A native of Kalamazoo, Michigan, Erica moved to Minneapolis upon completing her undergraduate degree in Marketing from Jackson State University. She has a strong athletic background which landed her positions in marketing and community relations working for various professional teams such as the Detroit Pistons, the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Detroit Vipers IHL team. Additionally, she had been employed in the hospitality industry for nearly 13 years in various progressive positions.
Erica developed a passion for planning early in her career where she later focused her energy on weddings, event planning and promotions to earn her quite a reputation as a trusted resource. In 2008, Erica launched CJAI Event Planning & Management where she and her colleagues specialize in celebrations, weddings and meeting services.
There is much more to Erica than her professional life. She balances a family and volunteers a large amount of her time serving on the e-board for the National Urban League Young Professionals and locally with the Minneapolis Urban League and Young Professionals auxiliary. She has a strong passion for helping others and has always taken pride in using her talents to positively impact the community through service. A quality passed on to her by her late grandmother, Ms. Gladys Fannin. “Volunteerism isn’t a choice for me, but an obligation as an example my grandmother set. You’ll never know where your help will come from when YOU stumble, fall or just can’t get up. For that, I am humbled.”