Visit Spokane Announces Tourism Award Winners

(May 12, 2016) Visit Spokane hosted its 39th Annual Meeting on May 11 at the Spokane Convention Center. The meeting included a presentation of the Tourism Awards.

Visit Spokane also reported on the impact of visitor spending within Spokane County for 2015. Visitors to Spokane County spent an estimated $947 million in 2015, providing jobs for more than 10,000 residents throughout the region.

Barb Beddor and Toby Steward, Star USA, received the Leadership Excellence in Tourism award. Barb and Toby were chosen as the recipients of this award by the Visit Spokane Board of Directors for their commitment to bringing high quality, well-attended events to the Spokane region for more than 10 years. The couple brought Skate America to the area, the 2007 and 2010 U.S. Figure Skating Championships and, most recently, the Team Challenge Cup.

Award finalists for the rest of the Tourism Awards are listed below. The award winners are in bold:

Rising Star Award:

• Lyndsey DuBrock, La Rive Spa at Northern Quest Resort & Casino
• Jolene Green, Northern Quest Resort & Casino
• Tyler Shales, Sante Restaurant and Charcuterie

Spirit of the Inland Northwest – Small Business:

• HUB Sports Center
• Downtown Spokane Partnership
• Spokane Indians Baseball Club

Spirit of the Inland Northwest – Large Business:

• DAA Northwest
• Holiday Inn Express Downtown
• Silverwood Theme Park

Exceptional Small Event:

• Red, White & No-Li Small Batch Festival
• Inlander “Best Of” Awards
• Winter Blessing

Exceptional Large Event:

• Washington State Chinese Lantern Festival
• National Lentil Festival
• Northwest League vs. Pioneer League All Star Game

The Annual Meeting also included a breakdown of Visit Spokane's annual report and a presentation by keynote speaker Bill Geist, DMOproz.

For more information about Visit Spokane, click here.