Karyn Altman, South Florida MPI’s New Vice President of Communications

The vision of Meeting Professionals International (MPI) is “To build a rich global meeting industry community, making its members successful in building human connections to Knowledge/Ideas, Relationships and Marketplaces.” With over 500 members, our local South Florida chapter supports that vision and has provided professional development and networking opportunities for meeting professionals for over 30 years.

Last Friday, over 100 people convened at the Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa in Hallandale Beach as the South Florida chapter of MPI hosted its annual award and installation dinner, and presented the new executive board.  The guest speaker was Carlos Molinet, president and CEO of leadership training company The Molinet Institute. He discussed the concept of “servant leadership” and encouraged MPI members to engage in service to make a difference – if only in just one person’s life.

Throughout her 18 years as an active MPI member, Karyn Altman, Seasite’s Vice President of Business Development,  has embodied the role of “servant leader” by serving the organization and its members in various leadership positions.  Last August, she was the Education Chairperson for the MPI SEC (Southeast Education Conference) held in Miami Beach at the Eden Roc Resort. This annual event rotates around the state and is regarded as one of the signature educational events of the year for the hospitality industry. Karyn also served on the Board as Director of Education in 1997.

Karyn has just completed her term as Vice President of Education for the South Florida chapter of MPI, and without missing a beat, she’s taking on a new challenge – Vice President of Communications. When asked about her new position on the 2010 – 2011 Board of Directors, Karyn remarked: “After previously serving as VP of Education, I’m excited about taking on my new role as VP of Communications.”  She continued, “Our chapter is tasked this year with two major goals:  first, to offer dynamic and powerful educational programs for our members and the hospitality community; and second, to deliver innovative and exciting special events and networking oportunities that deliver excellent ROI to members.”

She added that her focus now is to spread the word through various communications tools to encourage greater event attendance, to explore creative partnership marketing options and public relations to help generate big crowds, and most importantly- to inspire attendees to come back for more!

What’s that? You have no clue what a blue-footed booby is? Obviously, you’ve never had the good fortune to visit the Galapagos Islands, where these charismatic birds reside. But Landry & Kling CEO Joyce Landry has. (Check out the videos from Joyce’s recent Lindblad expedition cruise– watch her wild sea lion encounters on the island and in the sea.)

The Galapagos Conservation Trust established Blue-footed Booby Day as part of the BBC Wildlife Fund 2010 Wild Appeal to raise much-needed funds for threatened wildlife and places. You might have missed Blue-footed Booby Day, but it’s not too late to make a donation to help protect these loveable birds and their surrounding habitat.

Landry & Kling and Seasite staff demonstrated their support of the birds by dressing in blue and donating to the fund.

L&K celebrates Blue-footed Booby Day! From left: Joey Sciarrotta, Jo Kling, Dolores Betancourt, Joyce Landry(with friend), Naomi Humphreys, Marlene Bernasconi

But back to the birds at hand (or should I say, feet?) The Blue-footed Booby is one of the strangest birds in Galapagos. They’re most famous for their bright blue feet, with the color ranging from light to deep blue. How they got their bright blue feet is a mystery, but the blueness plays an important part in courting.

The Mating Dance: During the mating season, the booby performs an elaborate mating dance, which starts when the male gives the female a small stone or stick.  He then tips his beak, tail, and wing tips to the sky and whistles.  They slowly march around each other and display their bright blue feet for hours.

Anyone lucky enough to spend time with these stunning birds can’t help but fall for them as they are always happy to perform their highly entertaining courtship dance – which involves the males flaunting their blue feet to the females.

While they’re most elegant in flight, Blue-footed Boobies are clumsy on the ground and this, coupled with their iconic courtship dance, earned them their name – ‘booby’ coming from the Spanish term ‘bobo’ meaning clown.  To see the dance click here.

Now that you’ve gotten to know these amusing birds, why not plan an expedition to the Galapagos with your group to meet the blue-footed boobies (and lots of other friendly creatures) up close and personal. Ask Joyce Landry – she’s tell why a voyage to the Galapagos is a life-altering experience.

Like our co-founders, Mark is a true visionary and accomplished executive leader. He was founding team member at StarCite where he most recently held the position of Managing Director/Vice President, International Markets. According to Jo Kling, “Mark’s track record with StarCite paves the way for Seasite’s strategic relationships with travel professionals around the world who want to add cruise venues…to reap the benefits and ROI of the underutilized cruise sector.”

