventful Week And by that I mean, we had Feb 12 - Chinese New Year Feb 14 - Valentine's Day (also hbd AZ) Feb 15 - President's Day And today is Mardi Gras! (Plus, there is a whole winter storm sweeping across the nation.) So, there's just a lot going on. But, the festivities are looking a little different than they used to. My favorite example of the show-must-go-on mentality is how New Orleans decided to handle the cancelation of their beloved Mardi Gras festivities. With bars closed and parades canceled, the people of Louisiana decided to celebrate using a new medium. [gras]( These glorious images from The New York Times showed people decorating houses like they would decorate parade floats. This brought me so much joy and was yet another beautiful depiction of Louisiana's resiliency. [mardi gras-1] [mardi-1] These are a simple reminder that just because the festivities don't look the same as last year, doesn't mean that they still aren't beautiful. Be creative, reimagine what's possible, and embrace the show-must-go-on mindset. And now, here's The Weekly Soundcheck. ð· Marriot's coronavirus testing abilities might be the new event standard? [PODCAST]( [Marriott]( If you thought Marriott telling everyone that their brand is [pronounced]("chariot" was a big deal, just wait until you hear about their new standards of testing. The Brew Crew reacts to this news and dissects what it would mean for the entire industry. As you can probably guess, the subject gets a little controversial. Buckle up for [this week's episode of Event Brew.]( ⨠Additional articles and resources: - [COVID-19 Vaccines & The Events Industry]( - [Responsibility In Events: What If Someone Gets Sick?]( - [GBAC STAR Accreditation: A New Standard For The Industry]( ð Upcoming Events ⨠Feb 17th (Tomorrow) - 1:00 PM- 4:45 PM ET Will is going to be speaking at [MPI's 2021 Educational Institute](. The theme this year is Maintain, Persist, Innovate, and the content will be surrounding the topics of How to Stay Relevant in your Career and industry trends. If you are working on your Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) Designation or Re-certification here is an opportunity to earn credits! ⨠Feb 23rd - 25th - Evolve 2.0 We are only a week out from Swapcard's Evolve 2.0! Will is going to be the emcee and Endless will have a booth at the virtual conference as well! [Register for free]( and be a part of this amazing virtual event for event planners! [evolve]( ð Endless Love Will teamed up with some pretty iconic people in the events industry (some of them who have appeared on episodes of #EventIcons with me) to discuss the future of events in our Coronavirus-riddled world. The topic of the panel was inspirationally titled [The Great Restart: The When, Who and How Much of Future Meetings.]( ð Radiant Resources I told you all I would keep sharing resources throughout February (and maybe even beyond! Who knows?) Chantel shared these two incredible resources with our team last week: - [100 Black-Owned Businesses to Support](- Because we all know that money talks, and supporting Black businesses is a great way to help communities flourish. - [Racial Equity Tools Glossary]( - Language and words are powerful. This informative glossary gives context to the words we are using when we talk about race. This list covers everything from Anti-Racism to White Privilege. And lastly, my dear friend Chrysantha and I listened to the New York Times podcast 1619 on our road trip to San Diego. [Episode 3]( about the birth of American music was both informative and fascinating. [1619]( Have a great week! [cutmypic-4] Sarah Christl Marketing Lab Director, Endless Events [Connect with me on LinkedIn]( Endless Events, 228 Park Ave S #82963, New York, New York 10003-1502, USA, 1-855-DONTEND [Unsubscribe]( [Manage preferences](