This was an amazing wedding day.
It started on Friday night with the rehearsal, as the sun set and a chill fall breeze.
The wedding and reception was held at Eagle Pointe in Bloomington. A great venue. Lindsay and Denny got married on the 1st green and had their reception on the patio. The last time I was there I was in the clubhouse with the ceremony on the 9th green. I discovered on the Monday after the wedding that Jim Cerone was the DJ on the other green. (I don’t know what the Indianapolis metro area did without us for the weekend.).
Much nicer.
Dennis paid me the nicest compliment at the end of the evening. He said… “when we were sitting down and planned this out, I had no idea how much stuff you would be doing…. Thanks”
That is the essence of what I do… Focused on the results. There are a million small things that add up to the difference in end result. It’s the difference between what I do and average.
Stephanie is a professional event planner. There was a table or two of guests who are professional event planners. No pressure. None at all.
It was posh. It was fun. Bridgewater Country Club did a great job. There was a bagpiper for the cocktail hour on the deck. Emily Gage was in charge of photography. Debbie Graves who I haven’t worked with in ages, was in charge of video.
This is Martha Ellen, a friend of Bride/Event Planner Stephanie and the P Diddy of day of coordination. She was great! She did a great job. I would hire her.
This is part one of my Dentist’s of Monroe County travelogue.
Daniel and Kelly live in Bloomington. Bloomington is a destination for a lot of bride’s in search of an outdoor venue. Over all the places to have a wedding day in their neck of the woods, they choose Avon Gardens in Avon, Indiana. I have to agree on their thinking here.
It’s really an amazing place. The owners and staff are amazing. The location is amazing. The overall vibe is a perfect antidote for wedding day jitters and nerves.
An amazing collection of friends and family gathered to celebrate the day. It was awesome. (please donate synonyms to “awesome” to indyprodj at gmail.com)
I met Jennifer a few years ago. She helps out with the Noble Evening in the Garden event. I also met her mom and dad and Matt’s mom and dad at the Noble evening in the garden.
Jennifer won a complete wedding package in the charity auction from Jon Bruce Entertainment.
I just finished my last final for Summer Session I. Nine credit hours. DONE! Spring Semester, I took 15 hours. It has been a busy 6 months.
I am now officially a college graduate! I am a Bachelor of General Studies!
You can call me Jon Bruce BGS.
I can’t believe I waited this long to get it done.
For perspective sake, as a DJ, I am probably in the top 5% by education level. It may be higher than that. I will have to call somebody and figure out the actual breakdown.
As a client, do you ever think to ask about education for your entertainment? Most of my clients are some college, college, post graduate degree holders. May I should start handing out a C.V…
My biggest gripe about this business is differentiating the service I provide from the super special DJ guy who never bothered to finish High School and is still living in his parents basement.
You might notice the asymmetry when Mr. Cheap DJ shows up in jeans with a couple of buddies for your black tie event. It couldn’t hurt to ask before hand and clearly establish you expectations.
and no… Black Tie, doesn’t mean Black blue jeans, a buttoned down shirt, with a vest and a clip on tie.
I just got back from a field trip with my first grader to the Indianapolis Zoo. The weather was awful for people, but really the absolute best for seeing animals.
The big bonus was getting a tour of the zoo from Jon Wassner (he’s married to Jacob’s teacher). Jon is a zoologist and author. I have talked with Jon about zoo’s before but seeing him in his natural environment was an absolute treat! He had the entire pack of 1st grader’s complete attention and was funny, helpful and insightful.
America's Best Zoos: A Travel Guide for Fans & Families
If you want to book Jon for a guided zoo tour, give me a call and I may be able to introduce you.
Think I am kidding? Here is what Jack Hanna had to say about Jon’s book.
A fantastic resourse for people of all ages…If you’re hooked on zoos like I am, you’ll treasure this book! — Jack Hanna, Host, TV’s “Into the Wild” 5/8/08
The great part is Jon’s book is a lot easier to keep around the house and cheaper to feed than Jon in person (according to Mrs. Wassner).
I got an inquiry from a Bride on Thursday inquiring about pricing and availability for an up coming wedding.
I went to reply and noticed she had sent her inquiry email out to SEVEN DJs all at the same time. In the interest of keeping the playing field open, I hit reply to all.
Here are the results I got.
One DJ replied to my email.
Four are probably familiar with me and chalked it up to Jon Bruce being Jon Bruce.
THREE were RETURNED TO SENDER!
-All three don’t have an active web page.
-Two of those don’t have let their domain names lapse.
Usually this means that on your wedding day, if the phones not ringing its your DJ calling. Take a minute and call or email your DJ today and make sure the number still works. The American Disc Jockey Association has an emergency DJ hotline for no shows on your wedding day. 888-723-5776.
When you book a DJ….
1. Get a contract in writing.
2. Meet the actual person who will be performing at your event. (And get a guarantee in that written contract).
3. Remember experience counts for something. I have had the same phone number for 14 years.
My email and indyprodj.com are coming up on their 10th anniversary.
Or maybe worse, you get the DJ who thinks this guy is a DJ Tutorin’ genius.
The person you select to be the Master of Ceremonies is representing you. It’s probably a good idea to meet them in person and know what they are going to say and why.
That is guy to the left of the President of the United States is Sgt. Maj. of the Army Ken Preston. He is the senior enlisted man in the US army, he represents the men and women doing all the heavy lifting all over the planet.
I had the privilege of meeting him, at his son’s wedding in 2005.
Stephanie is a professional event planner. There was a table or two of guests who are professional event planners. No pressure. None at all.
An amazing collection of friends and family gathered to celebrate the day. It was awesome. (please donate synonyms to “awesome” to indyprodj at gmail.com)
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