President
Michele Schwartz
Michele Schwartz is a dynamic communications professional who brings a unique blend of talents, experiences, and convictions to her role as ALCEP founder and CEO. Among Michele’s talents, her quicksilver wit, natural ease connecting with people, knack for bringing together cohesive teams, and affinity for new technologies and media best suit her for spearheading ALCEP.
Michele served for four years as Director of Lifecycles and Celebrations for Temple Emanu-El of Dallas. Her work there – coordinating the details of more than 120 bar mitzvah and bat mitzvah observances a year; attending every wedding rehearsal; working with every florist, caterer, decorator, and DJ; acting as liaison between families and the rabbinic staff; planning every holiday celebration – deepened her knowledge and love of the rituals and celebrations that mark the Jewish faith. Michele recognizes a similarity between planning for these once-in-a-lifetime events and her work as Program Manager for Make-a-Wish Foundation. At Make-a-Wish, as at a wedding or other celebration, success means bringing all the details together to create a seamless and unforgettable event. Michele’s impeccable customer service skills were honed during her six-year stint as Convention Services Manager for Walt Disney World Resort.
Michele believes that Jewish community members deserve the opportunity to work with trained, certified professionals when planning the special events that give meaning to a lifetime. In Michele’s view, an event planner whose only experience has been planning her own wedding does not have the depth of knowledge needed to guide families through important life cycle events. By providing education, certification, and support to life cycle event planners through the ALCEP program, she ensures that these event planners and the families they serve have access to the rich depth of experience Jewish life cycle events offer.
