November 14, 2026

By Mary Beth Gahan

Sydney Chance knows how to throw a party.

When her friend turned 20 years old, she turned a love of golf into a themed gathering with cupcakes that looked like a putting green and hole-in-one donuts.

That desire to bring people together to celebrate another person started at an early age. As a child, she’d hang up signs and decorations around the kitchen for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and birthdays.

“I enjoy throwing parties or hosting get-togethers more when the event isn't about me because it is a way I get to love others and show my gratitude for them,” she said.

Now, the 22-year-old Flower Mound native is on the cusp of graduating from Abilene Christian University with a degree in marketing and intends to turn event planning into a career, but she’s not submitting resumes or preparing for interviews. She already has a role lined up — CEO of her own company — and in her pocket is $25,000 in seed money to jumpstart the operation.

The idea for Gatherfull, a dinner party in a box, came to her when she was planning her own birthday party last year. She was overwhelmed with theme ideas, decoration options, a part-time job, and a full course load on top of that. She wished there was someone who would help her put things together, like an event planner, but on a smaller scale.

That idea coincided with an event that Chance had circled on the calendar. This time, she wasn’t the one hosting.

ACU’s Griggs Center has a pitch contest for entrepreneurs called Springboard. Students first submit a 90-second elevator pitch of a business idea in the fall.

Chance was one of five who made it through the first round. On top of winning $5,000, she went through six months of weekly mentor meetings to figure out if there was a market for her product and fine-tune what the business would offer.

She practiced her pitch in front of nearly 200 students, judges, and staff members before a final eight-minute presentation in April at ACU Dallas in front of about 20 judges who were alumni with business connections.

That afternoon, she was sitting on the couch with her family when an email came in. It had the list of winners and at the top was Gatherfull.

“It was a pinch me kind of moment,” she said. “Everything kind of stopped for a second and my parents were like, ‘Well, who won?’”

She took the top prize of $25,000 to be used to start her company.

She’s spent the last few months figuring out how to launch a website and put together the company in earnest. The mentor meetings helped her establish relationships with other business owners in the alumni network and they’ve helped her along the way, she said.

She doesn’t take any of the help for granted.

“I’ve seen how the Lord has really had his hand in this. I had the idea at the perfect time and it make sense given everything that I’ve done leading up to that point. Since then, God keeps putting people in my path to help me along,” she said.

She plans to release a curated box each season for customers to host their own gathering. Fall’s box, Gingham & Spice, includes ruffled gingham placemats, gold cutlery, candlestick holders, ingredients for each guest to make a simmer pot with a fall scent, a menu with suggested recipes, and a playlist.

The box comes with a timeline for hosts to follow from sending invites to lighting the table.

Next, she is planning to release a Christmas box.

She hopes it’ll take the stress out of planning and help others pause their day-to-day rush to gather with friends.

“I just think there's something so restful and replenishing about being with the people that are important to you and special to you, or even building new relationships,” she said. “It’s about finding a way to kind of slow down during life when it does get really busy, and hitting pause to say, ‘Community is intentional to me, and I don't want to let this go by the wayside.’”

To buy a box, visit Gatherfull. You can also follow Sydney as she grows her business at @hostgatherfull on Instagram.