Thus was extremely fun. Very safe. Chris Sitton was a great host.

Scam. Scam. Scam. Super shady business practices... I saw a digital ad for Events & Adventures on my Facebook feed, and I was curious because the marketing materials looked really great, so I signed up for an "interview." The hour long Zoom meeting I went to with one of their representatives was one really long sales pitch, and highly manipulative. What to Expect in Your Interview - Over the course of the hour, they will continually ask you to identify things that are important to you in terms of dating, socializing and activities, and then they will explain to you how E&A is the perfect fit for exactly what you are looking for in a fun and exclusive membership club. It will seem like they'll say anything to get you to sign up and that it's too good to be true. They will use high pressure sales tactics at the end of the meeting to try to force you to commit to an expensive one or two year contract right there in the Zoom meeting, based on vague information about the membership communicated orally (nothing in writing is offered). The answers I was given for specific questions I asked in the interview felt deliberately vague. For example, I pointed out a logical fallacy - If you commit to a two year contract, and then begin a romantic relationship with someone nine months in, you can't cancel your paid membership, but you also would no longer meet the criteria to be a member because you are no longer single. The sales rep brushed off my point with a vague answer about how alot of marriage engagements last as long as three years and technically those people are still single. I also asked about the diversity and demographics of their membership. I was told that the diversity of the membership in my area "looks like Chicago," even though the sales rep was in South Florida and said she had only been to Chicago one time. She also said that I'm in the "sweet spot" center of the age range for members at 45 years old, and that the gender ratio for the membership is 50%/50%. They painted a rosy picture of a demographic catered specifically to me, giving no actual evidence, facts or statistics. The activities calendar I was showed in the meeting included no pricing information for events. I asked for an estimate of additional costs beyond the membership fees. I was told that other out of pocket costs would include parking, event tickets, and food/beverages, but given no estimated dollar amount. Which begs the question, what does the $3,000-4,000 that I would be paying (broken down into a high monthly fee) actually cover? I told the sales rep that I needed to sleep on it and couldn't commit to a membership at that moment. The representative then proceeded to use bullying, guilt tripping, creating a sense of urgency and other manipulative tactics to try to persuade me to sign up right then and there. (I think they are trained to take advantage of the emotions people feel when speaking about personal things like dating, divorce, family and socializing, for sales purposes). The rep also later sent one of the most unprofessional emails I've ever seen requesting personal information like a copy of my Drivers License or Passport and the last four digits of my SS#. I was never shown a contract or any contract language, and I never received any details about a background check. I sent the sales rep an email response letting her know that I wouldn't be moving forward with a membership because of the negative reviews and information I found on the Better Business Bureau's website. I was sent this short email back (the typos are real!) - "You might want to look at Goggle comments and Consumer Affairs where to comments are verified, I think you will see a big difference. We would never be around for 37 years!" I feel very lucky to have taken a beat and done my due diligence before signing anything with E&A. Comments on the BBB's website were particularly helpful. It seems that people who actually signed the contract and tried to use the service have had even worse experiences including financial harm and terrible experiences at their events. My pre-sign up experience checks out with the other complaints I've read. My Advice - RUN, don't walk away from this company. Do not sign any contracts or give them any form of payment. Save yourself the hassle and seek out other options.

1/31/2023

TO: The Corporate Resolution Department of Events & Adventures
FROM: Gwen Peltier, Minneapolis E&A member
RE: Total E&A Refund Requested/Downgrade Proposal Rejected (Jan 19TH)

I am rejecting your downgrade proposal; I want a total refund. I do not trust Nate, or some of the other members I have met. I was assured these events were safe places with members who had integrity and moral character. I do not feel safe at these events and I want my 2775.00 refunded. I am not interested in a downgrade in membership, because I will still be dealing with the same members and people. This organization, or at least the Minneapolis branch, is not what it was sold to me as. E&A, may need to check and monitor if a group of people have hacked their site, and are misrepresenting the true E&A, or attend some of these events to check on these hosts and members. As requested, I have listed my reasons in more detail below.

When I called in to your resolution department, they said they recorded my entire conversation to make notes to forward it to you. Apparently you didn't receive the recording, or I wasn't detailed enough. So, I will type out my grievances. This way I will have a copy of what has been sent to you, since I don't have a copy of the recording. I will be forwarding this to American Express as part of my dispute.

