Dawn Diehl has been a part of this historic South Florida tradition for over thirty years and now captains this vessel. We will speak with her about what it takes to put on this massive production that is seen every year by over a million people and impacts the local economy by a whooping fifty million dollars. We will also dive into her own cruise and what else is rocking the boat and making waves!

Dawn Diehl - Event Director, Winterfest Inc.

Dawn is happily married to George and has three sons. A Broward County Native, Dawn’s love for Winterfest developed when she watched the parade as a child and continued that tradition into adulthood. Dawn proudly celebrates her 33rd parade this year. She is committed to creating quality, high-profile events for the community that brings family and friends together. Winterfest, celebrating 54 years that continues to grow and is an internationally recognized event, The Seminole Hard Rock Winterfest Boat Parade has earned the title “The World’s Most Watched Boat Parade.” With over a million cheering spectators, the Parade has become not only the largest one-day live audience of any event in Florida, but also the seventh largest one-day spectator event in the country!

Dawn is very proud that this tradition not only contributes to the aesthetic, cultural, and tourist development of the area, but it has an economic impact of over $50 million per year on her hometown! Additionally, Dawn coordinates events for the Winterfest Foundation, a 501c3 organization.

Dawn enjoys her community and charity involvement, serving as Chairman of the Board for Freedom Waters Foundation, past Chairman of the Board for Florida Festival & Events Association, past President of Children’s Opportunity Group (COG), currently serving on the Friends of Birch State Park Board, Becca’s Closet, The Chamber of Commerce Beach Council, and a variety of committees in the community. Always with intention and a goal of leaving the organizations better than she found them.

Support the show

Behind The Veil Crew:

Host: Keith Willard
www.keithwillardevents.com
www.instagram.com/keithwillard

Co- Host: Marci Guttenberg
www.anaffairtorememberbymarci.com
www.instagram.com/anaffairtorememberbymarci

Behind The Veil Podcast - The Real Weddings Study from The Knot

This week we welcome Tom Chelednik - The Associate Director of Vendor Engagement of North America to talk about the recently released "Real Weddings Study" from The Knot.

In The Knot 2025 Real Weddings Study, we discover how couples are bringing this exciting day to life through the entire planning process.

The wedding report includes insights from nearly 17,000 US couples who got married in 2024 as well as data from couples getting married in 2025 to help you understand how to plan a wedding. For the first time, it also includes user behavior trends from The Knot Vendor Marketplace, The Knot Registry and The Knot Invitations.

And we are going to talk about all of it!

Tom Chelednik is the Associate Director of Vendor Engagement of North America. He has over 25 years of experience in sales and marketing, with 16 specifically in the wedding industry. From 2008 - 2020, Tom held several sales positions at The Knot, including Regional Director of Sales and Director of Training and Enablement. He led teams instrumental in growing and retaining new business across 20 states and Canada, ultimately helping wedding professional book more weddings and grow their businesses. During his time at The Knot, Tom traveled the country 70% of each year to speak with and learn from wedding professionals.

Tom is passionate about sharing the knowledge he has gained over the years and continues to coach pros, specifically to help them increase their leads and bookings. In addition to The Knot, Tom was the COO of The Treasury Venue Collection in St. Augustine, Florida, where he learned firsthand what it was like to operate a wedding venue. During that time, he also helped build an online learning platform called Venue Profit Pro, designed for wedding venues nationwide to improve their marketing and sales results. Tom rejoined The Knot Worldwide in the summer of 2022

Support the show

Behind The Veil Crew:

Host: Keith Willard
www.keithwillardevents.com
www.instagram.com/keithwillard

Co- Host: Marci Guttenberg
www.anaffairtorememberbymarci.com
www.instagram.com/anaffairtorememberbymarci

The Knot Worldwide 2025 Wedding Trends Watch Report.

This weeks guest: Tom Chelednik - Associate Director of Vendor Engagement of North America.

This years report is wide ranging with data captured from thousands of couples about what they are looking at, where they are looking at, who they are looking, and why they are looking. It's a plethora of knowledge that will help vendors and couples figure out what is going to be the next hottest thing.

About our guest: Tom is the Associate Director of Vendor Engagement of North America. He has over 25 years of experience in sales and marketing, with 16 specifically in the wedding industry. From 2008 - 2020, Tom held several sales positions at The Knot, including Regional Director of Sales and Director of Training and Enablement.

He led teams instrumental in growing and retaining new business across 20 states and Canada, ultimately helping wedding professional book more weddings and grow their businesses. During his time at The Knot, Tom traveled the country 70% of each year to speak with and learn from wedding professionals. Tom is passionate about sharing the knowledge he has gained over the years and continues to coach pros, specifically to help them increase their leads and bookings.

In addition to The Knot, Tom was the COO of The Treasury Venue Collection in St. Augustine, Florida, where he learned firsthand what it was like to operate a wedding venue. During that time, he also helped build an online learning platform called Venue Profit Pro, designed for wedding venues nationwide to improve their marketing and sales results. Tom rejoined The Knot Worldwide in the summer of 2022.

Support the show

Behind The Veil Crew:

Host: Keith Willard
www.keithwillardevents.com
www.instagram.com/keithwillard

Co- Host: Marci Guttenberg
www.anaffairtorememberbymarci.com
www.instagram.com/anaffairtorememberbymarci