LVHA Honors Hospitality Pros
Diane Taylor -- Tradeshow Week, 3/28/2008 3:41:00 PM
The spring weather March 27 included a cool breeze, but inside the Las Vegas Convention Center, the atmosphere was pure warmth – from the hugs friends gave each other as they met during cocktails, to the words of praise from the podium. The occasion: the first Las Vegas Hospitality Assn. Distinction Awards Gala.
Long-time LVHA Board Member Mary Thomas described the purpose of evening: “LVHA established the awards to say thank you for what individuals in our industry have done to help Las Vegas become the successful destination it is today. Our honorees may have other awards, but these are particularly meaningful in that they are given by their peers in Las Vegas.”
Master of ceremonies Dave McCann of KLAS-TV noted, “I knew this was a big event just looking at the eight dinner utensils.”
Other signs: white tulips and lighted Las Vegas signs as table centerpieces; a five-course dinner; music by Pyramid and Alimza; showgirl escorts for award winners; and trophies featuring a gleaming sphere nestled between spikes of stainless steel.
The winners were:
• Rising Star – Jordan Clark, vice president of sales, Las Vegas Meetings by Harrah’s Entertainment
• Spirit Award – Don Ross, vice president of catering, Las Vegas Meetings by Harrah’s Entertainment.
• Industry Leader – Valerie Moon, director of sales, Excalibur Hotel and Casino (owned by MGM Mirage)
• Business of the Year – Freeman
• Legacy Award – Rossie Ralenkotter, president and CEO, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
Before receiving their awards, honorees were introduced by a colleague and were the subject of a short video.
Comments during the presentations ranged from Jordan Clark’s “The group business is my total passion and love,” to Barry Rappaport (Freeman executive vice president of sales and exposition services) calling an ever-growing Las Vegas “a convention city on steroids,” to Valerie Moon’s, “When I first worked in Las Vegas, we had to go to New York or Los Angeles to go shopping. … How things have changed.”
The inaugural recipient of the evening’s highest award, Ralenkotter, told the audience, “All of us here are working to sell the greatest destination in the universe, and we do it by outselling and outworking everyone else.”
He recently celebrated 35 years with LVCVA, and, according to statistics compiled by his research staff, the Las Vegas hospitality industry has grown from 357,000 visitors who came to 305 conventions in 1973 to 6.2 million visitors at 23,847 conventions in 2007.