I signed up for a two-year contract with Events and Adventures on November 18th after a high-pressured sales call, that lasted for 90 minutes. I was told during that sales call that if I didn't sign up then, I would never be able to sign up in the future as they don't do second calls. I paid 2775.00 for a 24-month contract, with unlimited freeze months. By doing this I saved 700.00 off the regular price.

I shared with Fran (the saleswoman) that I had walked through something very evil and it's taken me a long time to rebuild my trust in people. So, I needed an organization and venue that felt safe, and she assured me that background checks were run on every one, everyone was interviewed, and so that E&A is supposed to be a very safe venue, fun way to meet men and new people, and have adventures together. (Basically, a dating service with a high price tag for safety)

I attended five events. My first event was at a brewery; 7 people attended, 4 of them were coupled up. This event was hosted by Kristin.

My second event was Whirly Ball; probably about 24 people attended, 12 of them were coupled up. As I was on the Whirly ball court, I saw a man named Patrick, swap my beer with another beer. I didn't go back to that glass of beer when I returned to the waiting area, I purchased a new beer and never put it down. I did not report this event to Nate or approach Patrick as I didn't know who I could trust. This event was hosted by Nate. I decided to try a couple of more events to determine who I should approach and see if anything else happened.

My third event was Festivus, a spoof on Seinfeld with a meatloaf dinner hosted by Nate at Nate's house. I brought my own bottle of wine to have at the event. While getting my dinner in the kitchen my wine bottle disappeared from the table I was seated at in the front room. I went back to the kitchen to see if someone had moved it, and I couldn't find it. (Because of what happed at Whirly ball, I took my wine glass with me to the kitchen while I dished up my food), so not finding my wine bottle, I returned to the front room with my wine glass, sat down and ate and finished the glass of wine I did have. Upon returning my dirty dishes to kitchen thirty minutes later, my wine bottle was now sitting in the kitchen on the side of the stove. (Since it had been missing for over thirty minutes, and not in the kitchen when I went back to check, I left it there, and didn't drink anymore of it.) I didn't see who took my wine bottle, or who placed it in the kitchen. Patrick was also at this event. I never spoke to him. I never watched Seinfeld to see what a real Festivus party was, but this event was stupid and it centered around a flagpole without a flag. Approximately 14 people attended this event, six of them were coupled up. Because the front room was very small, I was corned by a man, don't remember his name, who talked nonstop to me, like he was trying to elicit some type of reaction, and Nate was sitting on the couch behind me recording it with his phone? As soon as their stupid Festivus presentation was over, I left.
What a total waste of time and money. I didn't report what happened with my wine bottle to Nate, or ask him why he was recording me with his phone. Again, I didn't know who moved my wine, without asking me, why it was missing before reappearing in the kitchen, who was involved or who to trust. This event was hosted by Nate and made me feel very uncomfortable. I went home and cancelled all the E&A events that I signed up for that Nate was hosting, since he had been at the two events I had encountered alcohol mishaps. At my first event at the brewery, I was told to sign up for every event that Nate cooked at, as he was an awesome chef. Festivus was catered meatloaf, and I cancelled the other events he was hosting, as I was determined not to return to his home. (Maybe some of the other hosts need to attend Nate's small events to see what is going on.

My fourth event was a Football Game watching event held at a bar called JJ's and it was not hosted by Nate, it was hosted by a man named Scott D. About 12 people attended. Patrick showed up, I never spoke to him, and he was seated at the end of our table, I made sure he never got near my drink or my food.

Up to this point, the events I attended were small, and as a new member to E&A I was told that this is a good way to start to meet people, I elected to attend this event because I like football, it wasn't hosted by Nate, and I wanted to see if any new people or people more my age attended.

One of the discussions I had with the sales person was the fact that I am 60 and most of the pictures she showed me on the website during her sales presentation, most of the people looked younger than the age group I was interested in. She assured me that there were plenty of members in my age group.

At this point, I had attended four small events, and to my disappointment it was the same group of people rotating through the four events. I paid 145.00 to sign up for the New Year's Eve party, as it was touted as an event that had 200 people in 2021, and I wanted to see if the large event attracted more "new" people that I had not met, more people in my age group, and if it was an improvement from the smaller gatherings.

The New Year's Eve party had a James Bond theme, along with games and entertainment that were supposed to be part of the cost. When I went online right before the party to check directions, if you wanted to play Texas Hold'Em' or wanted tickets for the raffle and roulette, it was now listed as an additional charge; the add on price boxes were not part of the original sign up.

