Paul Saltalamacchia, Senior Catering Sales
Manager for Hilton Worldwide talks about planning your gay wedding or LGBT
event with Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of
OUTTAKE VOICES™. Saltalamacchia is currently based at DoubleTree Suites by Hilton
in Boston overlooking the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts,
which embraces diversity to ensure that your event is flawless and
exactly to your specifications. Weddings can cost anywhere from $8,000
to $50,000 and Paul understands the full range of emotions that goes
into preparing for your momentous day guiding you through the sometimes
overwhelming process. The DoubleTree Suites in Boston-Cambridge offers
three fabulous venues at their location including the Charles River
Ballroom, Rooftop Terrace and Scullers Jazz Club. We talked to Paul
about preparation for your special event and his spin on our LGBT
issues.
When asked what his personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights
Saltalamacchia stated, “I believe that every person deserves equal
rights regardless of their sexual orientation, their nationality,
religious beliefs or physical or mental restrictions. I truly believe
that and I’ve believed that my entire life that everyone should be
treated equally. So it’s really important to me that gay couples receive
that same treatment when they come into the hotel. I remember when it
first became a law in 2004, I would have couples call me and say ‘I have
a question, I’m inquiring about a wedding but do you allow gay weddings
at your hotel?’ I was really shocked to hear that a lot of other hotels
in the city were actually turning away gay couples because of their
sexual orientation and I thought that was crazy. I went to my general
manager when the question was asked of me and I said we’re ok with doing
gay weddings at the hotel? And he said of course we are, it doesn’t
matter to us. I met with my staff for an hour long kind of orientation
to question them to see if they were comfortable working a gay wedding
and it was very surprising how open all the people that worked at the
hotel were to it. It was a big deal. The word got out and it became very
popular. I would say maybe 15 to 20 percent were gay weddings.”
Paul Saltalamacchia began his career in healthcare nutrition and made
the switch to
hotel event catering and sales in 1998. He has been a Certified Social
Event Planner since 2006. His focus has been on social events, mainly
weddings and Bar Mitzvahs and enjoys turning people’s vision into
reality. At DoubleTree Suites in Boston/ Cambridge Saltalamacchia works
with acclaimed Chef Steve Ali committed to making your dreams come true
for your special event. Whether trendy or traditional, extravagant to
tastefully modest, they’ll make this exciting day everything you
imagined it would be.
For More Info: doubletree3.hilton.com
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