Memphis Convention & Visitors Bureau, Regena Bearden, joins us as the speaker for the May 15 luncheon meeting. Among other things, Regena will discuss MCVB’s current Soul Mates Cam-paign (both traditional and digital planning!); the value of PR in creating Memphis’ distinct Des-tination Story; and what’s been going on in the MCVB marketing department. It promises, as always, to be interesting, informative, entertain-ing and include a delicious lunch with friends. This month’s meeting is at the Clarion, 1471 Brooks Road. Call Peggy. Send an email. Send a fax. Register now. You’ll be glad you did.

MMHLAMMHLAMetropolitan Memphis Hotel & Lodging Association

www.mmhla.com

May 2013

MMHLA OFFICERS & BOARDMMHLA Offices:7730 Goshawk CoveCordova, TN 38016901-752-9902901-752-0743 (fax)MemphisHLA@earthlink.netwww.mmhla.comPeggy Callahan, Executive DirectorMMHLA Officers:Wayne Tabor........................ChairmanMary Calorio.........................PresidentTony Goebel.................Vice PresidentDoug Owings.......................TreasurerTricia Weatherford................SecretaryJohn Rucker............Sergeant-at-armsMMHLA Board of Directors:Doug BrowneShawn DankoAnne-Marie FamaletteMohamad HakimianKevin KaneBill SpencerPierre LandaicheCraig Marshall

Chuck PinkowskiDr. Radesh PalakurthiRick Zurburg

To Make Reservations:www.mmhla.com for details

June 19, 2013Registration, 11:30 a.m.Luncheon, 12:00 noon

The Cottonwoods, Tunica, MS

Phone: 901-752-9902Fax: 901-752-0743E-mail: MemphisHLA@earthlink.net

MMH&LA - the source for information and education, and the advocacy voice forthe hotel and lodging industry in the metropolitan Memphis area.

June 10 – MMHLA/MRA Redbirds Social • AutoZone Park

As a membership benefit the MMHLA has endorsed a program for members and their associates. At the May 15 monthly luncheon, representatives from Life Beefits Consulting will be on hand to explain the program and offer an opportunity to sign up.Life Benefits Consulting offers a

medical program which allows members to reduce out of pocket expenses, deductible costs and time-consuming Urgent Care, ER and Doctor’s Office waiting room visits. Through Tela-Health members have

access 24 hours a day to medical consulting. The Tela-health Doctor can diagnose and write prescriptions and/or recommend home remedies; recommend a specialist or even advise the patient to seek Emergency Room assistance.Tela-Health is a great solution for:

sinus infections, respiratory conditions; allergies, poison ivy, cold and flu – just to name a few.

Life Benefits Consulting Explains Program At May 15 Luncheon Meeting

GOLF Tournament!GOLF

Tournament!

Regena Bearden

METRO CVB UPDATE!METRO CVB UPDATE!

That’s right. The MMHLA Golf Tourna-ment. Wednesday, June 19, at the Cot-tonwoods. Another year . . . another chance to . . . ah well, you fill in that blank. And get your team together and register! Go to MMHLA.com. NOW!

That’s right. The MMHLA Golf Tourna-ment. Wednesday, June 19, at the Cot-tonwoods. Another year . . . another chance to . . . ah well, you fill in that blank. And get your team together and register! Go to MMHLA.com. NOW!

AGAIN!It ’s Coming . . .

Thanks to our sponsors! Caesars En-

tertainment, Sysco Memphis, Ferguson

Enterprises, AAA Parking, Heartland Pay-

ment Systems, Key Magazine, Security

One, Servpro of Bartlett/Cordova.

By Peggy Callahan

No lunch this time, but food’ll

be available before the 1

p.m. shotgun!

No lunch this time, but food’ll

be available before the 1

p.m. shotgun!

STARS OF THE INDUSTRY!

page 2

Food & Beverage Em-ployee of the Year Full Service Property, Fred-die Lavallais, Embassy Suites Hotel.

Food & Beverage Employee of the Year Limited Service Property, Betty Guy, Homewood Suites Southwind.

Sales Employee of the Year, Full Service Property, April Jones, Memphis Marriott Downtown.

