Speakers
Dave Lorenz - Pure Michigan
David Lorenz is the Manager of Industry Relations & International Marketing for Travel Michigan, a division of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation – the official State of Michigan tourism promotion agency. He oversees Travel Michigan's efforts in the areas of international marketing, packaged travel, conventions and meetings, industry relations, golf and sports-event promotion.
Prior to coming to Travel Michigan in October 2002, Mr. Lorenz was the Manager, Partnerships and Promotions, for Meijer, Inc. where he was responsible for the facilitation of collaborative marketing programs with key consumer goods manufacturers such as Nabisco, Kraft, Kellogg’s, General Mills, Coca-Cola, Disney and Mattel.
He also has 14 years' experience in radio broadcasting in roles varying from announcer and news reporter to numerous management positions.
David Lorenz attended Western Michigan University. He lives in Norton Shores with his wife, Roberta.
Prior to coming to Travel Michigan in October 2002, Mr. Lorenz was the Manager, Partnerships and Promotions, for Meijer, Inc. where he was responsible for the facilitation of collaborative marketing programs with key consumer goods manufacturers such as Nabisco, Kraft, Kellogg’s, General Mills, Coca-Cola, Disney and Mattel.
He also has 14 years' experience in radio broadcasting in roles varying from announcer and news reporter to numerous management positions.
David Lorenz attended Western Michigan University. He lives in Norton Shores with his wife, Roberta.
Cindy Brown - Dinner Ettiquette
Cindy Brown serves as the Executive Director for Hello West Michigan.
Hello West Michigan is an employer-driven and non-profit membership organization, serving as an advocate for talent and provides downstream support for them and their families as they settle into their new lives in West Michigan.
From September 2008 until August 2011, Cindy served as Project Manager for the West Michigan Internship Initiative. Under Ms. Brown’s direction, the Employers’ Internship Toolkit was developed to assist the region’s employers who wish to develop and/or enhance their organizations’ internship program. Ms. Brown facilitated Employers’ Internship Training Sessions to share tips and best practices on how to structure a successful internship program.
Prior to this opportunity she had a lengthy career at Enterprise Rent-A-Car where her responsibilities included the development and implementation of a summer internship program, including the recruitment of college students to participate in the program. She has over 21 years of leadership experience in employee development and coaching, recruiting, sales and brand management, and training and facilitation.
Cindy is immediate Past-President for the Michigan Career Educator & Employer Alliance (MCEEA). She was selected for the 2011 Don Hunt Service Award which honors her for significant contributions in promoting and sustaining quality internship and cooperative education programs in the state of Michigan. She serves on the Michigan Economic Development Corporation Talent Partner Group. Cindy is a member of the Ottawa County Workforce Development Board and Area Community Services Employment and Training Council for Kent/Allegan Counties and serves on the advisory board of West Michigan’s Top 101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For. Ms. Brown received her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Aquinas College.
Hello West Michigan is an employer-driven and non-profit membership organization, serving as an advocate for talent and provides downstream support for them and their families as they settle into their new lives in West Michigan.
From September 2008 until August 2011, Cindy served as Project Manager for the West Michigan Internship Initiative. Under Ms. Brown’s direction, the Employers’ Internship Toolkit was developed to assist the region’s employers who wish to develop and/or enhance their organizations’ internship program. Ms. Brown facilitated Employers’ Internship Training Sessions to share tips and best practices on how to structure a successful internship program.
Prior to this opportunity she had a lengthy career at Enterprise Rent-A-Car where her responsibilities included the development and implementation of a summer internship program, including the recruitment of college students to participate in the program. She has over 21 years of leadership experience in employee development and coaching, recruiting, sales and brand management, and training and facilitation.
Cindy is immediate Past-President for the Michigan Career Educator & Employer Alliance (MCEEA). She was selected for the 2011 Don Hunt Service Award which honors her for significant contributions in promoting and sustaining quality internship and cooperative education programs in the state of Michigan. She serves on the Michigan Economic Development Corporation Talent Partner Group. Cindy is a member of the Ottawa County Workforce Development Board and Area Community Services Employment and Training Council for Kent/Allegan Counties and serves on the advisory board of West Michigan’s Top 101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For. Ms. Brown received her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Aquinas College.
