What a long, strange (and wonderful) trip it has been! I’ve been in the meetings industry since 1989
and first joined MPI somewhere around 1995. I started out in recreation management facilitating
team building to corporate meetings in the Orlando area, and then went into Destination
Management in Miami where I stayed for 24 amazing years! The DMC I was working for asked me to
attend an MPI meeting one night and I fell in love with the association then and there dreaming of
speaking at the podium one day. I opened my own DMC doors in 1998 which I sold in 2011 and I
remained active through the years with the local chapter. I was part of the South Florida chapter,
was active serving on various committees and was honored to be recognized with MPI Rising Star,
Chairman’s Honor Roll and Above & Beyond Award over the course of those years.

In 2014 I ’retired’ from the DMC industry for good. It was an amazing run however I was burned out
and needed a major life change. MPI was wonderful in working with me while I was figuring things
out and helped me maintain my membership for 18 months before I finally re-joined the meetings
world as a market education consultant to the meetings industry for Cheeriodicals.

In my break between DMC and now, I went back to school to become an Associate Certified
Coach and now focus my energies as a consultant to suppliers to the meetings industry like
Cheeriodicals, looking to figure out how to navigate the meetings industry and providing executive
coaching to the same market helping owners learn how to work on their businesses instead of in their
businesses. It’s the perfect marriage of my former and new skill sets and allows me to continue to
work in an arena I remain passionate about.

I honestly wouldn’t change a thing about my path other than to join MPI sooner! I just wouldn’t be
where I am today if it weren’t for my MPI connections. They’ve provided me with life-long friends,
peers and contacts I still work with today.