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In the News - April 2023

Gives-Scholarships

CFHLA Foundation Awards $208,500 in Scholarships and Grants During Annual Gives Luncheon
April 21, 2023

On Thursday, April 20, 2023, the Central Florida Hotel and Lodging Association (CFHLA), in partnership with the CFHLA Foundation and through the support of our members, proudly announced that the organization had awarded over $1,200,000 in Hospitality Student Scholarships since 2000.

This includes another $129,000 that was distributed to 57 college and high school students during yesterday’s annual Gives Luncheon, held at the Hilton Orlando.

In addition, CFHLA and the CFHLA Foundation awarded $79,500 in hospitality education and community grants to local educational institutions and organizations.

Also, part of Thursday’s program was the recognition of 89 CFHLA Members, consisting of Lodging and Allied Members, who took part in the Association’s Adopt-A-School Partnership supporting Central Florida public schools for the 2022-2023 academic year.

“I am extremely proud of our CFHLA members who stepped up in a huge way, as we supported our local students and organizations with the largest amount of distribution from our CFHLA Foundation to date,” stated Anthony Lazzara Chair of the CFHLA Board of Directors and General Manager of the Hotel Kinetic Universal Boulevard. “It is through the dedication, generosity and fundraising efforts of our Scholarship Committee and the membership as a whole that we were able to make such a positive difference on the lives of so many individuals and a strong impact on the organizations within our community.”

Robert Agrusa, President and CEO of CFHLA expanded on Mr. Lazzara’s comment, “This year, among the 57 scholarship recipients was eight Central Florida High School graduating seniors. With workforce development as a new priority for our organization, it was extremely rewarding to be able to support those hard-working students as they enter the next step of their educational journey and prepare them to begin their future careers in hospitality.”

The awards presented during the luncheon included the latest awarding of the Don and Lorraine Freeberg Foundation Scholarship. Recipients of this prestigious honor receive a $40,000 Scholarship, with a disbursement of $10,000 over the course of four years and a paid internship opportunity at the Caribe Royale Orlando. This year’s recipient, Melanie Bezold will be graduating from Osceola High School next month before continuing her education at the UCF Rosen College of Hospitality Management.

Included among the seven grant recipients were four grants that were new awards for 2023. They include Dr. Jeff Weinland Memorial Scholarship Fund in partnership with FantasyWorld Resort at UCF Rosen College of Hospitality Management - $25,000; Seminole State College to support the college’s new hospitality and tourism management program - $5,000; Wekiva High School towards the installation of six bakery workstations (only two others throughout the state of Florida) - $6,900; and Oak Ride High School towards the creation of interactive hospitality simulations zones, $2,600.

Grant disbursements also included $25,00 to the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, year 9 of 10 for $250,000 total; $5,000 to the Valencia College Foundation, year 10 of 10 for $50,000 total; and $10,000 to the UCF Rosen College of Hospitality Management, year 2 of 2 for $20,000 total.

CFHLA also held a CARES Collection Drive prior to and during the event, with more than 42,000 donated items going to support Central Florida students in need throughout Orange, Osceola, and Seminole Counties.

The Central Florida Hotel and Lodging Association’s mission is to represent the Central Florida Hospitality Industry, by setting the standard of excellence through advocacy, collaboration, education, recognition, and service. As the largest regional lodging association in the United States, CFHLA represents approximately 80 percent of the more than 129,500 hotel rooms in Orange, Seminole and Osceola counties, and the nearly 500 "supplier" organizations that do business with the hospitality and tourism industries.

CFHLAHeat22-0317

CFHLA Announces Dates for Hospitality Gala and Heat Tradeshow
April 14, 2023

CFHLA recently announced the dates for two of its more popular events, the 2023 Hospitality Gala and the Heat Tradeshow.

The 2023 CFHLA HEAT Tradeshow is NOW confirmed for Tuesday, August 29th at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center.

The HEAT Tradeshow provides our Allied Members with the opportunity to meet and present their products and services to hundreds of Central Florida Lodging decision makers.

Registration for all Members is currently open.

While you may not yet be thinking about the end of the year holiday season, be sure to Save the Date for the 2023 CFHLA Hospitality Gala, presented by Orlando Health!

Date: Saturday, December 16, 2023
Time: 6pm – 11pm
Location: Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld

Registration: $225 / Person or $2,250 / table of 10
New this year, your registration fee will include ALL food & beverages (including alcohol)!