“Mark has a reputation as an innovative leader,” adds Joyce Landry. “That, along with being extremely focused and strategic, are among his many attributes that will help take us to greater heights.”

Read the press release to learn more about our new COO, Mark Phillips: www.businesswire.com.

Corporate Meetings & Incentives Magazine

1. If you could be anywhere in the world, where would you be?
Bhutan – the world’s most beautiful and mystical place.
2. What’s playing on your iPod?
Anoushka Shankar, “Breathing Under Water”
3. It’s time for a second career, what do you choose?
Micro-lending to women in need

Read the entire article on meetingsnet.com.

Report from Haiti by Karyn Altman, Seasite VP of Business Development:

This is one of three photos of water and other humanitarian supplies being delivered on Celebrity Solstice to help with relief efforts in Haiti.

It is so surreal to watch the devastation on CNN from the comfort of my stateroom and then to arrive at this beautiful beach playground on the other side of the very same country. Before we docked at Labadee, I was happy to receive the special notice from Celebrity Cruise Line that 100% of all net revenue from the port would be donated to the relief efforts. Also, the cruise line made it very easy for passengers to donate directly to the Food for the Poor’s Haiti Relief Fund via a charge to their onboard accounts.  That helped tremendously, in spite of the bittersweet experience.

I wandered through the crafts market knowing just how much our dollars mean now to those who are working and living here on Labadee. As I compared two hand crafted bowls, a young man asked if he could help. I looked into his eyes for a minute and asked where he was from (knowing of course that chances were it was Port a Prince) which it was. I took a breath and asked quietly ” and your family?”
“All are dead ” he responded. It was difficult to hold back the tears.

One lady asked the shopkeeper if she could pay with a credit card.
“No, I’m sorry” said the lady behind the counter surrounded by hand woven bags and painted souvenir shirts that say I was in Haiti.  “We cannot take your credit card because we have no banks.”

Overall, it was very gratifying to see how many passengers were returning to the ship with their arms filled with purchases and shopping bags from the local vendors and artisans. I was also happy that most people appeared to be tipping generously when the local staff graciously helped with beach chairs and offered assistance with directions. Although the total amount of our contributions and purchases are a small drop in the bucket needed to help this devastated country, every drop counts and we could see that our being there did in fact, make a difference.

Yesterday I returned home and unfolded the beautiful painting I had purchased on Labadee, and held it up on the wall of my bedroom. I knew that the memory of that bittersweet day and the warm, grateful smile on the face of the artist when I agreed to the purchase, would remain with me forever.

From the Landry & Kling and Seasite staff:
“For the past 4 years, we’ve supported a local charity – Miami Bridge – a safe haven for adolescents who otherwise might end up on the streets. In lieu of exchanging office gifts, our staff brightens the youngsters’ holiday by delivering Christmas Wish List gifts. Miami Bridge serves over 700 kids a year, and it’s our great pleasure to spend some time at the Bridge serving them their holiday lunch!”

ABOUT MIAMI BRIDGE

Every year, thousands of “at risk” adolescents in Miami-Dade county face the prospect of life on the streets. Many of them are children for whom the foster care system cannot find placement, children who run away from dysfunctional homes, and children released from juvenile detention. For more than 20 years, Miami Bridge has worked to keep these kids off the streets.

Staff from Landry & Kling and Seasite at Miami Bridge.

Miami Bridge is a not-for-profit organization that provides emergency shelter, food and, just as importantly, counseling for troubled youths and their families. Miami Bridge workds to rescue kids from lives of victimization and crime, and in so doing, helps our community ensure that these kids have he opportunity to become productive members of our society.
www.miamibridge.org

From Jo Kling, CEO – Seasite
“My favorite charity is NFTE (Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship) because it motivates kids to learn about turning an idea into a business, thus helping them see the value of staying in school and studying so they can apply what they learn in a meaningful way to create their own future.”

ABOUT NFTE

Through entrepreneurship education, the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), helps young people from low-income communities build skills and unlock their entrepreneurial creativity. Since 1987, NFTE has reached more than 280,000 young people, and currently has programs in 21 states and 12 countries. NFTE has more than 1,500 active Certified Entrepreneurship Teachers, and is continually improving its innovative entrepreneurship curriculum. The organization’s vision is that every young persona will find a pathway to prosperity. Jo Kling currently serves on the Advisory Board of the South Florida NFTE office.
www.NFTE

From Joyce Landry, CEO – L&K
“As animal lover who has rescued and adopted many pets over the years, I fully support the American Humane Society for the amazing work they do to protect animals and raise awareness of animal abuse.”

