I was a young, then assistant to the executive producer for one of CBS’s longest-running live events. It was a production that reached into the homes of millions of people each Thanksgiving morning throughout the country.

That morning, the streets of New York would be lined with people, mostly families, children, and grandparents. Marching bands, dancers, performers, floats, float personnel, and hot air balloons made their way through the city, filling it with music and lifted energy to ring in the new season. One of the best parts of my job then was to coordinate and help host our annual reception for the host and special guest. I always booked their stay at the beautiful Ritz-Carlton Suite overlooking Central Park. That is where we stayed as well.

The concierge, Ellie Peters, was very well-known in the hospitality world. She was a wonderful mentor who had the spirit of everything that I needed at that time to maintain the cool confidence that I had been giving off on the outside. But in all honesty, there was always a little nervous anxiety about walking into my dreams.