Corporate sponsorships for this marquee event are currently available and can be purchased by CLICKING HERE. For additional information, please contact Kim Gordon at kim.gordon@cfhla.org.

Group of People


CFHLA Recognizes VISIT Florida President & CEO,
Dana Young as 2022 Public Servant of the Year

April 7, 2023

ORLANDO, FLA (April 7, 2023) – This week, the Central Florida Hotel & Lodging Association (CFHLA) recognized Dana Young, President and CEO of VISIT FLORIDA as the Association’s 2022 CFHLA Public Servant of the Year.

Each year, CFHLA recognizes a community leader for their dedication to the advancement of Central Florida’s Hospitality Industry.

As VISIT FLORIDA’s President and CEO, Dana leads Florida’s official destination marketing organization in partnership with its Board of Directors and the statewide tourism industry.

“Through her incredible leadership at VISIT FLORIDA, Dana has served as a statewide champion of tourism and has shown her unwavering support for the hospitality and tourism industry since 2019,” said Robert Agrusa, President and CEO of CFHLA. “While the past few years have been challenging for the industry, Dana has been an incredible ambassador for our state, as we’ve steadily rebounded from the pandemic and are now reaching new historic visitation heights.”

Anthony Lazzara, Chair of the CFHLA Board of Directors and General Manager of the Hotel Kinetic Universal Boulevard added, “Dana has been instrumental in promoting our state and local region through increased partnerships and creative co-op opportunities with our local direct marketing organizations, which has attracted new visitors from all across the country. Additionally, these new partnerships have maximized the economic impact of travel and tourism to our state and led to a significant return on investment for our Central Florida community.”

Prior to her role at Visit Florida, Dana served in the Florida House from 2010 through 2016, rising to Majority Leader for the 2015 and 2016 legislative sessions. Then in 2016, she was elected to the Florida Senate, where she represented parts of western Hillsborough County for two years. She was then appointed as VISIT FLORIDA’s President and CEO by Governor Ron DeSantis in January of 2019.

The 2022 CFHLA Public Servant of the Year Award was presented to Dana during our recent advocacy trip to Tallahassee for Florida Tourism Day.

The Central Florida Hotel and Lodging Association’s mission is to represent the Central Florida Hospitality Industry, by setting the standard of excellence through advocacy, collaboration, education, recognition, and service. As the largest regional lodging association in the United States, CFHLA represents approximately 80 percent of the more than 129,500 hotel rooms in Orange, Seminole and Osceola counties, and the nearly 500 "supplier" organizations that do business with the hospitality and tourism industries.

Culinary


Osceola County's Inaugural High School Culinary Competition
April 6, 2023

On Thursday, April 6th, CFHLA was proud to support the INAUGURAL Osceola County School District’s High School Culinary Competition!

With more than 150 students from six hospitality and culinary schools in Osceola County competing, this was a fantastic opportunity for our local Osceola students to showcase their skills and prepare for future state-level competitions.

Thank you to the culinary competition host, CFHLA Board Member Glen Vlasic and the team at Wyndham Orlando Resort & Conference Center Celebration Area, the School District of Osceola County, and all of the industry professionals, teachers, and sponsors who contributed to the success of this inaugural competition!

Also, we appreciate all of our CFHLA members who also helped support this incredibly important workforce development initiative including Disney, Clean Tec Services, Dominos, EncoreAbsolute Uniforms, UCF Rosen College of Hospitality Management, Kenney Communications, FantasyWorld Resort, Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin and Experience Kissimmee!

Congratulations again to all the competitors, including our High School Outreach partner Osceola High School, who swept the Waiter’s Relay Competition!

Cypress Point and Oak Ridge (3)


CFHLA in the Classroom Day

April 3, 2023

Recently, CFHLA Members from the Vacation Ownership Council and High School Outreach Subcommittee participated in a brand new initiative - CFHLA in the Classroom Day!

More than a dozen CFHLA Members and their teams visited six Hospitality and Tourism Programs at Orange County Public Schools to speak with students about the exciting career opportunities in Central Florida’s Hospitality Industry.

Thank you to all our CFHLA members, and the educators with OCPS, who made last week’s visits possible:

If you’d like to get involved with our High School Outreach Subcommittee, please contact Melanie Anesh at melanie.anesh@cfhla.org.