Meet the Team
Left to right: Leah Cropp, Erin Stoffregen, Sherry Farmer, Debra Quillen, Kalah Kazmerski, Javier Salto, Kim Dazey, and Diane Didier-Adolphson.
Debra Quillen, Owner and Founder of Event Floral
Debra Quillen sets the vision for Event Floral and that is “going the extra mile” to make every event truly spectacular, because each client deserves the best!Her energy, creative view of floral design, and positive attitude are reasons her business is successful and has earned a top reputation among Rockford area brides and businesses alike.
One could say that Debra Quillen was destined to become a floral designer. While most young girls were busy playing with dolls, Debra was playing with flowers and helping her father, James Adams’ with his Rockford based floral business, Broadway Florist. As a child, she learned about floral design under the watchful eyes of her father.
Debra studied at Iowa State University College of Design. She designed nationwide and trained under multiple renowned designers. In 2002 she left Broadway Florist to pursue her passion of weddings and officially opened Event Floral Design Studio in 2003.
Debra’s energy and joy are derived from her strong faith. In fact she graduated with a degree in Theology from a university in Kansas. Her generous and positive outlook creates an environment that cultivates creativity and excellence among her designers. According to Debra, “It’s not just my job; it’s my passion, my dream. I’m so blessed that I get to do this everyday!”
When not at the studio, Debra loves spending time with her husband and their dog, traveling, and participating in church activities.
Diane Didier-Adolphson, Master Floral Designer
Similar to Debra, Diane started out in floral design at a young age in her father’s floral shop, Didier Florist in Rockford. Diane graduated from Bill Hixton Design School skilled in all types of floral design. With over 30 years in design and roughly 45 in the floral business, Diane’s talent and experience are priceless assets to the company. For Event Floral, Diane specializes in centerpieces and specialty arrangements, including funeral pieces. She is incredibly devoted to her faith, her church and her family. Outside of the studio, she loves to spend time with family, garden, cook and bake gourmet food and desserts, and exercise. She is also always finding ways to change her home decor.
Kim Dazey, Master Floral Designer
Kim has been designing for 16 years after starting her career at Beloit Floral in Wisconsin. Her desire to learn the cutting-edge styles of floral and visual design led her through various local florists which took her skills to the next level. Her favorite designs are contemporary and original, incorporating premium, high-end flowers. At Event Floral she specializes in specialty arrangements, including large show pieces, centerpieces, and decorating event sites with staging pieces, lighting, and specialty fabrics. Kim loves spending time with her family and is also very active in her church. Her passions outside of design include exercise and travel.
Erin Stoffregen, Floral Designer
Erin began working with Debra Quillen in 2002, helping with Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day at Broadway Florist. Pursuing her creative interests, she followed Debra when Event Floral launched, learning about the business from the ground up. She graduated from Rockford College with a degree in Business Administration, Management with hopes of enhancing the operations and future success of Event Floral. Erin specializes in bridal bouquets and instituting new business ideas. She is married with 2 sons who are the joys of her life. She cherishes time with her family and also enjoys running, creating artwork and photography, and cooking new recipes.
Sherry Farmer, Floral Designer
Sherry also met Debra Quillen through her work during the holiday season at Broadway Florist. After 29 years at Barber Coleman as an Assembler in Industrial Instruments, she truly feels this job and the opportunities it provides her are God’s blessing. At Event Floral, Sherry specializes in personal flowers and jewel detailing, linens, and delivery. She also makes custom crystal embellishments for corsages and bouquets. She deeply loves her family and her faith. Outside of work she enjoys caring for her cats, shopping, and watching her favorite TV shows.
Javier Salto, Floral Assistant
Javier is the much needed muscles of the shop. He helps with anything from prepping for the designers, keeping the shop clean and organized, and delivering. Currently he is studying for a degree in Animal Science at Rock Valley. Outside of work he enjoys traveling with his wife, photography, and cooking.
Kalah Kazmerski, Floral Assistant
Kalah helps with anything and everything including prepping linens, cleaning and organizing the shop, and delivering and setting up on site. Our youngest member, she will graduate from Boylan High School in May. She likes spending her free time with friends and golfing.
Leah Cropp, Floral Assistant
Leah also has many jobs at Event Floral from linen prep, to studio organization, to delivery and set-up. Her creativity and interest in design brought her to this job, where she is now learning the ropes of floral design. She was homeschooled and lives with her husband and dog.