OC Mag 01-22

PEOPLE |
The Prairie Winds Event Center in Orange City gained new management this
fall. It’s led by assistant manager Danielle Zuidema and manager Jess Kuehl.
TEXT BY RENEE WIELENGA | PHOTOS SUBMITTED
TALE OF TWO
ROLES
Prairie Winds Event Center
management may have
changed this fall, but the high
level of customer service remains
strong.
The duo maintaining such event
center services are manager Jess Kuehl,
33, and assistant manager Danielle
Zuidema, 29, both of Orange City.
Kuehl is no stranger to the event
center as she was on staff full time for
a year before assuming the manager
role in October.
“I was looking for a leadership role,
a challenge and a way to give back to
the community,” she said. “I enjoy this
community, I love the small town environment
and raising my child here
so I want to give back. Working with
people for their weddings or other family
events, helping create things for
people, I see that as a way to use my
skills to give back.”
Kuehl’s love for and interest in event
planning goes back to growing up in
Clear Lake.
“It’s a tourist town; I grew up going
to so many events, festivals, concerts,”
she said.
She went on to earn an associates
degree in applied arts and graphic
communications from Hawkeye Community
College in Waterloo in 2009.
Her work experience includes a job in
retail for four years, working at Staples
in Orange City for six years and with
OC Arts for three years.
Blue Mountain Culinary Emporium
in Orange City previously managed
the bar side of things for event center
events but closed in 2020 due to
the corona virus pandemic. Such bar
management became a large portion of
Kuehl’s role as an event center staffer.
Once she assumed the event center
manager role, Kuehl received approval
to hire an assistant to take on the bar
management side of things and provide
general assistance.
Zuidema, who started in November,
graduated from Dordt University in
2015 with a degree in agriculture business.
“I worked in various ag-related positions
at first but never found what I
felt called to do until I switched to the
Manager splits position
for better customer
service
38 OC MAGAZINE | SPRING 2022