Honor to be bestowed during May 14 event as part of National Travel and Tourism Week
On May 14, during National Travel and Tourism Week — “an annual hospitality and tourism industry tradition that celebrates the immense value travel brings to the nation” — the Visit Sarasota County board will “[bestow] the Voice of Sarasota award” on Jennifer Rominiecki, president and CEO of Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, Visit Sarasota County has announced.
That award “is presented to an individual whose exceptional efforts have significantly promoted and enhanced Sarasota County as a tourism destination,” a news release explains.
Since February 2015, when Rominiecki arrived at Selby Gardens, she has been repositioning Selby Gardens “as The Living Museum®, securing a trademark from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office,” the release points out. “Enacting this new operating model has yielded increases of 128% in membership and 135% in overall earned revenues,” the release notes.
Rominiecki also has overseen the creation and execution of a five-year strategic plan, a new three-year strategic plan, and “an innovative Master Site Plan,” which includes the creation of the world’s first net-positive energy restaurant, the release continues.
Further, the release notes, Rominiecki is serving as the chair of the Board of Directors of VISIT FLORIDA, and she is a member of the boards of the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, the Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County, the Sarasota African American Cultural Coalition, the Science and Environment Council of Southwest Florida, and the Southeast Advisory Council of Lafayette College.
“Rominiecki lives in Sarasota with her husband, Robert, and their two boys,” the release adds.