Lodging Employee of the Year Full Service Property, Kimnetta Lenee Wheeler, Doubletree by Hilton Memphis Downtown.

Asha Coleman,

Sales Employee

of the Year,

Limited Service

Property, Hamp-ton Inn South-

wind.

Lodging Employee of the Year Limited Service Property, Korthisa ‘Nikki’ Branch, Memphis Grizzlies House.

Manager of the Year, Full Service Property, Amanda Solomon, Em-bassy Suites Hotel.

Housekeeper of the Year, Full Service Property, Eleanor Talley, The Peabody Memphis.

Manager of the Year, Limited Service Property, Damon Watson, Staybridge Suites. WMC’s Joe Birch gets into every picture.

Housekeeper of the Year, Lim-ited Service Property, Rosa Sanchez, Staybridge Suites.

Maintenance Employee of the Year, Full Service Property, Maria Bates, Memphis Marriott Downtown.

Maintenance Employee of the Year, Limited Service Property, Travis Jefferson, Elvis Pres-ley’s Heartbreak Hotel.

Upcoming Star of the Industry,Jada Pope, Embassy Suites Hotel.

An Allied Award of Excel-lence goes to Jeff Hobbs (shown above) & Keith Parish, SERVPRO of Bartlett/Cordova.

Accepting a Gold Star Pub-lic Relations Special Events Award for Courtyard by Mar-riott Collierville Anne-Marie Famalette & James Jerome.

Cissy Chambers accepts a Gold Star Public Relations Award Community Service, for Memphis Marriott Down-town.

Associate Award of ExcellenceChef Steven Leake, Southwest Tennessee Community College.

Outstanding General Manager of the Year Limited Service Property, Outstanding General Manager of the Year

Full Service Property, Niklas Rytterstrom, Gold Strike Casino.

Memphis City Schools’ Carole Shipman is retiring after a wonderful career with the school system. Join us for lunch anytime, Carole!

T h e s e A r e O u r . . . . .

Bridgette Askew, FedExFamilyHouse.

Were you at the Peabody, Wednesday, April 17? Then you know . . .

Bob Cox & his Staybridge Suites winners.Al l the Gold Strike winners. Wow!

A full complement of winners from Anne-Marie Famalette’s Courtyard by Marriott, Collierville.

Cindy Kinard, Anne-Marie Famalette & James Jerome, Courtyard by Marriott Collierville, & their Gold Star Public Relations award for special events.

Tony Goebel & the Memphis Mar-riott Downtown winners show off their trophies.

Mary Calorio & her Elvis Presley Heartbreak Hotel winners.

All the Southwest Tennessee Community College stu-dents who earned their AHLA Certificate.

Scholarship winners from South-west Tennessee Community College.

State DECA competition attendees: Wooddale High School’s: Brajae Brazil, Charvell Shipp & Xavier Aaron.

Employee/Offspring Scholarship Winners: Brandy Daly, Grizzlie House; Cheyanne Beckworth, Memphis Marriott Downtown; Mariah Bamrick, Peabody.

AND MORE WINNERS!AND MORE WINNERS!

Here We Are! In Washington D.C.!

From the Hampton Inn & Homewood Suites Southwind, Ruth Tiapola, Betty Guy Odette McKenzie.

W I N N E R S !W I N N E R S !

MMHLA Members of the MMHLA joined the American Hotel & Lodging Association for its Legislative Action Summit in Washington, DC April 23-24.The MMHLA group was: Doug Browne

(AHLA board representative); Peggy Callahan, AnneMarie Famalette, Chuck Pinkowski and Wayne Tabor. Other Tennesseans there: Greg Adkins, TnHA CEO; Martha Axford, TnHA President; Shannon Bowles, Darik Dawes, Bob Dollinger and Vail Brown.The Tennessee delegates visited the offices of

Senators Bob Corker and Lamar Alexander, and also visited with Congressmen Steve Cohen and Stephen Fincher.The issues being lobbied included:

Support of JOLT Act – Jobs Originated •through Launching Travel – which would accelerate the process for countries to

earn Visa Waiver Program status, allowing visas to be granted within a 10-day time period encouraging more international travel.

Support broad-based immigration •reform. AHLA supports securing boarders; temporary worker programs; an accurate and efficient worker verification system; establishing an earned legalization process; keeping the H-2B seasonal worker program.