So, my 5th and last event, was the New Year's Eve party. It was very disappointing. There were approximately 75 people there, most of them being people who had attended the small events I was at, and any new people, came with dates. The majority of the group was 15-25 years younger than me.
If this event is touted as their biggest and best event of the year, where were all the members? Where are all the people 50+? The prizes that were supposed to be so fabulous were credits for future events.
And Nate didn't even take the time read and reward the names of the 8 raffle winners. He said he would post it, why? The prizes were part of the evening. How long does it take to read off 8 names? Our entry fee only gave each of us 2 tickets into the roulette game. You could win candy or event credits. I signed up to play Texas Hold'Em, when I checked the website to make sure I had the right directions, it was an additional 10.00$. Nate signed me in when I arrived. I asked him what I needed to do for Texas Hold'Em, and he said he would find the players prior to the game and give them what they needed. The evening started with dinner, after dinner I went to the bathroom. Upon returning, the Texas Hold'Em table had started, I approached Nate, told him again I had signed up, and what did I need to do to sit down at the table. He said I was not on the list and wasn't going to let me play. I squabbled with him, said I paid the extra$10.00 online, and I was playing. The very first hand, I wound up with two pair, and went all in with a player named Sean. He claimed he had a straight, and beat me, he took my chips but never flipped his cards up. I believe he was cheating with the help of the dealer.

I met a woman about my age coming out of the bathroom. Her name was Renee, and she was about my age. We started talking about the ages of the members, she told me most of the other bigger events, the 4th of July party, Memorial Day camping adventures and other big events were mostly attended by younger members and they were mostly big drink-a- thons. She started saying that she met her boyfriend who she introduced me to back at the table through E&A, and they had been dating for about a year. She said that there were people 50+ in more of a premium type group. She said I would need to get on Facebook to find them. When I signed up, I discussed with Fran my salesperson, that because of what I had walked through I was not on Facebook. She assured me that I could be a member even if I wasn't a social media person. She did say that a lot of the information gets posted on Facebook groups, but that if I checked the website, and reached out to the hosts and hostesses I could get by without it.
For what I paid for this event it was a big disappointment. I left at 11:30 before the New Year's Eve toast at midnight.

The new form of sex trafficking involves victims who have been unknowingly micro-chipped and hypnotized during a sleep study, then in conjunction with date rape drugs, and short-term memory drugs, they can be victimized and not realize it. They may notice a loss of time unaccounted for, parts of their body may feel like they had sex, even though they don't recall having sex. Events of time may be foggy, or they can regain "total consciousness" in a place they don't remember going to. I believe that Nate, Patrick, and many other members who attended the events I did, are part of this trafficking network.

I do not trust Nate, or some of the other members I have met. I was assured these events were safe places with members who had integrity and moral character. I do not feel safe at these events and I want my 2775.00 refunded. I am not interested in a downgrade in membership, because I will still be dealing with the same members and people. This organization, or at least the Minneapolis branch, is not what it was sold to me as. E&A, may need to check and monitor if a group of people have hacked their site, and are misrepresenting the true E&A.

I will not be corresponding with you anymore; I am turning this over to the proper protection agencies, American Express, and the better business bureau.

Gwen Peltier

I'm on my second time around. I was in for 6 months back in 2018-2019. I got everything I needed... new friends who have free time and a girlfriend. I came back in the middle of March 2022, because I have friends who are in and I wanted to join them for events. I had some reservations, early on in 2018... from the sales pitch, to my initial experiences. It's not perfect and it's naive to expect perfection.

You're not paying for someone to organize things that you could do on your own. You're paying to do fun things with people who are here for the same reason you are... to meet people and connect and maybe make friends... and maybe, maybe there's something more... but don't come in searching for it. Love is like a fart... if you have to force it, it's probably $#*!.

Emily works hard to put together a calendar of fun events every month. Sometimes the events are amazing... sometimes the events are mediocre... sometimes the events are free (unless you want food/drink)... sometimes the events are affordable... sometimes the events are Silicon Valley Software Engineer affordable... it doesn't matter. Do what you can afford, because the people are why you're there. The people make it worthwhile. The hosts are great (full disclosure: I'm a host and I have it on good authority that I'm a hoot and a half). A lot of the members are great. They're not all gold... but really... in any group of 10-50+ strangers, how many are you really gonna like? I think these groups beat the average.

