Nevada Hotel and Lodging Association to Award Honors At Stars of the Industry Hospitality Awards

LAS VEGAS - Sept. 21, 2014 - PRLog -- The Nevada Hotel and Lodging Association (http://www.nvhotels.com/) (NHLA)  will award Allied Supplier of the Year, Sustainability, General Manager of the Year, Manager of the Year, Emerging Leader of the Year, Administrative Employee of the Year, Guest Services Employee of the Year, Housekeeping Employee of the Year, Maintenance Employee of the Year, Casino Employee of the Year and Food and Beverage Employee of the Year awards on October 2, 2014 in Las Vegas.

The fourth-annual Stars of the Industry Hospitality Awards Gala (http://nvhotels.com/nhla-stars-of-the-industry.asp) will take place Thursday, October 2 from 6 p.m.– 9:30 p.m. at The New Tropicana’s Havana Room, 3801 S. Las Vegas Blvd.

Allied Supplier of the Year nominees include  Internet Marketing Inc., Heartland Payment Systems, Lodge Tools, ImageWords Communications and NOR1.

Sustainability nominees include Peppermill Reno and  The Venetian Las Vegas.

General Manager of the Year nominees include Jeremy Delph, general manager of Staybridge Suites, Arik Knowles, vice president of hotel operations for the Tropicana and Greg Gooding, general manager of Westin Lake Las Vegas Resort and Spa.

Manager of the Year nominees include  Susan Braner (Boyd Corporation), Vivek Rawat (Mandarin Oriental Las Vegas), Shelly Martinez (Tropicana), Candice Dagnillo (Westin Lake Las Vegas Resort and Spa), Janie Novinger (The M Resort), Randy Benjamin (Palms), Lyra Hynie (Tropicana), Mary Ann Burns (Boyd Gaming Corporation), Greg Waldron (The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas), Christie Kittleson (The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas), Klaus Feyersinger (Harrah's and Harveys/Lake Tahoe) , Rosa Mallari (Venetian/Palazzo) and  Donna Wynne (Aria Resort and Casino).

Emerging Leader of the Year nominees include  Bianca Salgado (Staybridge Suites), Nicole Marshall (Staybridge Suites), Julia Yaldo (Westin Lake Las Vegas Resort and Spa), Amber Alspach (The Cosmopoiltan of Las Vegas),  Joseph Yalda (Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa) and Robert Cano (Harrah's and Harvey's/Lake Tahoe).

Administrative Employee of the Year nominees include Taylor Garland (Embassy Suites), Jerilea Caldwell (Hilton Grand Vacations-Flamingo), Jeff Stearns (Harrah's Lake Tahoe), Marichelle Nievera (The Venetian Las Vegas) and Jennifer Brede (Aria Resort and Casino).

Guest Service Employee of the Year nominees include Heather Moon (Staybridge Suites), Theresa Richardson (Club de Soleil), Lisa Holmes (Sam’s Town Hotel and Casino), Elham Cada (Hilton Grand Vacations-Paradise), Jared Barnes (The Westin Lake Las Vegas Resort and Spa), Aung (Henry) Naing (Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa), Javier Gomez (The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas), Jenny Oliva (The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas), Lee Zanetti (Harrah's Lake Tahoe), Lexy Segura (Venetian/Palazzo) and Mary Ann Torre (Aria Resort and Casino).

Housekeeping Employee of the Year nominees include Queen Ruiz (Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa), Ramon Zapien (Hilton Grand Vacations-The Blvd),  Tersita Rico (Harrah’s Reno), Tara Scott (The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas) and Rosa Ruiz (Venetian/Palazzo).

Maintenance Employee of the Year employees include Jesus Ortiz, internal maintenance casino porter for Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa and Nathon Davis, welder for the Venetian/Palazzo.

Casino Employee of the Year nominees include Varun Karmilkar, host assistance/casino marketing, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas,  Silvia Maruncic, director of casino administration, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, Andres Mora, casino credit coordinator, Venetian/Palazzo and  Bob Owens, VP, player developer for Harrah’s Lake Tahoe.

Food and Beverage Employee of the Year nominees include Juan Reyes, cook, Hilton Grand Vacations-Elara, Risalin Decasa, assistant retail clerk supervisor, Harrah’s Reno,  Linda Wood, f&b supervisor, Harrah’s Reno,  Robert Trim, maitre’D, Harrah’s Lake Tahoe and Veronica Turnball, refreshment center attendant, The Venetian Hotel.

The keynote presenter for the 2014 Stars of the Industry Awards Gala is Katherine Lugar, President and CEO of the American Hotel and Lodging Association (http://www.ahla.com/).

“We are so pleased to once again host and present this prestigious hospitality awards event,” said Lynn Mitchell, NHLA chairman of the board.  “As the hospitality industry is the largest and strongest in Nevada, recognizing the exceptional employees providing exemplary services for our visitors is extremely important and well-deserved."

Sponsors (http://nvhotels.com/emailtemplates/july/soti-sponsorship-...) for the event include Hilton Grand Vacations, Hilton Worldwide, Ideas Revenue, The Rainmaker Group, Lodge Tools, Workplace ESL, Catalytic Pure Air, Southern Wine and Spirits, CLI Groups, LVCVA, The Venetian, Silver Lining Amenities, Hotel Tonight, Orkin and CenturyLink.


Tickets (http://nvhotels.com/nhla-stars-of-the-industry.asp) are available to attend the Stars of the Industry Hospitality Awards Gala.  Ticket prices are $125 per person, $650 for a table for six or $900 for a table for eight.  Visit www.nvhotels.com for more information. The New Tropicana has extended a special rate of $55 per night plus tax for gala attendees wishing to spend the night.

About NHLA

The Nevada Hotel and Lodging Association (www.nvhotels.com) (http://www.nvhotels.com) is the leading industry association in Nevada and one of the strongest in the USA. Since 1979, NHLA has been the unifying voice for Nevada’s multi-billion dollar resort and lodging industry. With over 200 hotels and industry supporting vendor members, NHLA is the state’s largest industry advocate. The mission is to serve the lodging industry by providing representation at the local, state and national levels in industry affairs; provide comprehensive and robust educational resources and programs; offer valued member benefits; provide industry communications and value-added member based services.