GEORGIA TOURISM AWARDS
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Award categories, descriptions, and previous recipients:
Paul Broun Award for Marketing Initiatives recognizes the entity that demonstrates an effective and unique marketing initiative. Given in memory of Senator Paul Broun of Athens who was a huge supporter of tourism. He was elected in 1963 and served many years in service to Georgia. He served as Chairman of the Economic Development, Tourism and Cultural Affairs Committee and played a vital role in the development and appropriations of tourism funding.
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- 2024 Blairsville-Union County Chamber Blaze to Blairsville (Budget Category under $1 million)
- 2024 Golden Isles CVB | Edge of the Ocean (Budget Category over $1 million)
- 2023 Lake Lanier Olympic Water Park Campaign, Gainesville CVB (Budget Category under $1 million)
- 2023 Pick Ellijay, Gilmer County Chamber of Commerce (Budget Category over $1 million)
- 2019 March Meatness - Explore Gwinnett (Budget Category over $1 million)
- 2019 Fall in Love with Tville - Thomasville Visitors Center (Budget Category under $1 million)
- 2018 Dunwoody Defined - Dunwoody Convention + Visitors Bureau
- 2017 History Has a Name - Henry County CVB
- 2016 Ansel Adams: Before & After - Booth Western Art Museum
- 2015 Visit Savannah
- 2014 "Mansions, Moonshine & Gold Mines" - Historic Roswell CVB, Dawson County Office of Tourism and Dahlonega-Lumpkin County Chamber & Visitors Bureau
- 2013 The Golden Isles Convention & Visitors Bureau
- 2012 Lake Lanier Convention and Visitors Bureau
- 2011 Columbus CVB - “Meet me in Columbus, GA” film
- 2010 The Magnolia Highway, Melanie Grace, Americus Convention & Visitors Bureau
- 2009 Georgia’s Antebellum Trail Pilgrimage
- 2008 Elizabeth Harvill, Vidalia CVB
- 2005 Macon CVB
- 2004 Andrew Ward, Cuscowilla Resort
- 2003 Mark Valentine, Tanger Factory Outlet Centers in Commerce, President of the Northeast Georgia Mountains Travel Association
- 2000 Judy Renfroe, Cobb CVB
- 1999 Robert King and Jay Bucek
Larry Allen Tourism Leadership Award recognizes an individual who demonstrates excellence in leadership skills and abilities. Given in memory of Larry Allen, who was General Manager of Stone Mountain and exemplified all around friendship, support and leadership in the tourism industry.
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- 2024 Cookie Smoak, ATL District CVB
- 2023 Gary Wheat, Visit Macon
- 2019 Stacey Dickson, Lake Lanier Convention & Visitors Bureau
- 2018 Jan Hackett, Fannin County Chamber of Commerce
- 2017 Julie Ford Musselman, GACVB
- 2016 Leah Poole, Liberty County CVB
- 2015 Rashelle Beasley, Albany CVB
- 2014 Barry White, Augusta CVB
- 2013 Laurie Rowe, Laurie Rowe Communications
- 2012 Tonya Rosado, Kingsland CVB
- 2011 Theresa Jenkins, Marietta Visitors Center
- 2010 Joe Marinelli, Visit Savannah
- 2009 Lisa Smith, Rome CVB
- 2008 Peter Bowden, Columbus CVB
- 2006 Jane Sowell, Milledgeville CVB
- 2005 Chuck Jones, Athens CVB
- 2004 Steven Longcrier, Georgia Civil War Heritage Trails, Inc.
- 2003 Dan Rowe, Banyan Tree Consulting Group
- 2000 Lt. Gen. E.G. Shuler, Jr.
Al Burruss Award for Creative Expression recognizes an individual or entity that develops a creative community public relations initiative. Representative Al Burruss of Marietta was the majority leader and a huge tourism advocate. He was instrumental in using his creativity and energy to get the Tourism Division its first major appropriation in 1985 of $2.5 million which was a drastic increase from the $300,000 allocated in prior years.
