Kent County Hospitality Association Elects 2020 Board of Directors

  • Post category:KCHA News

(GRAND RAPIDS, Mich) – The membership of the Kent County Hospitality Association (KCHA) voted on its
2020 Board of Directors at its annual meeting on Thursday, January 17, 2020 at the Prince Conference
Center at Calvin University.

The 2020 Board includes

  • Kyle Holst, General Manager of the Hampton Inn & Suites Downtown Grand Rapids, was re-elected
    as President and will serve until December 2021;
  • Elizabeth Naber, Director of Sales at the Hampton Inn & Suites by Hilton Grand Rapids Downtown,
    will continue her term Vice President until December 2020;
  • Will Korn, Member Value Manager for the Michigan Restaurant & Lodging Association (the state’s
    trade organization, based in Lansing), was elected as Secretary and will serve until December 2021;
  • Doug Kessler, currently an individual member of the organization; continues his term as Treasurer
    until December 2020;
  • Jenifer Cutter, Regional General Manager for Amway Hotel Corp, will serve in an advisory capacity, as the
    immediate past president.

Earlier in the meeting, the lodging members of the association voted to update their bylaws to create 2-year
staggered terms for its Board (in the past, new directors were elected every January to serve for one year);
allowed for two seats on the 4-person board to be held by Allied members (service providers, associations
and others with interest in the hospitality industry); and to established Allied members as voting members of
the organization. These changes were approved to re-align the organization as more hospitality focused.

Re-established in the summer of 2005, KCHA is a non-profit, membership-based organization made up of
lodging properties and other hospitality businesses which service and compliment the local tourism industry.
The organization meets monthly at hotels and destination properties throughout Kent County and also hosts
educational training seminars, social activities and fundraisers for its hospitality scholarship fund.

The mission of the Kent County Hospitality Association is to provide Kent County hospitality related
businesses an opportunity to meet professionally with a common interest to better serve our industry and
community while furthering the overall tourism landscape of our region.