Attendees also spoke to the elected officials about the frustration with the sequestration and its effects on air travel. Thursday, April 25, the Senate and Congress passed legisla-tion increasing funding to the FAA to get controllers back to work.During the LAS conference the attendees

also honored J.W. Marriott, Jr. at the AHLA

State Leadership Awards luncheon. Secre-tary Janet Napolitano spoke one morning regarding Homeland Security. MMHLA members have attended this an-

nual conference, which is open to all AHLA/MMHLA members, for many years. For more information, contact Peggy Callahan.

page 3page 3

By Peggy Callahan

page 4

Hooray For Our Stars! Many Thanks To Those Who Went To Washington! And . . . GOLF

Were you there to see the Stars shine?Congratulations to all of our Stars of the

Industry! And many thanks for all your con-tributions to the Memphis travel industry. It wouldn’t exist without you.And many thank to all the managers and

supervisors for their nominations of our best and brightest. These awards aren’t

Tournament! Coming Up!

278-6928 or ginger.demaris@ehps.com.contact Ginger Rogers DeMaris at 501-

Mary CalorioPresident, MMHLA

page 5

Mary

giveaways: they’re earned. And one of a manager’s most important duties is to recognize and honor the people who keep this business going.Good workers make good managers; good managers

make good workers.And more thanks! This time

to those who traveled this past month with me to Washington, D.C. to visit and confer with our senators and congressmen. It’s essential we keep them abreast of the concerns of the Mid-South hospitality indus-try. Once upon a time it was said Memphis isn’t a tourist town. I don’t believe that’s true anymore and part of our job is make sure our represen-

tatives are aware of the hospitality industry’s contribu-tions to the economy of Memphis, Shelby County and the Mid-South: Thank you!

Thank you! Thank you! Peggy Callahan, Chuck Pinkowski, Wayne Tabor, Anne-Marie Famalette and Doug Browne!Finally, GOLF! I’m talking about the

MMHLA Golf Tournament, coming up next month, June 19, at the Cot-tonwoods in Tunica. It not only raises money for our association, it’s a whole lot of fun in the sun! Rain or shine. Or even snow if it comes to it. Who ever knows what the weather will do? If you haven’t gotten your team together . . . what are you waiting for? Visit the MMHLA website for all the details.Oh yeah, don’t forget the MRA/MMH-

LA Redbirds Social, June 10 at Auto-Zone Park. Come on out and cheer for the Redbirds!Until next time . . .

How About A Little Barbecue

Down By The River? MMHLA member, Angie Huffman, with BELFOR Property Restoration, invites all MMHLA members to visit the BELFOR Memphis Booth - H-134 - at the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest, May 16-18. For informa-tion about it contact Angie at 901--336-6070 or angie.huffman@us.belfor.com.

the likes of Steve Cohen, Stephen Fincher, LamarAlexandar and Bob Corker, among others to keep

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MMHLA7730 Goshawk CoveCordova, TN 38016

2013 CALENDARMay 15 – Metro CVB Update, Regena Bearden; Clarion Inn Brooks Road.June 10 – Redbirds Game with MRA; details to come.June 19 – Annual Golf Tournament; Cottonwood, Tunica. July 17 – Memphis Update; Doubletree Downtown.Aug. 20/21 – Southern Lodging Summit @ Memphis; Peabody/MCC.Sept. 18 – Legislative Update; Holiday Inn Wolfchase.

Dates & locations subject to change. *Indicates change from normal 3rd Wed. of month

Excerpt from the April 29, 2013 TnHA Legislative ReportOverall, TnHA had a great 2013 legislative session. This year the Association was successful in passing several key pieces of legislation including a wage and hour pre-emption bill, the new revised food code, and even helped secure $8 million more dollars for the Department of Tourism to do more direct tourism adver-tising and marketing. TnHA also played defense on many issues killing or amend-ing unwanted lodging tax bills and anti-business measures. We could not have done it without the help and support of our members attending TnHA Day on the Hill, sending dozens of legislative alerts to your state representative, and even testifying before key committees. The 2014 legislative session will be here before we know it and we have lots of unfinished business that we will start working on for next year.