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- 2024 Gainesville CVB | From Gainesville with Love (Budget Category under $1 million)
- 2024 Cobb Travel and Tourism | Cobbunity (Budget Category over $1 million)
- 2023 Golden Isles CVB and Silver Bluff Brewing (Budget Category over $1 million)
- 2023 Think Tifton, Tifton-Tift County Tourism Association (Budget Category under $1 million)
- 2019 Golden Isles Hospitality Celebration (Budget Category over $1 million)
- 2019 Free-Range GVL - The Gainesville CVB (Budget Category under $1 million)
- 2018 Woodstock Visitors Center - Woodstock CVB
- 2017 HAAS Public School Transportation Fund - Booth Western Art Museum
- 2016 Dunwoody Convention + Visitors Bureau
- 2015 Discover DeKalb Destination Guide
- 2014 Explore Gwinnett - Gwinnett Tourism Awareness Program
- 2013 DeKalb Convention & Visitors Bureau - We Are DeKalb Magazine
- 2012 Visit Savannah
- 2011 Ath-Fest and the UGA New Media Institute - the Ath-Fest iPhone App
- 2010 Columbus Convention & Visitors Bureau - Key to Successful Meetings Campaign
- 2009 Macon CVB - Macon Rocks! USB Guitar Flash Drive
- 2008 Marietta CVB - Hip to be Square
- 2005 Augusta Metropolitan CVB - Played Augusta Campaign
- 2004 Janice Marshall, Macon CVB
- 2003 Bill Marshall, Trenton Downtown Development Authority
- 2002 Peggy Miller, Macon CVB
- 2000 Margaret Strong
- 1999 JoAnne Lewis
Paul Nelson Award for Outdoor Recreation and Preservation was established in 2013 to honor Paul Nelson. Paul had a passion for Georgia’s state parks and devoted his professional life to sustaining and improving the state’s natural resources. He spent most of his career working for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, where he last served as assistant director of its parks, recreation, and historic sites division.
Submit Award
- 2024 Explore Brookhaven | Lynwood Park
- 2023 Ocmulgee National Park and Preserve Initiative
- 2019 Arabia Mountain Heritage Area Alliance
- 2018 Becky Kelly, Georgia State Parks & Historic Sites (DNR)
- 2017 Adventure Lodges of Georgia - Coral Hospitality Georgia, LLC
- 2016 Augusta Canal Authority
- 2015 The PATH Foundation
- 2014 Whitewater Columbus, GA - Columbus CVB
Tom Kilgore Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes an individual who exemplifies outstanding lifetime commitment towards tourism. Named for Tom Kilgore, legislator from Douglasville, who was an early advocate and champion of tourism. Tom was one of the architects of the Hotel/Motel Tax legislation. In 2011, the Governor's Tourism Conference Lifetime Achievement Award and the GACVB Tom Kilgore Award were combined to form the current Tom Kilgore Lifetime Achievement Award.
Submit Award
- 2024 Jennifer Cruce, Visit Sandy Springs
- 2023 Janet Rodgers, Alpharetta Convention& Visitors Bureau
- 2019 Peter Bowden, Visit Columbus GA
- 2018 Tyron Spearman, Tifton-Tift County Tourism Association
- 2017 Bill Chapin - See Rock City, Inc.
