| THCC Welcomes Our Newest Members!
| | Planner Shelley Martinek, CMP Member Services Director Association of Progressive Rental Organizations smartinek@rtohq.org |
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 Gabi Glass, CMP
This week’s spotlight shines on Gabi Glass, CMP, Meeting Planner for the State Firemen's & Fire Marshals' Association of Texas!
Hi, Gabi! Why don’t you tell everyone a little bit about yourself.
Unlike many of my friends from MPI-THCC I didn't grow up in Texas or in any part of the US. I grew up in Prague, Czech Republic. Many people ask me if my parents were in the military. My answer is “no.” My parents hardly even speak English! I was blessed enough to go to bilingual schools all my life and graduated with a Masters degree in film production in 2001. I married my husband in 2004 and moved to Wimberley in 2005.
Tell us about what you do at the State Firemen’s & Fire Marshals’ Association of Texas: I'm the meeting planner for the association. I coordinate site selection for our annual conference, plus exhibits, the training conference itself, staff and board travel, and I'm also the editor of our two annually printed magazines - InfoFire and Texas Firemen. What do you like most about your job? The best part of my job is working for volunteer firefighters. They are saving our communities by donating their family time. I want to make a difference in their lives. I want to give them my very best.
What previous jobs have you held?
Translator/interpreter, restaurant manager, production coordinator (on commercials and feature films), 2nd Assistant Director (on a feature film), third party meeting planner, Front Office Supervisor (at a hotel), project manager.
How long have you been a member of MPI-THCC?
2012 is my second year.
What is the best thing you have gotten out of your membership in our chapter?
I found some great friends and working partners through my membership. MPI-THCC also has the best study group for the CMP certification.
Are you involved on any committees at MPI-THCC?
Not yet. I'm involved in many other organizations besides MPI and I'm just waiting for the right timing. I would like to get involved with young professionals and build a strong base for future meeting planners.
If you were invisible where would you go?
I’d be invisible and travel in time! I would like to visit the 1920's. I would travel through the royal palaces of old Europe.
What two television channels do you watch most frequently?
I don't really have much time to watch TV because of my young daughter, but when I travel, I enjoy HGTV and the Food Network
Want to be featured? Don’t be shy, contact Mandy Begley, CMP or Emily Mathews, CMP.
 2012 MPI THCC Annual Awards Gala! Hey, bud…let's party! This year's banquet will be "totally awesome" as we travel "Back to the Future" with a totally rad 80's-themed banquet! Join us on Friday, June 1 at Sunset Station in San Antonio for the 2012 MPI-THCC Annual Awards Banquet, Silent Auction and Board Installation. The event will honor members of our industry who are outstanding leaders and volunteers. RSVP HERE for our 80’s themed event. You won’t want to miss a really rad dinner, a totally cool dessert bar, some gnarly silent auction items, and hip entertainment that will make for a memorable evening. Silent Auction Featuring Amazing Items! Have you donated yet to the incredibly awesome silent auction? Proceeds go to providing member benefits such as scholarships, quality CE programming and more. Auction items received to date include weekend stays at the - Santa Fe Hilton
- Hilton Anaheim
- Embassy Suites Central Austin
- Intercontinental Stephen F. Austin Hotel, and much more.
- Westin Resort & Spa, Hilton Head, South Carolina (includes complimentary massage)
- Hilton Portland and Executive Tower, Portland, Oregon
- Hyatt Lost Pines Resort & Spa, Lost Pines, Texas (includes complimentary massage)
Raffle tickets can be purchased when registering for the banquet. Ticket prices are $5 per ticket or five tickets for $20. You could be the winner of two round trip tickets anywhere in the continental US, Canada, Alaska, the Caribbean, and Mexico. Want more information about the Silent Auction? Contact Liz Austin or Ellen Forsythe for more information or d ownload an auction donation form here! Show Off Your City or Property and Make It the “Center” of Attention! New this year, the banquet committee has an exciting opportunity available for you to showcase your city or property! Suppliers can purchase a table of eight for $200, and provide the centerpiece for the table! Your challenge, if you choose to accept it, is to decorate the table as it represents you. Bonus if you can find a totally tubular way to tie that in with the theme, that would be SO RAD… fer sure! The sky is the limit here; you just need to let your imagination soar! Your tablescape should be valued at least $150.00 because during the evening, these centerpieces will be auctioned off LIVE to banquet attendees. This is a great way for you to highlight your city or property in a fun, exciting way. Partner with other local hotels, restaurants, and entertainment venues to personalize the table decorations and really show what makes your venue unique. Centerpieces could include certificates for meals, hotel stays and tickets to local events. Attendees will love bidding! And since we know this chapter enjoys a little friendly competition, attendees will be able to vote on their favorite tables! Like, OH my GOSH! If you’re interested, email to Janice Foster so she can help you register your table. Put on your Risky Business sunglasses, MC Hammer pants and neon gloves/rubber bracelets, and turn back time to the 80's... and let's see which city's table will be TOTALLY AWESOME! RSVP HERE!
