After 30 years of working hard to bring travel and tourism to the forefront of Idaho`s agenda, tourism director…
After 30 years of working hard to bring travel and tourism to the forefront of Idaho`s agenda, tourism director for the Idaho Division of Tourism Development Carl Wilgus was honored as the 2005 State Tourism Director of the Year during the August 16th awards ceremony held at the Travel Industry Association of America`s (TIA)annual Educational Seminar for Tourism Organizations (ESTO) in Coeur D`Alene, Idaho.
The tourism industry is what I love, Wilgus said during his acceptance speech. More than anything else this award reaffirms my commitment to my job and this industry.
Every year, the National Council of State Tourism Directors (NCSTD) awards an individual whose influence measurably improves a state or territory`s travel and tourism profile. This year, Wilgus was honored because his state has enjoyed nearly 350 percent growth in its tourism budget and over 1600 percent growth in its tourism information inquiries since he was appointed Idaho`s state tourism director in March 1987.
Wilgus has developed and participated in countless hugely successful programs, such as the popular NCAA MPC Bowl, the 2002 Winter Olympic Strategic Plan, the National Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Commemoration, and several major outdoor recreation promotional programs. Bringing mass attention to his state, he launched Idaho`s first national advertising TV campaign that ran on CNN, the Weather Channel and the Discovery Channel, and he also established the first state advertising co-op to develop an advertorial section that appeared in Midwest Living, Sunset magazine, and Better Homes and Gardens.
As the second longest tenured state tourism director in the nation, Wilgus made large strides to expand Idaho`s tourism related employment by developing a hospitality training program called IDAHOST that has trained more than 100,000 tourism employees in the key elements of customer service.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