- 2016 Ellen Archer, Cartersville-Bartow County CVB
- 2014 Dotty Etris, Historic Roswell CVB
- 2013 Bruce Green, Georgia Department of Economic Development
- 2012 Ginger Taylor, Retired, GDEcD
- 2011 Jeannie Buttrum, Classic South Regional Representative
Lifetime Achievement Award
- 2010 Sabra McCullar, Warm Springs Tourism
- 2009 Bill Hardman, Jr., Southeast Tourism Society
- 2008 Spurgeon Richardson, Atlanta CVB
- 2004 Earlene Crews, Kingsland Tourism Authority
- 2003 Louis Griffith, Athens Convention & Visitors Bureau
Tom Kilgore Award
- 2010 Marguerite Copelan, Madison CVB
- 2008 Judy Renfroe, formerly of the Cobb CVB
- 2007 Brenda Price, GACVB, Columbus CVB
Bill Hardman Sr. Tourism Champion Awards
This series of awards was renamed in honor of Bill Hardman Sr. in 2014 in recognition of his tireless support and guidance to the entire tourism industry. There are four categories under the Tourism Champion umbrella in which a Tourism Champion award may be given: Private Sector, Partnership, Product Development, and Government. Award recipients are individuals and organizations that have taken leadership roles in developing tourism opportunities in communities across the state.
Private Sector Champion Award is given to an individual within the private sector who has worked tirelessly to spread the message and garner support for Georgia tourism. The first recipient of this award was Phil Jacobs, President, Georgia BellSouth. As founder of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce’s tourism committee, Jacobs has long been a proponent of the state’s tourism industry as a viable, promising tool for economic development.
Submit Award
- 2024 Richland Distilling Company
- 2023 Georgia Hotel & Lodging Association
- 2019 Jason Reott, Georgia Peach World
- 2018 Paul Milliken, "Good Day Atlanta" on WAGA Fox 5
- 2017 Craig Miller, Craig Miller Productions
- 2016 Xavier Roberts, Babyland General Hospital
- 2015 Jon Brasher, Atlanta Magazine Custom Media
- 2014 Jeffrey Mills, Mills Marketing Group
- 2013 Matt Greene and Tom Duke, Populace, Inc.
- 2012 Jim Nelems, Marketing Workshop, Inc.
- 2011 Rodney Musselman, Hilton Savannah DeSoto
- 2010 Larry Halpern, Positive Energy
- 2009 Sean McGinnis, Emmis Publishing
- 2008 Trent Mercer, Streeter Printing
- 2005 Spurge Richardson, Atlanta CVB
- 2004 Paul Wood
- 2003 Phil Jacobs, BellSouth
Partnership Champion Award is given to an alliance that collaborates to increase visitation and tourism expenditures in Georgia. The first recipient of this award was Georgia Department of Transportation which partnered successfully with GDEcD and provided the official state maps for distribution at Georgia’s Visitor Information Centers.
Submit Award
- 2024 Visit Athens | Cities of the SEC
- 2023 Artesian Alliance: Chehaw Park & Zoo, Flint RiverQuarium, Thronateeska Heritage Center
- 2019 Historic Pews & Pulpits Ramble
- 2018 Hospitality Highway Partnership
- 2017 Visit Savannah, Golden Isles CVB & Visit Tybee - Port Wentworth Visitor Information Center
- 2016 Georgia Grown
- 2015 Golden Isles Convention & Visitors Bureau
- 2014 Visit Savannah and Savannah Area Tourism Leadership Council
- 2013 Athens Historic House Museum Association
- 2012 Georgia Historical Society
- 2011 Luckie-Marietta District, Atlanta
- 2010 Georgia National Fairgrounds & Agricenter
- 2009 Georgia DOT- Discovery, Education, and Heritage Tourism of the Old Federal Road in Georgia
- 2008 Clarks Hill Partnership of Georgia – Columbia, Lincoln, McDuffie, Warren and Wilkes Counties
- 2005 Mike Beatty and Jim Finch, Department of Community Affairs
- 2004 Lonice Barrett and Paul Nelson, Department of Natural Resources
- 2003 The Georgia Department of Transportation
Product Development Champion Award is given to
a partner agency or individual for outstanding work
in attracting capital investments for tourism projects.
The first award recognized Nancy Cobb, OneGeorgia Authority, which leveraged the state’s tobacco settlement funds to attract capital investments for tourism projects in the state’s rural areas.