For industry events, details and information, visit our online calendar.  The next San Antonio NoonTime Network is scheduled for May 3, 2012 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm at Luke Restaurant. Pre-registered members pay $20.00 and pre-registered non-members pay $30.00. Click here for more information.
Always check the left side of the chapter website for news about upcoming chapter events.
 | Leader Board | | Paula Rigling | 6 | Denice Finch | 3 | Cecily McKinley | 4 | Mandy Begley | 3 | Julie Courtney | 3 | Andrea Davis | 3 | Julie Marshall | 3 | Monique Romero-Green | 3 | Eva Leos | 2 | Joe Bedsole | 2 | Lisa Fall | 2 | Vanessa Kager | 2 | Cindy Lo | 2 | Ryan Nordling | 2 | Janet Blomquist | 2 | Della Guidry | 2 | Ashley Durham | 1 | Liz Austin | 1 | Cherry Kay Abel | 1 | Diana Marquez | 1 | Adrieene Contreras | 1 | Kristine Morgan | 1 | Leanne Hallisey | 1 |
InTOUCH Recruiting Project
Great news! The new member recruiting deadline is extended to May 25!!! With the later date of our Annual Banquet (June 1), we thought we’d give you a few extra days to recruit new members and gain additional points. The final deadline is Friday, May 25, with the winner(s) announced at the banquet. Here’s our updated recruitment scoreboard. Recruit New Members, Grow Our Chapter and Win a Trip to VEGAS, Baby!
Recruit members and earn points to be entered into an amazing grand prize drawing for an unforgettable vacation to Vegas. The goal is to increase our chapter membership by 10%.
When you recruit a planner to MPI-THCC you earn 3 points.
When you recruit a supplier to MPI-THCC you earn 2 points.
When you recruit a non-member to an educational session you earn 1 point.
For every 5 points you earn, you will be entered once into the grand prize drawing!
Grand Prize:
Three days and two nights in a beautiful wraparound Terrace Suite at the new Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas!
A $500 gift card on Southwest Airlines!
Round-trip airport transfer service…in a limo!
A $500 dining credit at the Cosmopolitan Hotel!
$300 CASH for however YOU want to spend it!
Suite, dining credit and airport transfer graciously donated by The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas (a $2,200 value)!
Winners of this contest will be announced at the Annual Banquet on June 1, 2012. Contact Alysia Roden, Director of Recruitment, with any questions.
Awards and ScholarshipsThe scholarship committee has awarded a TEC (the chapter’s Texas Education Conference) scholarship to Cindy Smith with Texas Mutual. She will receive $300 toward her costs to attend TEC this October. A huge “Congratulations!” to Cindy; this is awesome news!
At the 2012 MPI THCC Annual Awards Banquet we will announce the winners of the following awards: - Planner of the Year
- Supplier of the Year
- Rising Star Award
- Committee Chair of the Year
- Unsung Hero Award
- Silver Platter Venue Award
- President’s Award
The membership votes on the Planner of the Year, the Supplier of the Year, and the Rising Star Awards. Check your inbox for an e-mail from Janice with the link to the poll. E-mail Janice Foster if you have not voted and did not see the e-mail invitation. Your vote counts!
Make this the year you finally get your CMP!
Austin Study Group Dates: - Orientation/Application Overview/Course Syllabus – Monday, July 9, 2012 (location TBD)
- Classes will start on Monday, July 16, and continue each Monday evening (with the exception of Labor Day, September 3) through October 8, 2012.
- Study Weekend for both Austin and San Antonio will be either October 12-13, 2012 or October 19-20, 2012.
