Christiane Lortie Skinner, the longtime international sales manager for the Vermont Department of Tourism & Marketing (VDTM), passed away several days before Thanksgiving following a long battle against terminal cancer. She had retired from her position earlier in 2015. Well known and highly regarded in the tour and travel industry, was a travel agent in Montreal, Canada and Vermont for 20 years before joining the state tourism office. She moved to Vermont in 1987. The French-speaking Skinner joined the Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing in January 2001 and was a fixture at the state’s participation in international trade shows abroad and in North America. After being diagnosed with terminal cancer, Skinner retired from VDTM in 2015. An indication of how highly regarded Skinner was came this past September when the Vermont Tourism Summit renamed its prestigious Vermont Travel Person of the Year award to the Christiane Skinner Vermont Tourism Champion of the Year, which will be awarded for the first time at the Summit in April 2016.
Christiane was a fabulous friend and a great ambassador for New England! She will be missed dearly!!!
Christiane had a beautiful personality, along with a great sense of humor. My deepest condolences to her family at this extremely difficult time.