Joseph Lawless - Me: The Brand
Joseph Lawless is a 24 year old male, residing in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. Joseph Is currently employed through the JCPenney Salon Division as a District Artistic Lead Designer. He grew up in a small town in northern Michigan, called Gladwin. After receiving his Cosmetology License from MJ Murphy’s Beauty College, Joseph went on to work for JCPenney Salon in Mount Pleasant. Since that time he has worked his way up through the salon and on to the ALD (Artistic Lead Designer) Team. He is one of fifty-five in the nation. Since that time he has been able to travel around the state teaching and mentoring the JCPenney stylists to become not only better hair dressers, but customer service experts as well. He over see’s the education of over twenty salons in the state. In June, Joseph will be competing alongside five other ALD’s for the National RAW Competition sponsored by BehindtheChair.com Magazine at the Orlando Premiere Hair Show in Orlando, Florida.
Jane Lovett - Bed & Breakfast Management
Jane is the founder & owner of Peaches Bed & Breakfast in Grand Rapids, which has been in operation since 1993. The bed & breakfast has 5 guest bedrooms and also hosts parties, meetings and weddings. In 2007, Peaches attained its “Green Lodging Leader” designation, the highest green designation possible, from the State of Michigan. Peaches Bed & Breakfast has been an ArtPrize venue since ArtPrize’s inception in 2009. Jane has served several terms on the Heritage Hill Association board of directors. Jane is somewhat of an anomaly in the B&B industry because the average “burn-out” is seven years for B&B operators and she’s still at it after 20.
Before opening Peaches, Jane and her husband “flipped” houses…back in the days before it had a name. Peaches is the 10th of 11 houses they’ve owned.
Jane has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Materials and Logistics Management from Michigan State University. This degree is extremely relevant to her current career, since it encompasses Purchasing, Operations Management & Inventory Control, and Transportation/Distribution.
Before opening Peaches, Jane and her husband “flipped” houses…back in the days before it had a name. Peaches is the 10th of 11 houses they’ve owned.
Jane has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Materials and Logistics Management from Michigan State University. This degree is extremely relevant to her current career, since it encompasses Purchasing, Operations Management & Inventory Control, and Transportation/Distribution.
Katie Saunders - A Day In The Life
A graduate of Grand Valley State College ( was still a College and not a University then) in 1987 with a Bachelors’ in Business and a minor in Hospitality/Tourism. Katie has worked in the Hospitality industry for the majority of her working Career and started that career in her college days. Her first internship was at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island and then the Grand Traverse Resort in Traverse City. The hands on experience gave Katie the extra push she needed as she began her Marriott career. Katie joined Marriott in 1988 in operations for the Courtyard division, she quickly moved onto Sales and was then promoted to the opening team for the Livonia Marriott as a Sales/Catering Manager. Katie spent 8 years with Marriott before moving onto a Director of Sales and Marketing role with Omni Hotels. In the 12 years with Omni hotels Katie held the positions of Director of Sales and Marketing and General Manager. At the time Katie was one of 3 Female General Managers in the Company. Katie broke free of the Hotel only world in 2008 and opened a Casino/hotel as the Director of Sales and Marketing and finally returned to Marriott in 2009. She is currently the Director of Group Sales at the city of St. Louis’s largest convention Hotel the Renaissance Grand.
Mike Busley - Entrepreneurship in Hospitality
Mike was born in Lansing Michigan on May 15 1956. He attended Waverly High School in Lansing and Michigan State University in East Lansing. Mike graduated MSU in 1980 with a BS in Civil Engineering. Mike met his future wife Denise while attending MSU. After graduation they moved to Southern California and were married in 1981. In California Mike held positions in Project Management and Business Management at Hughes Helicopters, General Dynamics, and Lockheed Martin. Mike and Denise moved from California to Traverse City and opened the first Grand Traverse Pie Company in July 1996. They were fueled by the desire to own their own business in Northern Michigan which provides a positive and secure workplace, supports fellow Michigan companies, and supports community improvement efforts. There are 14 Grand Traverse Pie Company bakery cafes in Michigan and Indiana. Mike and Denise have two children, Kellee (27), and Bobby (23) who have their own careers but are still involved with the family business.
Steve Kermode
Steve Kermode is Director of Recreation and Retail Operations for Crystal Mountain Resort in Thompsonville, MI. Currently overseeing the Recreation Dept, Winter Ticket/Rental Dept, Snowsports and Race Dept, Peak Fitness Center, and all Resort Retail operations. Steve first joined Crystal Mountain in 1977 and has seen the transformation from a ski hill to a world class resort. His entire working career has centered on the hospitality industry.