Submit Award
- 2024 Destination Augusta | Authentic Augusta Experience Collection
- 2023 Dave Curtis and Leon N. Weiner & Associates, Inc., Jekyll Island Redevelopment
- 2019 Augusta & Co. - Augusta Convention & Visitors Bureau
- 2018 Columbia County and Columbia County CVB - BMX Track
- 2017 Brews & Q's Trail - Historic Heartland Travel Association
- 2016 The Georgia Grown Trail 41 Association, Inc.
- 2015 Georgia Grown Trail 37 Association
- 2014 Gone With the Wind Trail Association
- 2013 Caroline Figiel & Danny Jones, Creative Digital
- 2012 Destination Brooks
- 2011 Augusta Canal Authority / Augusta Canal National Heritage Area
- 2010 Flat Creek Lodge
- 2009 Martin Harmon, Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation
- 2008 The Welcome Center of Forsyth/Monroe County
- 2004 Sabra McCullar, Warm Springs Tourism
- 2003 Nancy Cobb, OneGeorgia Authority
Government Champion Award is given to an individual or group who has shown extraordinary support of tourism through their legislative or organizational efforts.
Submit Award
- 2024 City of Macon | Mayor Lester Miller
- 2023 Mayor Lee Kinnamon, Americus, Georgia
- 2019 Tyler Reinagel, Georgia Department of Community Affairs
- 2018 Representative Hank Johnson, United States House of Representatives
- 2017 Commissioner Russell R. McMurry, Georgia Department of Transportation
- 2016 Commissioner Gary Black, Georgia Department of Agriculture
- 2015 First Lady Sandra Deal, State of Georgia
- 2014 New Harmonies: Celebrating American Roots Music, Georgia Humanities Council
- 2013 Representative Jason Shaw, Georgia House District 176
- 2012 Lamar Paris, Sole Commissioner of Union County
- 2011 Rep. Lynn Smith
- 2010 Rep. Ben Harbin
- 2009 Rep. Larry O’Neal
- 2008 Rep. Ron Stephens
- 2004 Sen. Jeff Mullis and Rep. Butch Parrish
- 2003 Rep. Mickey Channel and Rep. Ron Stephens
Destination Marketing Visionary Award
Submit Award
- 2024 Discover Darien | Save the Kit Jones
Pictures of 2024 Award Winners
Awards Eligibility
Any individual, organization or business that serves the tourism and travel industry in Georgia, including non-profit organizations, public service agencies, communities, regional travel associations, private businesses in the tourism and travel industry, and those who work for or are elected to local or state government.
Criteria
Nominees must posses these attributes to qualify for an award: Leadership, Creativity, Initiative, Innovation, Customer Service, and Partnership. Statements explaining how nominee demonstrates all six attributes should be included in the narrative section of the nomination form.
Deadline
January 10, 2025.
How to Submit a Nomination
Using our online form please provide the following information:
1. Submitter Contact Info
2. Nominee Contact Info
3. Award Nominated For - You must select at least one award for your nomination to be considered, but you may also select more than one. The Awards Committee reserves the right to transfer a nomination to another award category as they deem appropriate.
4. Budget category of project/organization nominated.
5. A narrative stating the reasons you are nominating this individual/organization, not to exceed 200 words. Include how nominee demonstrates all six award qualifying attributes: Leadership, Creativity, Initiative, Innovation, Customer Service, and Partnership.
6. Biography of the individual or background/mission of the organization, including the number of years established/spent in the tourism industry.
7. For all nominations for Paul Broun Award for Marketing Initiatives and Al Burruss Award for Creative Expression include deliverables of the project nominated, for example increasing website traffic, visitors, lodging room nights, leads, or other metrics.
8. A photo of the individual nominee or logo of the organization nominee.
9. Up to two letters of reference, collateral materials or other documents that will help to showcase the award criteria attributes to the committee. Please do not send more than two. The committee may disqualify a nomination that does not follow these specific instructions.
Presentation of 2024 Georgia Tourism Awards, GACVB Annual Conference
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