ABOUT AMERICAN HUMANE SOCIETY

Founded in 1877, the American Humane Association is the only national organization dedicated to protecting both children and animals. Through a network of child and animal protection agencies and individuals, American Humane provides national leadership in developing policies, legislation, curricula and training programs — and taking actions — to protect children and animals from cruelty, abuse, neglect and exploitation. American Humane also raises awareness about The Link® between animal abuse and other forms of violence, as well as the benefits derived from the human-animal bond.
www.americanhumane

And also from Joyce:
“Another wonderful charity I have to mention is the Deborah L. Natansohn Foundation.  I’m a founding board member and we give so many wonderful scholarships to women in Debbie’s name – and she was the first female President of a cruise line.”

ABOUT DEBORAH L. NATANSOHN FOUNDATION

The Deborah L. Natahsohn Foundation honors the memory of Deborah L. Natansohn by promoting efforts to further the advancement in society and business through mentoring programs, educational programs, scholarships and community outreach opportunities. When possible, the Foundation’s efforts will promote the careers for women in travel and journalism.
www.dlnfoundation

From Maureen McKeon, Seasite Web Copy Editor
“For many years, I sponsored a little girl from Guatemala through Children International. It was so heartwarming to receive her letters and read reports on her progress. A few years ago, I was blessed to have the opportunity to travel to Guatemala and finally meet Irma and her family – it’s an experience I will never forget!”

ABOUT CHILDREN INTERNATIONAL

As a nonprofit humanitarian organization, Children International strives to help children around the world overcome the burdens of poverty to become healthy, educated, self-sustaining and contributing members of society. This goal is achieved primarily through child sponsorship, which unites children in need with individual sponsors who wish to address the children’s immediate and basic needs, and gives them the tools and opportunities necessary for success.
www.childreninternational

From Joey Sciarrotta, Landry & Kling Coordinator, Group Events
“A charity that I have been contributing to since high school is: Broadway Cares, Equity Fights Aids. You could also mention World Aids Day which is December first…”
http://www.worldaidsday.org/

ABOUT BC/EFA

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is one of the nation’s leading industry-based, nonprofit AIDS fundraising and grant-making organizations.  By drawing upon the talents, resources and generosity of the American theatre community, since 1988 BC/EFA has raised over $175 million for essential services for people with AIDS and other critical illnesses across the United States.
http://www.broadwaycares.org/Page.aspx?pid=195

From Stephanie Deaton, Landry & Kling Sr. Account Manager
“I’m a huge fan of Best Friends Animal Society …the extremes they go through to save and rehabilitate animals is amazing. My sister and I hope to take a trip out to Best Friends Sanctuary next year and volunteer for a week.”

ABOUT BEST FRIENDS ANIMAL SOCIETY

Best Friends Animal Society is guided by a simple philosophy: kindness to animals builds a better world for all of us. In the late 1980s, when Best Friends was in its early days, roughly 17 million dogs and cats were being killed in shelters every year. Best Friends’ No More Homeless Pets campaign created a new vision: A grassroots effort to place dogs and cats who were considered “unadoptable” into good homes, and to reduce the number of unwanted pets through effective spay and neuter programs.  Since then, the number of dogs and cats being destroyed in shelters has fallen to approximately 5 million a year. As the flagship of a grassroots network of people and organizations that care about animals, Best Friends continues to lead the way towards bringing the number down to zero.
http://www.bestfriends.org/

From Cynthia Shobe, Seasite Cruise Advisor
“His House is close to my heart. This is a home for children that have been removed from their parents or abandoned. I’ve painted the outside of the houses, planted plants & trees, and have spent time at one of the homes helping clean while my two sons played with the children outside. I’ve also collected clothes and helped sort them for the warehouse.”