Along with his wife, Dosie, Steve helped developed the resort retail as a separate business in the areas of golf, ski, resort clothing and gifts as the resort was going thru its first major master planned expansion. The business was absorbed back into resort operations.
Steve has also worked hospitality and resort jobs in Colorado, Mackinac Island, and Northern Michigan. He earned a BS in Education in Physical Education and Recreation from Central Michigan University.
Along with his wife, Dosie, Steve helped developed the resort retail as a separate business in the areas of golf, ski, resort clothing and gifts as the resort was going thru its first major master planned expansion. The business was absorbed back into resort operations.
Steve has also worked hospitality and resort jobs in Colorado, Mackinac Island, and Northern Michigan. He earned a BS in Education in Physical Education and Recreation from Central Michigan University.
Tim Surprise - Beer Tourism
Hailing from Upstate New York, Tim Suprise learned early in life that relationships matter. The educational influences of the School Sisters of Notre Dame, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondolet, and Franciscan Friars helped shape a desire for public service that led to a brief yet formative career in the military and law enforcement after college.
The transition to private industry in the early 80’s came with Tim joining Albany Engineered Systems as Field Service Technician and a productive 9-year career in Sales and Sales Management within this supplier to the Pulp & Paper industry. Recruited in 1991 to lead Durametallic Corporation (now Flowserve Corp) into the Pulp & Paper sector, Tim relocated with his family to Kalamazoo, Michigan. From 1991 through 1995, his efforts quadrupled Dura’s sales to the Pulp & Paper segment throughout the US, and he helped to lead their international entry into the Netherlands, Belgium, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and China.
Tim left that perfectly good paying job in 1996 to establish Arcadia Brewing Company of Battle Creek, an artisanal brewer of handcrafted British-inspired ales and wood-fired cuisine in the Company’s restaurant alongside the brewery. 16 years later, Arcadia Ales™ have been awarded medals in the World Beer Championships, the World Beer Cup and the Great American Beer Festival, while growing and expanding distribution to 10 States. Tim was a past Board Member of the Kalamazoo County Family YMCA and Chairman of the Y’s 1997 Invest in Youth Campaign, a founding Board Member and past-President of the Michigan Brewers Guild. Tim currently serves on the Boards of the Battle Creek Downtown Partnership, Cereal City Development Corporation, Battle Creek Downtown Development Authority and is a member of the Government Affairs Committee of the Michigan Brewers Guild.
Tim continues to serve Arcadia as Founder, President and Chairman.
The transition to private industry in the early 80’s came with Tim joining Albany Engineered Systems as Field Service Technician and a productive 9-year career in Sales and Sales Management within this supplier to the Pulp & Paper industry. Recruited in 1991 to lead Durametallic Corporation (now Flowserve Corp) into the Pulp & Paper sector, Tim relocated with his family to Kalamazoo, Michigan. From 1991 through 1995, his efforts quadrupled Dura’s sales to the Pulp & Paper segment throughout the US, and he helped to lead their international entry into the Netherlands, Belgium, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and China.
Tim left that perfectly good paying job in 1996 to establish Arcadia Brewing Company of Battle Creek, an artisanal brewer of handcrafted British-inspired ales and wood-fired cuisine in the Company’s restaurant alongside the brewery. 16 years later, Arcadia Ales™ have been awarded medals in the World Beer Championships, the World Beer Cup and the Great American Beer Festival, while growing and expanding distribution to 10 States. Tim was a past Board Member of the Kalamazoo County Family YMCA and Chairman of the Y’s 1997 Invest in Youth Campaign, a founding Board Member and past-President of the Michigan Brewers Guild. Tim currently serves on the Boards of the Battle Creek Downtown Partnership, Cereal City Development Corporation, Battle Creek Downtown Development Authority and is a member of the Government Affairs Committee of the Michigan Brewers Guild.
Tim continues to serve Arcadia as Founder, President and Chairman.
Luis A. Lozano - MoneySmart
Luis A. Lozano, is an Assistant Director in the Financial Aid Office at Grand Valley State University. His focus is in Student Employment and Financial Literacy. With the creation of MoneySmart Lakers, a financial literacy program available to Grand Valley students, his goal is to equip students with the tools and resources to help build their knowledge and their money management skills. He is also tasked with helping students obtain different job opportunities on and off campus. He oversees the policies and regulations that affect the 3,500+ student employees.
