Chairman’s Message
Mary Ann Burns
NHLA Chairman of the Board
Vice President of Hotel Operations
Boyd Gaming
Dear NHLA Members,
I am honored to have been appointed as the next Chairman of the Board for the Nevada Hotel and Lodging Association. I look forward to the next two years with great excitement.
The Nevada Hotel and Lodging Association brings an abundance of resources, benefits and activities to our hospitality industry. We provide statewide seminars, conferences, networking opportunities, certifications, bowling and golf tournaments, and various divisional activities for the benefit of all interests of our members.
NHLA Women in Lodging was founded in 2015 and we have grown this division to over 200 members. WIL provides the ideal platform to promote women’s leadership as well as professional career development. The program includes a dynamic mentor program with two annual sessions, leadership development opportunities such as the Leadership Chats program with top female leaders in the industry and the new Read to Lead Book Club. We also host many seminars, conferences and networking events as well as philanthropic activities for the women’s charities that we support.
The Emerging Leaders is comprised of professional leaders 36 and younger building a career in the hospitality industry. NHLA provides guidance and support for these members through a dedicated leadership council, quarterly activities, leadership development opportunities and philanthropic support encouragement. The new Horizons mentor program provides the opportunity for the young members to meet established leaders in the industry and spend time learning from them.
We have many committees for members to participate within both in lending their expertise and resources for the membership and developing new contacts and skills.
We have a robust schedule of events and activities scheduled for this next year under the leadership and management of NHLA President Diane Gandy and Vice President Irving Pamblanco. Leadership development will be a key focus.
On behalf of our Board of Directors, I look forward to working with our teams and meeting our members. Thank you for the support and let’s have a great 2020!
Sincerely,
Mary Ann Burns
NHLA Chairman of the Board
NHLA Board of Directors:
| Officers | Executive Board |
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Chairman of The Board Mary Ann Burns Vice President of Hotel Operations Boyd Gaming |
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Audrey Damonte Attorney Holley, Driggs, Walch, Fine, Puzey, Stein & Thompson |
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Vice Chairman Cheraz Ecker General Manager Atlantis Casino Resort Spa |
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Shannon McCallum Vice President Aria Resort and Casino and Vdara Hotel and Spa |
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Vice Chairman Alex Canales Area Vice President – Resort Operations Hilton Grand Vacations Club |
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Debra S. Lang General Manager Holiday Inn Express & Suites, Minden |
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Secretary/Treasurer Chris Breed Vice President of Resort Operations Soleil Management |
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Josef Wagner Vice President of Food & Beverage Aria Resort & Casino |
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| Directors | ||||
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Cliff Atkinson President Luxor Hotel & Casino |
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Matt Carter Director of Hotel Operations Carson Valley Inn |
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Eric Eisenberg Director of Hotel Operations Boyd Gaming Downtown Region |
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Mark Fenton General Manager The Platinum Hotel and Spa |
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Kevin Glass Resort General Manager Downtown Grand Hotel & Casino |
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Ilse Harley Regional Vice President and General Manager Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas |
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Robert Jenny Hotel Manager Waldorf Astoria |
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Soren Jensen General Manager Cancun Resort |
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Mike Jones General Manager Gold Dust West – Carson City |
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Arik Knowles Vice President of Hotel Operations Tropicana Las Vegas |
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Andy Meese Vice President of Hotel Operations Bellagio |
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Jaime Miranda V.P. of Hotel Operations, Luxury Services The Venetian & Palazzo Resort Hotel & Casino |
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Eric Olson General Manager Whitney Peak Hotel |
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Simon Pettigrew Sr. Vice President Resort Operations The Cosmopolitan Resort & Casino |
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Michael Rounds Resort Manager Bluegreen Vacations Corporation |
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Matt Tyburski, CAM, CMCA , AMS General Manager Wyndham Desert Blue |
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NHLA Executive Staff
To ensure full resources, visibility, representation and member benefits, Nevada Hotel and Lodging Association is led by two key executives under the direction of the Chairman of the Board and the Board of Directors.
Diane Gandy, President, CGSP 
Diane Gandy serves as President and has over 35 years of hotel and travel industry experience including hotel management, OTA major market management, online marketing, industry sales, event planning and communication. She has worked in executive industry positions in both NNV and SNV.
Diane’s NHLA responsibilities include general organizational management, business development and member resources. She focuses on hotel industry leadership development, benefits, sales, marketing, communications, association programs, educational resources, networking, special events, community engagement and strategic partner development.
