Lauren Ripko has been appointed Senior Sales & Catering Manager at Garden of the Gods Collection in Colorado Springs
Garden of the Gods Collection, a private club and luxury resort, today announced the appointment of Lauren Ripko as the property's new senior sales and catering manager. Ripko joins the team with nearly 20 years of experience in event curating, marketing and other facets of the hospitality industry. Raised in a small town in Kansas, Ripko moved to Denver to earn a Graphic Design Degree from the Art Institute of Colorado. She began her career in hospitality as a member of the conference services team for a Denver Marriott property and worked various jobs in hotels, ski lodges, restaurants, bars, floral design, and design studios.
Most recently, Ripko founded Quintessential Weddings & Events, a boutique Colorado planning and décor company. For the past ten years, Ripko has gained experience in wedding coordination and event planning through events such as the Denver Triathlon, Taste of the Highlands, the Highlands Harvest Festival, Taste of Old Colorado City, WestFest and hundreds of weddings.
The catering team at Garden of the Gods Collection is dedicated to creating customized experiences for its guests. Under Ripko's direction, the Garden of the Gods Collection will continue to grow its venue and catering services, which recently added a new venue: The Kissing Camels Meeting and Event Space provides an additional 2,887 square feet of private meeting and special event space, offering spectacular views of Kissing Camels Golf Course, Pikes Peak and the red rock formations of Garden of the Gods.
In addition to her passion for event planning and the hospitality industry, Ripko enjoys spending time with her two sons, Finnegan and Cormack. She is a lover of art, art history, snowboarding, good food, whiskey and wine.