I never used to wonder how to meet people. In my 20s and early 30s, it just happened. For some reason, it got harder. It might have something to do with being in my 40s, but I feel like it's something changing in the world. So I came here to meet people... and I did. I've made friends and I hope I grow old with some of them. I've had a couple dates. It wasn't love, but it was a nice time. I don't regret a single dime I've spent on E&A... and I'm expecting to spend more.

If you're looking to meet people who aren't wrapped up in marriage and kids and whatever else has them booked into eternity, E&A might be what you're looking for. Nothing is guaranteed. Your attitude can make a huge difference. Leave your expectations at the door and just come be a fun person.

I can honestly say my life is better for deciding to join Events and Adventures.

This company's Chicago office ignores all COVID safety protocols. I was assured their events were COVID safe, but at their icebreaker event at their downtown office on January 8,2021, Michelle Doellman, an event manager, took off her mask to speak, which prompted everyone but me to take off their masks.
- People arrived wearing their masks incorrectly and were not told to put them on the right way
- Michelle Doellman stopped taking people's temperatures.
- People were not sitting spaced out, and I don't think there was enough room to accommodate this.
- People arrived without masks or took them off once they were inside.
- Doellman gave a speech about members being respectful and "not $#*!s" all while not wearing a mask and not telling anyone else to put one on or spacing anyone out. She sat someone wearing a mask incorrectly right next to me and then he took the mask off.

I walked off and informed the Phoenix, Arizona office and the sales manager who signed me up, Pincus Liebowitz. He told me they'd be investigating the matter, but have not gotten back to me at all. I've also had someone who answered their phone laugh at my distress. They are likely only giving me a runaround and not doing anything.

The company has a contract that makes it difficult to cancel, and instead of offering any actual resolutions, Liebowitz told me that:

- They need someone like to me to point out violations on their private Facebook page (as if they need someone to do that)
- Told me to attend virtual events.
- Asked if I wanted more time to freeze my account, though they'd still be billing me the entire time.

Events and Adventures claims that they only offer membership to good people and that their events are COVID safe. They state both on their website and the actual entries on their calendar, but they ignored them in person. Michelle Doellman is a manager for Chicago and updates their calendar.

How is any person supposed to be feel safe at an event she has anything to do with? Why would anyone sign up and feel safe if the members are this irresponsible?

I also think they violated the law by having too many people at an indoor event for a corporate function.

Avoid this company at all costs and tell people to avoid them if they want to get sick or spread COVID-19.

I made an appointment to meet with a rep in late 2019 after a REALLY rough year, thinking this was exactly what I needed. I showed up on crutches and in cast with pins sticking out of my foot after a recent surgery (so there was no secret that I had a substantial injury).

I listened to the spiel, and thought it sounded like fun! Other than my obvious injuries, I felt compelled to share some deeply personal information about circumstances regarding a medical condition that my mom was/is dealing with, which was up in the air at the time. For the purposes of clarification, she was being considered for treatment at a world-renowned facility in Houston, and IF she were to be accepted, I would be traveling down to Houston on a regular basis and would be unable to carry forward with my membership.

Jennifer was very reassuring, and naturally we moved onto the costs. When I heard the cost, I about choked. I said that I would probably need to see what ended up happening with my foot, as there was a chance it wouldn't heal properly. I also kept circling back to the possibility of having to reconsider in the future altogether should my mom be accepted for treatment. Jennifer could definitely sense my hesitation, and told me to hold on a second. She left the room, came back, and I was made a "hush hush" offer that "was RARELY offered to other members." I still thought the cost was outrageous, and so I kept pointing back to the fact that I was unsure where my situation would lead me. I was consistently reassured that should anything come to fruition with the uncertainties currently looming, I would be "taken care of."

Jennifer said I wouldn't see that price again, and that I should at the very least put down a deposit for the sake of locking in the deal. She assured me that if that came to fruition, NOT TO WORRY, she'd see to it that I was taken care of. With all of the reassurance in the world, I put down half- $1200 (apparently an exclusive price). When I was filling out the paperwork, I got to the question that asked if there was anything that could prevent me from partaking in the events. I looked at Jennifer halfway laughing and said, "Should I write down everything about my mother and my injury?" She said not to worry about it, because it was a simple checkbox of yes or no. I assumed that meant she had documented my "IFs" somewhere.