Michael Donnelly - Benefits of Joining a Professional Organization
Michael Donnelly is the general manager of the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel, part of the Amway Hotel Corporation, a division of Amway Corporate Enterprises, a subsidiary of Amyway Inc. In this new role, he leads the largest hotel in West Michigan employing over 1,000 associates. Prior to accepting the position in March 2013 he was the general manager of the Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Grand Rapids, another property in the Amway Hotel Corporation.
Donnelly is a 20-year veteran of the hotel business, starting out as a front desk agent at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel in 1993 after graduating from Aquinas College with a Bachelor of Science in Business and Communications. His passion for the hospitality industry grew as he gained experience in multiple departments within the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel, and he was promoted to assistant general manager in 2000 of the Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Grand Rapids and then general manager in 2008. During his time as general manager, he helped the Courtyard achieve one of the highest occupancies for hotels greater than 200 rooms in the State of Michigan for several years running.
Originally from the Detroit area, this West Michigan transplant has called Grand Rapids home for more than 25 years. Donnelly is an active member of the community, a committee member for the Kent County Lodging Association and the West Michigan Chamber of Commerce, and a board member for the West Michigan Sports Commission. He and his wife, Melinda, have five children, two under the age of two.
Donnelly is a 20-year veteran of the hotel business, starting out as a front desk agent at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel in 1993 after graduating from Aquinas College with a Bachelor of Science in Business and Communications. His passion for the hospitality industry grew as he gained experience in multiple departments within the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel, and he was promoted to assistant general manager in 2000 of the Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Grand Rapids and then general manager in 2008. During his time as general manager, he helped the Courtyard achieve one of the highest occupancies for hotels greater than 200 rooms in the State of Michigan for several years running.
Originally from the Detroit area, this West Michigan transplant has called Grand Rapids home for more than 25 years. Donnelly is an active member of the community, a committee member for the Kent County Lodging Association and the West Michigan Chamber of Commerce, and a board member for the West Michigan Sports Commission. He and his wife, Melinda, have five children, two under the age of two.
Jim LaBadie - Customer Relationship Management
Jim LaBadie, CASE is National Account Executive for the Visit Houston – the convention and visitors bureau for the city of Houston, TX. Jim has responsibility for citywide group business development in the national association market in Chicago and the surrounding Great Lakes region. Prior to his current post, Jim was Director of National Accounts – Midwest for the Hawai’i Convention Center in Honolulu.
Jim has 38+ years in the industry including destination sales and marketing for cities both domestic and international, as well as extensive experience in both sales and operations in the resort industry. Jim is a member of Meeting Professionals International, the International Association for Exhibitions and Events, the Professional Convention Management Association, the American Society of Association Executives and the Association Forum of Chicagoland. He has also served on the Board of Directors for both the Association Forum and the Association Management Company Institute, and has attained the certification of Certified Association Sales Executive (CASE).
Jim has 38+ years in the industry including destination sales and marketing for cities both domestic and international, as well as extensive experience in both sales and operations in the resort industry. Jim is a member of Meeting Professionals International, the International Association for Exhibitions and Events, the Professional Convention Management Association, the American Society of Association Executives and the Association Forum of Chicagoland. He has also served on the Board of Directors for both the Association Forum and the Association Management Company Institute, and has attained the certification of Certified Association Sales Executive (CASE).
Shane Brown - Us vs Them
Shane Brown is the Executive Chef at the Petoskey-Bay View Country Club in Petoskey, MI. Has spent his whole life in the food business in one phase or another. Growing up on a farm and working in his father's butcher shop. He started working in the restaurant business as a dish washer 35 years ago and has worked in just about every position there is. He graduated from the Culinary Institute of America with honors and has been married for 25 years to his to his lovely wife Jean and they have two children.
Brian Seelye - Us vs Them
Brian Seelye is the Membership Director/Dining Room Supervisor at the Petoskey-Bay View Country Club, this spring will start his sixth season with the club. Brian has over 15 years of front-of-the-house experience at country clubs and resorts in Northern Michigan. He loves helping train new staff and does a wonderful job. Brian is a team player and is great at motivating others to do their best. During his 15 years of working in the front-of-the-house he has gained abundant knowledge, that he is very willing to share with others.
