Kari Walker has joined Hospice of Acadiana as special events coordinator. Walker is working with the fundraising arm of the nonprofit hospice organization by assisting with marketing and events.
Walker, 33, relocated from New Orleans to Lafayette in 2003. She has a bachelor’s degree in nursing from UL Lafayette and most recently served as director of the Downtown Lafayette Restaurant and Bar Association. She also has worked as an independent marketing business owner and nurse manager. While at DLRBA, she coordinated fundraising events, including the recent Uncle Sam’s Jam in Parc International to celebrate the Fourth of July.
Walker has also contributed to the EatLafayette campaign by helping spearhead the inaugural Food Wine Beer & Spirits Experience in 2014. Additionally, she helped launch the family-friendly Baby Care Center initiative in partnership with Festival International de Louisiane.
“Working for Hospice of Acadiana is a wonderful opportunity to utilize both my marketing and events background with my experience as a registered nurse,” Walker says in the announcement. “I am able to understand the importance of providing compassionate end-of-life care and also the behind-the-scenes efforts needed to successfully execute events that will fund the future of the organization’s mission.”
Acadiana’s only nonprofit hospice, Hospice of Acadiana offers free community programs like Pet Peace of Mind, providing care to patients’ pets, and a free comprehensive bereavement program offered to all members of the Acadiana community, regardless of use of hospice services. In addition to private counseling, HOA provides educational programs on health issues, end-of-life planning, and hospice and palliative care on a continuous basis free of charge to the local community.
Walker’s first event with Hospice of Acadiana will be the annual Thrift Sale fundraiser, a 15,000-square-foot indoor second-hand shopping market Nov. 4-6 at the Lafayette Event Center.