Fast forward only a couple of weeks, scans revealed that my broken foot did not heal properly after surgery. Right around the same time, my sweet mom was accepted into the treatment facility (total blessing)! I sent an email to Jennifer to fill her in, and she wrote back a kind note, then passed me along to Katy. I got a reply from Katy, only addressing the medical piece of my reason for needing to cancel. She made me provide a doctor's note, along with proof that I was injured. Was the inch-long pin sticking out of my casted up foot and crutches at the interview not indication enough? Okay, so I provided that to her, along with a picture of my last x-ray. She replied with a seemingly sincere response wishing me well, telling me she canceled my membership and refunded my last month's payment ($63ish dollars). Wait, what about the $1200 deposit? She said she couldn't do anything about that since it was a pre-existing medical condition. WHAT? You made me prove my injury! Katy insisted that they "forgave" the balance, but in reality they kept my $1200 deposit and stopped recurring charges. I NEVER ATTENDED ONE EVENT!

To me, the $1200 is a significant amount of money; to them it's a drop in the hat. That isn't stopping them from failing to have a heart and see my situation for what it is--I never anticipated I would have to fight them for a deposit refund based on the interaction I had up front. I am so sickened by the way they're choosing to handle this. I am taking this up with an attorney, as it's not their $1200 to keep. STAY AWAY!

I joined for a 6 month period in February 2019. Staff misrepresent the services expected. They ask questions, then use your answers to lie about their service. When I told staff that I must be around respectful people with good values, they assured me that Events & Adventures has an environment similar to what I described. The company boasts a private, "elite" group of people. I attended ONE event, which alone proved a completely opposite situation. Given the extremely inappropriate behavior--yelling, profanity, sexual references and gestures, and overall foolishness--I was not comfortable attending more events. Then I read reviews such as on Yelp and the BBB, to find that "SCAM" is the word.

I reported the inappropriate behavior to Events & Adventures, and it was met with the most unprofessional and unaccountable mentality I have ever encountered. They collected information, on a first phone call, on what happened at the event for their own internal purposes. Firstly, I had told the slick salesman when I signed up that I was raised with good values and wanted to be around like-minded people. They assured I would--LIE! Secondly, they have done nothing but insist that I keep going to events--after I told them repeatedly that I am uncomfortable being in situations that likely would include the same behavior. The events are open to all members, and the Company approves these people for membership.

A separate phone call was made TO ME to collect information on what happened at the one event. The staff person told me that he would talk to "corporate" about it to see what type of solution could be formed. When he did not follow up with me for more than a week, I tried following up, asking to speak to him. My name and cell were taken down for a return phone call, and then within minutes I received an email from a third individual, rudely telling me that no refund was to be expected and that an events manager was notified to possibly help me go to MORE events--AGAIN!

A little later that same day, the president, Mark Owen, emailed me and rattled off a list of accusations about my behavior--that I was slandering the company, harassing staff, and so on. So if you follow up with someone who originally reached out to you about a legit complaint, E&A terms it harassment. Just like their sales pitch... misrepresentation of the facts. And let's add "refusal to do anything, but count the bank roll". So the president of Events & Adventures uses a psychological mind game of inaccurate finger pointing to turn the table on a legit complaint I have made--to somehow bully me to back off on my complaint?

You want to bully me, Mark Owen? Come at me, Bro! Come at me! After the way I have been treated by your scamming company misrepresenting and stealing my money, I am not backing down when representing the TRUTH about your unethical company. And if you want to come at ME with slander, how about you sue everyone else that left legit complaints on Yelp and other sites for YEARS... YEARS... citing inappropriate and unethical actions by your company. I have emails proving the company's attempt to do nothing! Then you try to flip the script and falsely accuse me!

When I say repeatedly that I do not want to be in situations where inappropriate behavior is aplenty, your company tells me that I have no choice but to tolerate it. I went to ONE event. Had I been allowed to prove, by attending one event before paying, that your staff misrepresented the events and people involved, then I could have made an ACCURATE, INFORMED decision to avoid indecent, inappropriate behavior. But instead, your company misrepresents and a 3-day cancellation contract then equates to SCAM. There aren't events "every day", so a member can not pay for services, attend to a first event and find out the TRUTH, and still have time to cancel.

OUTRIGHT SCAM!