Jaye Beeler - Culinary Tourism
As the food editor and restaurant reviewer at The Grand Rapids Press, Jaye Beeler wants you to cook, eat and entertain and not get all bunched up about the details. With a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Kentucky, Jaye combines solid newspaper reporting and a passion for food. With a heady exuberance, she's savored regional cuisine from Merida, Venezuela and Sydney, Australia, to major European gastronomic cities including, London, Edinburgh, Paris and Venice. She's discovered the finest souvenirs to stuff in her suitcase are stacks of local cookbooks, kitchen gadgets and gorgeous gourmet foods from estate bottled olive oil, fruit jams, loose leaf tea to Tim-Tams, an Australian supermarket biscuit.
Jerry Preston - CVB's
Jerry Preston is a member of the Michigan Travel Commissions since his appointment by Governor Granholm in 2006. The Michigan Travel Commission developed “Pure Michigan” the award winning promotion for travel to Michigan. He has been the President of the Convention and Visitors Bureaus in Flint, Ann Arbor, and Quincy, Illinois. He has provided consulting services for various domestic tourism agencies as well as Jordon and Russia.
Prior to becoming involved in tourism promotion, Preston was product manager for RCA, marketing various products used in Radio and Television Broadcasting. Later he served as National Sales Manager For Harris Corporation a Global producer of products for the Broadcast Industry.
Preston is a Certified Association Executive, a Certified Broadcast Engineer, and holds a Michigan Real estate License. He is a board member of the Tall Pine Council Boy Scouts of America, board member of the Flint Chapter of the Michigan Technology Network, Secretary of Back to the Bricks, Treasurer of Sister Cities of Flint and Friends of McFarlan Park.
He has serviced as a Commissioner of Bishop International Airport Authority, Chairman of the Board of the Michigan Society of Association Executives, President of the Michigan Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus, President of the Illinois Travel and Tourism Council, Chairman of the Board of the Quincy (IL) Metropolitan ‘Auditorium, Exhibition Hall and Office Building Authority, Master of the Michigan Lodge of Information and Research AF&AM. He was awarded a Silver Beaver by the Boy Scouts of America and is a Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow and was inducted in 2012 into the Michigan Society of Association Executives Hall of Fame.
He holds a commercial pilot’s license and for 14 years lived on a houseboat he built on the Mississippi river at Quincy, Ill.
Prior to becoming involved in tourism promotion, Preston was product manager for RCA, marketing various products used in Radio and Television Broadcasting. Later he served as National Sales Manager For Harris Corporation a Global producer of products for the Broadcast Industry.
Preston is a Certified Association Executive, a Certified Broadcast Engineer, and holds a Michigan Real estate License. He is a board member of the Tall Pine Council Boy Scouts of America, board member of the Flint Chapter of the Michigan Technology Network, Secretary of Back to the Bricks, Treasurer of Sister Cities of Flint and Friends of McFarlan Park.
He has serviced as a Commissioner of Bishop International Airport Authority, Chairman of the Board of the Michigan Society of Association Executives, President of the Michigan Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus, President of the Illinois Travel and Tourism Council, Chairman of the Board of the Quincy (IL) Metropolitan ‘Auditorium, Exhibition Hall and Office Building Authority, Master of the Michigan Lodge of Information and Research AF&AM. He was awarded a Silver Beaver by the Boy Scouts of America and is a Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow and was inducted in 2012 into the Michigan Society of Association Executives Hall of Fame.
He holds a commercial pilot’s license and for 14 years lived on a houseboat he built on the Mississippi river at Quincy, Ill.
Melissa Hanlon
Melissa joined Continental Services with several years of food service management experience and culinary training from Schoolcraft college in Livonia, Michigan as well as a bachelor’s degree in hospitality and tourism management from Grand Valley State University. Melissa has managed event and food service operations in such places as the Murray Hotel on Mackinac Island, White Lodging Services in Grand Rapids and did a six month internship at Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL.
Today, as Operations and Hospitality Manager, Melissa oversees a variety of segments in the café sector of Continental Services, including but not limited to promotions, new product launches, loyalty programs, hospitality training and special events. Her experience and knowledge of the food service industry gained from exposure to a assortment of hospitality areas makes her an excellent addition to manage all marketing and merchandising initiatives for more than 30 dining locations in Southeast Michigan
Today, as Operations and Hospitality Manager, Melissa oversees a variety of segments in the café sector of Continental Services, including but not limited to promotions, new product launches, loyalty programs, hospitality training and special events. Her experience and knowledge of the food service industry gained from exposure to a assortment of hospitality areas makes her an excellent addition to manage all marketing and merchandising initiatives for more than 30 dining locations in Southeast Michigan