ABOUT HIS HOUSE CHILDREN’S HOME

His House Children’s Home is a faith-based non-profit organization dedicated to restoring the joy in the lives of children and families. The agency provides residential care for abused, neglected and drug exposed children in a campus home-like setting. Their goal is to restore the emotional and physical well being of children through an array of services in a loving and nurturing environment. His House Children’s Home is a healing place giving wounded children a warm, loving home and renewed hope for a brighter future.
hhch.org

From Brad Nickel, VP Marketing & Product Development
“Aura House is a small grass-roots organization that was started by a friend. It’s all about people helping themselves. You can pick a project to support and they post weekly updates on their website, so it’s very personal and you can see that your contribution is really making a difference”

ABOUT AURA’S HOUSE

Aura’s House is a grassroots online project that raises funds for housing, health, income generation, and education projects for needy children in developing countries. It was originally created to raise $4500 to build a safe, sturdy brick home for Aura Hernandez and her family in Guatemala. Since this goal was met in November of 2004, they decided to launch other small projects that bring big changes to the lives of families in developing countries. Aura’s House has been working in conjunction with the top rated US charitable organization, Children International since February of 2003. 100% of proceeds go to their projects. All persons working at Aura’s House do so on a strictly volunteer basis only.
http://aurashouse

As 2009 comes to an end, we realize that our celebrated launch of Seasite.com as well as Landry & Kling’s 27th anniversary would have not  been possible without the unwavering support of our cruise line partners, suppliers, valued clients, friends and family. We want to say thanks and let you know how much we appreciate you all.

But as we look back with gratitude, we are also sadly aware that there is still no shortage of global poverty, hunger, and suffering. During these challenging economic times, non-profit organizations pay the price as worried, cash-strapped citizens tighten their belts. So we ask ourselves, “do our valued partners and clients really need another customized trinket, gift basket or box of gourmet goodies?” We think you would all agree – probably not.

We have, however, given a gift that will resonate for years to come. A donation has been made in their honor to Heifer International, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to ending hunger and poverty and caring for the earth. This humanitarian organization provides livestock and training to families and communities around the world, giving them a way to lift themselves up.

With so many animals to choose from (Goat? Heifer? Water buffalo? Sheep?), we couldn’t decide what to give, so we donated an entire Gift Ark with 15 sets of animals to a community in a developing nation. With this gift, we are helping families start on a journey to fulfill a seemingly impossible dream – to secure food and a source of dependable income.

And it doesn’t stop there. Each family will “pay it forward” by passing on one or more of the animal’s offspring to other families who are in need in their community. So the gift donated on behalf of our clients and partners will multiply for years to come. (Still missing that gift basket?)

So this holiday season, we say thank you for your support of Landry & King and Seasite…and for helping end world hunger. Together, we are changing the world “Two By Two”.

”Well it’s been over a week and most of the buzz about the Oasis has slowed down. During the same time period the new Celebrity Equinox arrived in Port Everglades for the first visit to the US. I had friends who sailed on the 4-day cruise prior to the Thanksgiving holiday. These are seasoned travelers that have sailed with many cruise lines, and they returned absolutely impressed with the Celebrity ship.

“Their exact words were ‘the ship was gorgeous, the food was excellent, and the entertainment was the best we’ve ever seen. For the first time on any cruise we made it our business to see all the shows. The service was extraordinary; everyone on the ship was very friendly and helpful. On the upper deck the buffet was situated so that there were no lines and no waiting.’

“It sounds as if the Celebrity brand has earned its name, providing the hardware, food and service they are well-known for.  So, I add another new ship to the ‘Ship Bucket List’ to sail on.”

Thanks, Cynthia, for this positive report on the Celebrity Equinox – hope you can cross this one off your “Ship Bucket List” soon!

“I didn’t know if it would live up to all the hype”, Jo admitted, “but not only did the Oasis live up to the hype, it surpassed it!” This is a powerful endorsement from Jo  - after all, she and Joyce Landry founded sister company Landry & Kling in 1982, and have sailed and planned events on ships of every class and size throughout the years.

I asked Jo what surprised her the most about the ship, and her response addressed my major concern about sailing on a 5,400-passenger vessel: “It was remarkably easy to get around the ship.” She went on to explain how the touch-screens on each deck helped direct guests to their cabins and onboard destinations. But what about long lines? Not a problem, Jo insisted. Check-in and debarkation were a breeze, and there was never a wait for one of the 24 elevators.

Jo loved the various “neighborhoods” that create intimate, unique spaces within the ship – her favorite was Central Park, with plenty of green space, trees, and lovely cafes and restaurants. She was also impressed by the caliber of entertainment, variety of  multi-functional public spaces, and the gorgeous dining rooms. This ship is sure to be a huge hit with group event planners.

Jo and Brad Nickel, Seasite’s VP of Marketing, are back on the Oasis for a 3-night “friends and family” cruise. Stay tuned for more updates, as well as videos and photos from the ship!