San Antonio Study Group Dates: - Orientation/Application Overview/Course Syllabus – Tuesday, July 10, 2012 – Administrative Office, Conference Room #1, Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center
- Classes will start on Tuesday, July 17, and continue each Tuesday evening (with the exception of Labor Day, September 3) through October 9, 2012.
- Study Weekend for both Austin and San Antonio will be either October 12-13 or October 19-20.
Costs:
$50 for members of the MPI-Texas Hill Country Chapter
$100 for members of other MPI chapters (Dallas, Houston, etc.)
$250 for non-members For the fourth quarter of 2012 the following deadlines apply: - CMP application submission period: April 2-August 7, 2012
- CIC exam registration: August 21-September 13, 2012
- Exam appointment scheduling: September 24-October 31, 2012
- Exam period: November 1-November 10, 2012
CMP is moving to computer-based testing. Gone will be the days of a huge proctored room that felt like the SATs! Read all about it here.
Recertification news! You don’t want to work that hard to get your CMP and then forget to recertify every five years, right? The Convention Industry Council changed some processes for this a while back…
You can renew by Sept. 30th and avoid paying late fees: From May 1 thru September 30th, the price will be the regular $225 fee. Late registration fees apply starting October 30th and will be $250. Check here to get the latest information on CMP recertification. Also, make sure you contact information is current with CIC so that you receive CMP Today and other communications from them.
 Why Leaders Fail
by Mark Sanborn, CSP, CPAE Donald Trump, paragon of the real estate world, files for bankruptcy. Richard Nixon, 37th U.S. President, resigns the presidency over the Watergate scandal. Jennifer Capriati, rising tennis star, enters a rehabilitation center for drug addicts. Jim Bakker, renowned televangelist, is convicted of fraud. In the recent past, we've witnessed the public downfall of leaders from almost every area of endeavor—business, politics, religion, and sports. One day they're on top of the heap, the next, the heap's on top of them. Of course, we think that such catastrophic failure could never happen to us. We've worked hard to achieve our well-deserved positions of leadership—and we won't give them up for anything! The bad news is: the distance between beloved leader and despised failure is shorter than we think. Read more here…
 White Lodging Services Corp. has financing in place for its $275 million, 33-story upscale convention hotel planned along Congress Avenue in Austin and is preparing for a June launch for the project. Get more news here. Tim Lafferty, Sales Manager at the Inn of the Hills in Kerrville, reports good news that having started remodeling this past August, the Inn of the Hills Resort & Conference Center has made tremendous strides in an extensive renovation of the well-established local landmark. Read the full story here.
MPI THCC sponsors are more than just partners, they are members with an equal investment in this organization. To accommodate the multiple events this organization hosts every year, we have created “rfp’s” and sponsor donation forms and made them available online. We recognize some aspects of these programs may need minor adjustments to better suit your marketing needs and objectives. We are eager to personalize a sponsorship package that will be a good fit for you. Please contact Ellen Forsythe, CMP, Director of Strategic Alliances by email or 512/452-4224 to discuss sponsor options in length.
 One of the great features of the THCC website is the Job Line. Are you looking for a new position? Be sure to visit the Job Line often... jobs are posted frequently and the list is ever-changing. If your perfect next job isn't currently posted, you can even post your resume and get your name before potential employers! Are you looking to hire someone? Then use the Job Line to advertise your open position. Take advantage of this great feature and take your career to the next level!
From our chapter president, Joe Bedsole, this really got our attention: Five Travel Apps That Could Save Your Life.
Pictured left to right from the Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau: Mary Grimley, Director of Sales, Eastern Regional Office; Ruben Perez, Senior Director of Sales; Dana Williams, CTA, CMP, CMM, Director of National Accounts, Austin Office.
What you don’t see is that Dana is wearing FLATS to the Omni Dallas Gala. I’m sure it has everything to do with her recent foot surgery, but something we never see from this fashionista.
Mary Ann Keenan is now the Director of Sales for the historic Northern Hotel in downtown Billings, MT. A lovely hotel on the National Register of Historic Places will complete renovations Spring 2013.
Have breaking news? MPI-THCC is eager to spread all the good news about our members and our industry. We want to hear from you! Send your news to commteam@mpithcc.org. If you’d like to send a press release, there is an easy form available on the web. Reach out! If you are interested in advertising in the Spotlight or on the MPI-THCC web site, click here for information or call Jeff Rasco at 512-847-1122. | | | 
MPITHCC PO Box 49135 Austin, TX 78765-9154
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