Our Team
Eric V. Orange
CEO/Founder
610-647-4888 x2
Eric V. Orange is the founder/CEO of LocalWineEvents.com, the leading website for local wine and food event listings around the country and in 63 countries around the globe, with 90,000 Facebook fan community. He is also the Executive Editor of the weekly e-newsletter The Juice, reaching over 226,441 subscribers with an average readership of 500,000 wine and food enthusiasts weekly.
As an industry wine veteran and insider, Eric has his certification from the Court of Master Sommeliers (1st phase) and a Master of Wine Education certification from the International Wine Guild. He has been a member of the Society of Wine Educators and served on the board of the American Institute of Wine and Food (AIWF, Denver).
He has attended hundreds of wine events around the country and is a wine judge a number of major wine competitions including the Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits Competition and the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition.
Eric and his family are based outside of Philadelphia. His current and long time favorite wine varietal is Cabernet Sauvignon.
James Gribbons
CTO
610-647-4888 x3
James graduated from Providence College with a degree in Computer Science. After graduation, James worked for multiple technology start-ups. It was at one of those companies that he and Eric Orange met.
In 2007, James became the CTO for the company. He is responsible for the development and strategic direction of LocalWineEvents.com and our mobile products.
James and his wife are based outside of Boston. He is enjoying the rebirth of craft beer and his current beverage of choice is Wachusett Brewery's Country Pale Ale.
Jim B. Morris
Communications Director
610-647-4888 x4
Jim Morris is responsible for all the corporate communications for the company. Before joining LocalWineEvents.com, he was a journalist. Jim has been a writer, editor and producer in radio (WCBS-AM, CBS News), television (WPVI, CNN) and on the Internet (CNN.com).
He is a graduate of Syracuse University. Jim and his family are located in Atlanta, GA.
Stacey (OJ) Orange
Advertising
610-647-4888 x5
Stacey D. Orange, known as "OJ", was born in Oregon and raised in Wichita, Kansas. OJ is the youngest of five, along with two brothers and two sisters, so yes, life could get a little rough at times. After high school, OJ joined the U.S. Navy where he proudly served 22 years on the West Coast, and there he met his lovely bride to be. After retiring from the Navy in 2006, OJ and his family moved to central Pennsylvania and OJ started working with his brother EVO at LocalWineEvents.com.
OJ and his wife (a JROTC instructor at a local high school) are the proud parents of two wonderful boys. His oldest son attends college and serves in the U.S. Army reserves; his youngest son attends middle school.
OJ enjoys spending time with his family as well as riding his motorcycle around the east coast of the United States. He is currently attending college, and is working on his degree in computer networking.
Laura Bengford
West Coast Regional Editor
310-500-7983
Laura's key responsibilities are to promote wine education, publicize events and work with trade consumers and trade on the West coast. Laura grew up in Southern California, and was an experienced technology executive in media and entertainment companies (Fox, Warner Bros, New Line Cinema, Sony Pictures, Thomson Reuters). She has traveled globally to over 40 countries and it was during those experiences developed an extensive wine and food palate.
Laura has certifications including the CSW from the Society of Wine Educators and from the UCLA Vintage program. She is also a budding winemaker and part of a growing cooperative including some of the new Malibu wine appellation winemakers. Her wines include Cabernet, Merlot, Syrah, Sangiovese, Petite Verdot, and Chardonnay.
Lee Romano Sequeira
Promotions & Publicity
215-922-3340
Lee is the driving force behind the site's promotion, publicity and social media outreach. Previously, she worked in the publishing industry, where she collaborated with a number of authors involving all aspects of their promotion, publicity, rights, and social media.
In her spare time Lee enjoys time with her husband and their two terriers in an historical section of Philadelphia. Her passions include a good book and a great bottle of Bordeaux. She is currently working on a humorous memoir.
Randy Cosby
British Columbia Regional Editor
Randy is currently the LocalWineEvents.com editor/posting coordinator in British Columbia (Greater Vancouver, Victoria and the Okanagan Valley). His is very familiar with the wines of the Okanagan Valley as well as France, Italy and South Africa. He has a WSET Foundation Certificate and has been volunteering with LocalWineEvents.com since 2002. His current favorites include Pinotage wines from South Africa, Argentinian Malbecs and worldwide Methode Champenoise bubblies.
Randy currently lives in Vancouver, BC.
