In Memoriam—Alberto Jorge Thomas: Alberto Jorge Thomas, who passed away on December 10th at the age of 98, came to be one of the forward-thinking businessmen who came to understand the importance of the coming era of flight and eventually formed City Tours USA—a receptive tour operator that has brought millions of visitors to the United States from Latin America and Europe. Headquartered in the New York City metropolitan area, he became so well-known for his understanding of travel’s many facets and possibilities that he was once known among Latin American tour operators and travel professionals as “Mr. New York.” A native of Argentina, Thomas served for a while in an elite military branch, where he was selected to be in the detail of Argentina’s President, Juan Peron, becoming the personal detail of the legendary Eva “Evita” Peron (1919-52) once she became the First Lady of Argentina. He and his wife, Martha, had five sons, all of whom were or are part of the U.S. travel and tourism industry.
Janette Roush has been promoted to the position of executive vice president at NYC & Company. Previously, Roush had been managing director of marketing. She joined NYC & Company three-and-a-half years ago. Previously she was vice president, insights and marketing, with AKA NYC, an entertainment advertising agency.
Also at NYC & Company, the organization has named Ixzchel Salgado as director, tourism market development, Latin America & US Hispanic Market. A first generation Mexican American, she was senior manager of the international tour operator program for the New York Road Runners.
Carrie Sagel Burns has been named director of marketing at Arival, which focuses on destinations. She comes to the digital marketing company from Atlanta Movie Tours, which she founded. She was also the company’s CEO. Previously, she was the owner of Cre8tive Industries, which helped businesses with creating branding strategies.
Georgia Kicklighter has joined the sales team at Delta Air Lines; she’ll be based in Los Angeles. She makes the move from Destination America (The Travel Corporation). Previously, she served as a national account manager at Virgin Australia, where she was a national account manager, USA/CA/UK/Eu.
The Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development has announced Noelle Stevenson as the new Director of the Connecticut Office of Tourism. Stevenson has more than two decades of executive leadership experience in destination marketing organizations. Prior to joining the Connecticut Office of Tourism, she served for nearly 12 years as vice president, film, music, fashion & creative culture at the Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau. Prior to that, she was associate vice president, boutique & lifestyle hotels, film, fashion & entertainment at the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau, where she worked for six-and-a-half years. Stevenson succeeds Randy Fiveash, who retired in April.
Fernanda Melgoza has been named senior marketing manager for partnerships and programs at NYC & Company. She joins the DEMO from MMGY Global, where served for almost four years, as senior account executive, marketing and trade. Previously, Melgoza was a communications specialist at Visit Santa Barbara.
Sabre has appointed Kathy Fong as country manager of its travel agency business in Hong Kong. A veteran of more than 25 years with Sabre, Fong most recently as leader of the company’s premier accounts team in Hong Kong. In her new role, Kathy will be responsible for leading sales, tracking performance, business development and agency engagement in Hong Kong, as well as in mainland China and Macau.
Central Holidays announced the promotion of Margie Bell to steer national sales growth as vice president of sales. Prior to her promotion, Bell served in the role of national sales manager for Central Holidays since 2017. Her 40-plus years of experience in the travel industry includes hands-on agency management as an agency owner and strategic sales roles with renowned travel organizations, including the IsramWorld Portfolio of Brands and the Hong Kong Tourism Board.
Nik Pereira has been appointed vice president of sales for the Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau. A veteran of more than two decades in the travel and tourism industry, Perieira previously served in senior sales positions for Hersha Hospitality Management, The Westin Philadelphia and The Westin Waltham-Boston and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide.
Scott Radesi has been appointed director of sales, South Region USA, for Exoticca, a Barcelona-based Spanish tour operator. Radesi will operate out of Orlando. Previously, he was director of sales, North America, for Karisma Hotels & Resorts.
Beth Fleeton has joined CAA Niagara as the associate director of travel sales & experience. A 30-year veteran of the travel and tourism is well known for the more than 13 years she spent as senior manager, Canada for Universal Orlando. She was also sales manager/national trainer for Sunquest Vacations, where she worked for 15 years.
Jessica Johnson has been appointed director of marketing at Visit Seattle. With more than 20 years of experience in strategic marketing, Johnson most recently served as the director of marketing + business development at Wild Gravity. She also helped launch Votiv, a Seattle-based label, artist management, and music publishing company.
