It is fair to say there are few people in the community of Oakdale who have not stepped foot inside the Oakdale FES Hall, located at 190 N. Lee Ave., Oakdale. From the annual Oakdale Joint Unified School District Science Fair, to crab feeds and fundraisers, the FES Hall has long served the community and its youth.
Now it is the goal of Oakdale FES Hall Agent, Melanie Shively, to expand the reach from beyond those familiar to a broader market, beginning with the bridal industry.
On Sunday, Feb. 25 an Open House will be hosted at the Oakdale FES Hall between the hours of noon and 5 p.m. With the help of professionals from Tailor Made Events, the hall will be transformed into a mock wedding venue demonstrating the hall potential to visitors. The event is free to the public.
“There’s so much potential there,” Shively said of the hall. “I’ve been sort of thinking outside of the box and going farther out in terms of our reach and the type of venue we can market it as.”
Shively joined forces with the FES Board as the Hall Agent in June of 2017. She shared her largest objective is to bring newness, by way of opportunity, to the FES Hall. The Sunday Open House is one of the ways she intends to do that. To date there are 10 vendors committed to the event and room for an additional 10 more.
Going into this first time Open House and bridal event, Shively shared there are three elements they hope to tap to ensure the event is successful. The first is being to bring more people to the venue and extend connections beyond word of mouth. Additionally, she views this as an opportunity to network with local businesses, offering free space for interested vendors. Lastly, she encourages amateur as well as professional photographers to attend and use the mock wedding setting to photograph for their personal portfolios, as well as share photos with the non-profit.
“We’ll have opportunities for lots of photography,” she said, noting the need for a partnership in this area through quality photos to help promote the space.
Broken into three sections including a ballroom, dining hall and bar area, the FES Hall can accommodate approximately 500 people comfortably. It also has a working kitchen, as well as a garden area and adequate parking.
While staffing of the bar and kitchen is not included with the FES Hall rental price, Shively indicated that unlike other halls, FES does not have contracts with any specific caterers or other service professionals, so the choice is at the discretion of the client.
In addition to looking to appeal to the bridal market, the FES Hall is also available for large parties, company events and other types of celebrations. For additional information on the upcoming Open House or to inquire on rates contact Shively at (209) 804-9062.
