If you're considering hosting an event at Wyckoff Country Club, read this first…read more
The venue is beautiful. Unfortunately, that is where my praise ends.
Last night, our volunteer committee hosted an 80-person high school reunion. Our guests were professionals in their late 30s --doctors, lawyers, nurses, educators, business owners, etc. We were not a difficult group. We paid our bills, followed the rules, treated staff respectfully, and cleaned up quickly.
The problem was not the venue. The problem was the Director of Events, Regina Murphy.
Our experience started months before the event. We were initially assigned a coordinator whose communication was so poor that she was eventually let go. We were then reassigned to Regina, and communication remained a challenge. Emails and calls often went unanswered, requiring escalation just to get responses.
Despite requesting a contract multiple times, we never received one. Then, just two days before our event, after repeatedly asking for our final invoice, we were presented with nearly $3,000 in additional fees that had never previously been disclosed. Had we known about these costs from the beginning, we would have had the opportunity to evaluate other venues. Instead, the issue had to be escalated to senior management.
Unfortunately, the billing issues were only the beginning.
Throughout the planning process and the event itself, Regina seemed determined to create conflict over the smallest things imaginable. Not legitimate problems. Fruit. Cupcakes. Minor details that could have been resolved with a simple conversation.
What stood out was that these weren't isolated incidents involving one person. Regina had disagreements with multiple members of our committee throughout the process. She turned simple conversations into confrontations and routine questions into power struggles.
On the day of the event, I arrived carrying supplies, including fruit that had previously been approved. Regina immediately stopped me and insisted it wasn't allowed. When I asked her to simply verify the information with management, she refused. Instead, she repeatedly reminded me that everyone reported to her, she made the rules, and she was the final decision maker.
This was over fruit.
Later in the evening, my untouched dinner plate was removed while I was busy hosting the event. I had not taken a single bite. Staff were apologetic and tried to help, but Regina refused to allow a replacement meal or even have it packed to go. I literally paid for a meal I never received.
Then came the cupcakes. Our committee brought cupcakes from a local small business. Regina refused to allow them to be distributed and initially refused to release them to us. What should have been a simple conversation turned into yet another unnecessary confrontation.
The situation became so ridiculous that the possibility of involving law enforcement was actually raised over cupcakes. Think about that for a moment.
A room full of nearly 80 professional adults attending a high school reunion, and the discussion somehow escalated to the point where we were threatened by Regina with police because guests might receive cupcakes that had been purchased by our own committee.
At that point, it was impossible to ignore the pattern. Every minor issue became a crisis. Every conversation became a power struggle. Every interaction seemed designed to create conflict rather than solve problems.
I cannot in good faith recommend Wyckoff as an event venue while Regina remains the Director of Events. The venue, its staff, and future clients deserve leadership that views customers as partners--not adversaries.
Quite simply, based on our experience, Regina should not be in a client-facing role.