Las Vegas-based Legends, an experiences company that specializes in delivering holistic solutions for sports and entertainment organizations and venues, has appointed Brian Killingsworth as its chief marketing officer for the global premium experiences company. Killingsworth, a veteran marketing executive with experience guiding MLB, NFL and NHL brands, was most recently, chief marketing officer for the Vegas Golden Knights (NHL). Killingsworth joined the Golden Knights after serving as chief marketing officer of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (NFL).
The International LGBTQ+ Travel Association has announced that Santiago Aguirre-Montoya (he/they), who led the LGBTQ+ initiatives at PROCOLOMBIA, the Colombian tourist board, has joined the association staff this week as Global Membership Manager. Based in both Toronto and his home city of Medellín, he will oversee support for the association’s members as well as develop new strategies for member outreach and benefits. Aguirre-Montoya brings a strong background in tourism promotion and destination marketing to the role. While working for PROCOLOMBIA, they developed business strategies with travel operators and the hospitality sector and created an LGBTQ+ travel strategy that helped the destination win several awards. Most recently, he oversaw the tourism strategy for Colombia in Canada, implementing plans for tourism recovery from the impact of COVID-19.
Stefanie Wasserfuhr’s departure from the travel and tourism industry is over—she spent a year outside the industry with SayWay, a Cologne-based business management consultancy—and will now join Alltours, one of Germany’s largest tour operators, where she will be director of marketing and e-commerce. She starts her new job in February. Before her interregnum outside the industry, Wasserfuhr spent two decades in the Lufthansa Group, lastly as head of tour operator sales & groups for the carrier’s low cost Eurowings airline.
###
Job Postings
From SearchWide Global:
—The Cincinnati USA Convention and Visitors Bureau is seeking a new chief financial officer. More details here.
—Destinations International is looking for a manager of meetings and events. More details here.
—Visit El Paso is searching for a director of marketing and communications. More details here.
—The Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau has an opening for the position of vice president. More details here.
—An international hotel corporation with a diverse and distinctive portfolio is seeking a dual director of sales & marketing to develop and implement the total sales and marketing strategy for two or more hotels located in the same market—Silicon Valley, California. More details here.
—A world-wide hospitality group is looking for an executive director of hotel sales & marketing a position that would be based in San Francisco, Toronto or remotely. More details here:
—Visit Greater Palm Springs has an opening for a vice president of sales. More details here.
—Experience Grand Rapids is searching for a vice president of engagement and inclusion. More details here.
—Visit Annapolis & Anne Arundel County is looking for a director of marketing & communications. More details here.
—Visit Denver is seeking to hire a new vice president of tourism. More details here.
—Visit Santa Cruz is searching for a new CEO/Executive Vice President. More details here.
—The Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau has an opening for a director of marketing. More details here.
—There is an opening for the position of president & CEO at Visit Fort Wayne. More details here.
—The North Lake Tahoe Resort Association is looking for a CEO. More details here.
—Visit Savanah has an opening for a vice president of communications & marketing. More details here.
—Destinations International is searching for a vice president of equity, diversity & inclusion. More details here.
—The City of Tacoma has an opening for a director of venue & events. More details here.
—Visit Dana Point is looking for an executive director. More details here.
—Discover The Palm Beaches is searching for a director of events, tradeshow & strategic sales partnerships. More details here.
—Freeman is searching for a vice president, national graphics. More details here.
—In the Charlotte/Concord area of North Carolina, Great Wolf Resorts has an opening for a director of sales and catering. For details, click here
###
From LinkedIn Jobs: Known to many across the board in the travel and tourism industry, the LinkedIn list (click here) has numerous job opportunities posted. Following is a brief sample of some of those jobs currently listed.
—The Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board is searching for a manager, global communications. More details here.
—At SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment near Philadelphia, there is an opening for a public relations specialist. More details here.
—Travel Oregon is looking for a destination development program manager. Salary $75,400 to $86,707 a year. More details here.
—Amazon Web Services is searching for a head of travel & hospitality industry marketing. Located in Seattle. More details here.
###
From Indeed.com: We’ve taken a look at this site (click here) which says that it has hundreds of new jobs listed, including a fair number in the travel, tourism and related industries. A sampler of what to expect is below.
—The City of Winder, Georgia is looking for an events and tourism manager. More details here.
—Las Vegas Outdoor Adventures is looking for an outdoor tour guide; salary is $100,000-$120,000. More details here.
—There is an opening for a sports tourism assistant at the City of Myrtle Beach. More details here.
—The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is looking for a vice president of guest experience. The salary range is $130,000 – $157,000 a year: More details here.
###
Have a job to offer in the travel and tourism industry? Let us know and we’ll post your notice—no cost to you. Email tom@tomberrigan.com