Diane launched the NHLA Women Lodging in 2015, continues to lead the division. and serves as an officer on the executive council of WIL. Diane was the recipient of the 2015 Southern Nevada Women of Distinction Awards, received a 2017 International Athena Award for Outstanding Women’s Leadership, was a 2018 Inductee in the Women’s Leadership Hall of Fame and received the Leadership Award in Collaboration from the Timothy S Y Lam Foundation in 2019. She has been featured in the Las Vegas Woman and Vegas, Inc. magazines as a leader in the community. Diane is a founding member and served the Board of Directors for Dress for Success NNV, is a member of the International Society of Hotel Associations (ISHA) and is a past member on the board of trustees for The Shade Tree. Diane is also the founder and president of the new Nevada Hotel and Lodging Foundation, a non-profit entity providing scholarships for higher education and continuing education for the hotel industry.
Diane is an accomplished freelance writer and a published author. She has created and managed content for blogs, books, websites and newsletters for several companies and individuals over the past two decades. She provides and oversees all content for NHLA communication channels.
Diane has achieved Certified Guest Service Professional (CGSP) designation and while managing hotels she held certification as a Certified Hotel Administrator (CHA), as well.
Irving Pamblanco, Vice President of Finance & Operations, CGSP
Irving Pamblanco serves as Vice President of Finance and Operations and has been with NHLA since 1988 when he joined the firm as the business Accountant. He has served several corporate clients including the Nevada Hotel & Lodging Association, Nevada Restaurant Association, Nevada Tourism Alliance, the International Food Service Executive Association (IFSEA), and Heffner & Associates, Inc.
Irving’s responsibilities include overseeing all accounting, finance and inventory functions, general operations, database and I.T. management, website updates and maintenance, membership email broadcasts, event participation, and new membership processing.
Irving has achieved designation from the American Hotel and Lodging Association Education Institute for Certified Guest Service Professional through passing the Guest Service Gold course and exam.
Nevada Women in Lodging
Nevada Women in Lodging is a division of the Nevada Hotel and Lodging Association. The division is provided exclusively for female hospitality professionals to connect with top leaders statewide while networking, enhancing education, supporting the industry, mentoring and advancing careers, and providing community philanthropic resources. NHLA members join free. Join now.
Officers
Chairperson: Jaime Miranda, Venetian & Palazzo, Vice President Hotel Operations, Luxury Services
Vice Chairperson: Chris Breed, Soleil Management, Vice President of Resort Operations
President: Diane Gandy, NHLA
Executive Council:
Mary Ann Burns, Boyd Corporation
Dr. Toni Repetti, UNLV
Ronna Timpa, Workplace ESL
Shannon McCallum, Aria and Vdara, V.P. of Hotel Operations
Council Members:
Carolyn Kelly-Shelton, TISOH Instructor
Michele Kline, Club de Soleil & Tahiti Resort
Barbara Nieto, Tropicana, Room Reservations/Group Services, PBX/Telecommunications
Nicole Marshall, Siegel Select
Northern Nevada Council
Under the guidance of the NHLA board and staff, the Northern Nevada council assists in the development, available resources and visibility for Northern Nevada members of the Nevada Hotel and Lodging Association.
Bill Henderson, Carson Valley Inn
Audrey Damonte, Holley, Driggs, Walch, Fine, Wray, Puzey & Thompson
Jim Kenney, Catalytic Pure Air
Cheraz Ecker, Atlantis Casino Resort Spa
Debra Lang, Holiday Inn Express and Suites, Minden
Matt Carter, Carson Valley Inn
Mike Jones, Gold Dust West – Carson City
Eric Olson, Whitney Peak
Amy Preston Wendt, Courtyard by Marriott Reno Downtown/Riverfront
Piper Stremmel, Jesse Hotel, Owner
Emerging Leaders Council
Emerging Leaders is a division of the Nevada Hotel and Lodging Association comprised of young industry professionals under the age of 36. Under the guidance of the NHLA staff, it exists to engage young professionals in the Nevada hospitality and support industries through the development of local resources including networking, mentorship, philanthropic and educational opportunities. All NHLA members are encouraged to support the activities and attend events related to Emerging Leaders. These are our up-and-coming leaders.
Emerging Leaders is comprised of a council consisting of a Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, advisors and members. 2020 Chairperson is Evan Meyer and John Brady is serving as Vice Chairperson.
NHLA Contributors and Contractors
Lynn Mitchell, Outside Sales Executive
Lynn was an outstanding Chairman of the Board for NHLA for over 5 years up until his retirement in 2018. Lynn is now contracted to handle outside sales for NHLA to help increase membership and bring industry resources to more key entities.
Ronna Timpa, Ambassador
Ronna, founder of Workplace ESL Solutions, is an active NHLA Premier member and assists with membership sales recruitment and retention. Through her company, Ronna supports NHLA by providing seminars and other direct member services and benefits.
Marleah Ramos, Event Manager
Marleah is contracted to assist with event planning, management and creative design. Marleah previously worked for NHLA for over 5 years.
Contact Us
Tel:702-878-9272
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.NVHotels.com