Beignet Fest celebrates and empowers the lives of children with autism

Written By Alicia Vial

Situation

About 1 in 36 children has been identified with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) according to estimates from Center for Disease Control, making it more common than childhood cancer, juvenile diabetes and pediatric AIDS combined. In contrast, programs that serve children on the autism spectrum are limited. Those that do exist are often expensive and out of reach for many families.

Bringing together the tremendous need for programs to serve children with autism and an idea about a food festival centered around beignets, one local couple founded the Beignet Fest and Beignet Fest Foundation in 2016. As parents of a child with autism, Amy and Sherwood Collins wanted to create a nonprofit dedicated to celebrating and empowering the lives of children with autism and their families.

Amy and Sherwood turned to Gambel Communications, where Amy works as CEO, to launch the Beignet Fest and drive awareness of the cause that prompted the festival’s creation.

Strategy

Gambel Communications worked with Beignet Fest organizers to introduce the new festival to the local and regional market and tell the story behind its creation. The first thing the Gambel team did was plan a press conference to announce the festival.

For the press event and for use online via Beignet Fest’s website and social media, Gambel Communications worked with local broadcaster Mike Hoss to produce a video that featured the Collins family in their home as they told their story. The Gambel team also created a robust press kit offering background and details on the festival and foundation.

The press conference was held at Urban South, a craft brewery that served as the beer sponsor for the inaugural Beignet Fest. Amy and Sherwood opened the event by introducing the video. After it played, the couple stood with both of their children and pulled down a covered banner to reveal the name and nature of the new festival.

Following the momentum created by the big announcement, Gambel Communications continued its media outreach leading up to the inaugural festival, coordinating coverage and interviews throughout pre-event promotion and onsite at the festival.

Results

The inaugural Beignet Fest garnered significant media coverage from national outlets such as Travel + Leisure and Thrillist to local television stations like WWL-TV, which broadcasted live from the press conference announcing the festival.

Other media highlights from the launch of Beignet Fest include:

  • Feature stories on the announcement by both major newspapers in the market, as well as online stories and social media feeds garnering significant engagement by locals and tourists

  • Television coverage by all four local TV stations for the announcement including the noon live broadcast by the CBS affiliate, WWL TV

  • A three-page spread in The Times Picayune’s Friday entertainment section the day before the inaugural festival

  • Cooking segments on two local TV morning shows and a segment on a third television station

  • Significant social media coverage that extended traditional earned media coverage

The objectives of the launch project were exceeded, and each of the communications objectives were achieved:

  • Approximately 10,000 people attended the festival, nearly double the goal of 6,000 people

  • With proceeds from the first festival, the Beignet Fest Foundation awarded $25,000 in grants―two-and-a-half times the amount it anticipated for the first year

Almost 10 years since its founding, Gambel Communications continues to handle all public relations for Beignet Fest and the Beignet Fest Foundation, which has continued to grow its impact in the community.

Recent press accolades include:

  • New Orleans Magazine - Tops of the Town Honoree 2023

  • Southern Living - Best Food Festivals in the South 2023

  • Garden & Gun - Top Southern Fall Food Festival List 2023

  • Tasting Table - 21 Bucket List Food Festivals 2023

  • Essence – 7 Other Festivals You Can’t Miss in New Orleans 2024

Alicia Vial

Alicia Vial is a New Orleans native with more than a decade of experience elevating client stories and leading crisis response. As the senior director of strategy, Alicia acts as a leader within the Gambel Communications team ensuring each agency team member is positioned to deliver strategic public relations services that meet the highest standards of the industry. In addition to supporting the agency’s long-term business growth and development, she coordinates day-to-day account services and oversees strategic direction while staying abreast of best practices and industry trends to provide innovative solutions to meet client’s needs.

Before joining Gambel Communications, Alicia served as the communications director for the Louisiana SPCA, the oldest and largest animal welfare organization in Louisiana that impacts more than 74,000 animals per year. During her nearly eight-year tenure, Alicia oversaw numerous crises, served on national communication taskforces, oversaw all aspects of internal and external relations and worked alongside the development department to raise critical funding. Prior to that, she worked in the fast-paced New Orleans hospitality industry focusing on digital public relations for multiple hotels.

Alicia is a member of the Public Relations Association of Louisiana (PRAL), Southern Public Relations Federation (SPRF), a board member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) New Orleans Chapter and a member of the New Orleans Regional Leadership Institute. An accredited public relations practitioner (APR), Alicia is also certified in crisis communications, organizational leadership, content marketing and social media.

A well respected and trusted public relations practitioner, Alicia has been recognized by SPRF as a ‘Senior Practitioner of the Year’. Dubbed early on in her career as one to watch, she also received the ‘Rising Star’ award by PRAL and was profiled in St. Charles Avenue Magazine as part of their Young Bloods series. Most recently, she was recognized at PRSA’s annual Fleurish Awards and received four Awards of Excellence for her work along with the ‘Plate Spinner’ award for her efforts on the board of directors for the chapter.

An LSU graduate, Alicia received a bachelor's degree in mass communications with a concentration in public relations and minors in business administration and leadership development. She is a frequent speaker and presenter on public relations topics, most recently presenting at the Jefferson Economic Development Commission and SPRF annual conference.

When Alicia is not at work, you can find her at the ballpark with her three boys or cheering on the Tigers in Death Valley.

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