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We're trying out a new format for sharing news from ASTA and your Rocky Mountain Chapter. You can find all the links in our emailed newsletter, but you can also reach out to president@rockymountainasta.org any time! Check out this month's ASTA Moment. In this edition:
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From Rob: Thank You For the Opportunity To Have Served YouOver the last eight years, it has been my honor and privilege to have served you as your Rocky Mountain ASTA Chapter President.
Today as I write my monthly note to you, I find this to be my most sentimental message of the last eight years, as this will be the final message I will ever write in this space. My time as your Chapter President has come to a close. As I reflect on our shared memories, I recall how you have stood by your Chapter as we trudged through the lowest valleys and across the deepest canyons to reach the mountaintop we have happily now conquered. You gave me the strength and encouragement to continue plowing ahead when the trail before us often seemed too difficult to traverse and a cheerful ending seemed too far away ever to reach. You accepted my humanness, faults, and stumbles as I strived to lead us to the better spot we have now reached together and attained, and for this, I will always be thankful to you. I give a special shout-out to Jeff Gregory, who stood alone beside me during the beginning years. Our Chapter's survival as we began on the trail could not have happened without Jeff's support. To the multiple board members we have had in between and the beyond exceptional group of board members we have today – THANK YOU! Your work has brought our Chapter to this solid place. Each of you holds a special place in my heart, and I am indebted to the work and time you have contributed to the success of our Chapter! Because of their, and each member's, continued faith in your Chapter, we are alive today and, I am happy to report, thriving! Now the pages of life have turned to a new chapter of my life's book, and I am moving on to represent you on the ASTA National Board of Directors and as ASTA's Northwest Regional Director. For this reason, it is time for me to say farewell as your Chapter President. Having devoted my life to the survival of this Chapter, it, and you, will always have a special place in my heart. Now that we are a healthy chapter, it is critical that we do not visit the places we have already been. Therefore, I am thrilled that an exceptional new leader has been found to lead our Chapter to the even higher mountaintops I am confident this Chapter can, and will, reach! I am happy to introduce to you Jeof Oyster! Jeof has been working as the Chapter's Young Professional Society (YPS) board representative. During this time, he has proved himself to be a solid and tireless leader filled with enthusiasm and fresh ideas that will lead the Chapter, and ASTA, forward in a powerful and positive way. I am thrilled to turn over our Chapter to him as I am confident that he will take it to new heights that will please and impress you! So as my final farewell, I say Thank You for allowing me to have had the opportunity to have served you. Remember that your Chapter can only be as strong as the members who step forward to help serve it. So please consider supporting Jeof and your Chapter with your talents. And Godspeed to each of you. I will be looking for you on the mountaintops and looking forward to seeing the success I know this Chapter can and will attain under Jeof's solid leadership! May God bless you always and bring you only continued and higher success! Rob Hale, CTC, DS, LS Owner/Founder Travel N Relax Inc, an affiliate of the Travel Society - a Virtuoso Member We Are Unifying the World ~ One Traveler at a Time! National Board Member and Northwest Regional Director of The American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) From Jeof: Our Mission to Build, Support, and Celebrate Rocky Mountain Travel Advisors Hello, everyone! My name is Jeof (pronounced "Jeff") and I'm honored and excited to be stepping into Rob's shoes as your new chapter president. Our work as travel professionals is more important than ever—we help people realize their dreams to see the world, connect with loved ones, and discover new things about the world, other cultures, and themselves. ASTA is here to support us in our work: advocating for our interests, promoting our work to consumers, and helping advisors build skills for success. I want to thank Rob for his dedication to our chapter over many, many years. He helped us navigate some turbulent moments, and has laid a strong foundation on which to continue building. He's also been a great mentor to me as I step into his shoes, and he will continue to be a part of our chapter's leadership both on the chapter board and as our regional director. We are also blessed with an amazing team of board members that are passionate about the profession, and eager to help you succeed. Our chapter could not function without these people, and I'm so grateful that the current board will continue on in their roles. But the most important part of ASTA is its members and supporting the work you do every day. That has been, and will continue to be, our main focus. You can expect even more from this chapter to support your success over the years ahead—here are some highlights:
Know that you are welcome to reach out to me—and any member of the board—any time to share ideas, discuss a concern, or ask questions. I'm always happy to take time out for ASTA members, and look forward to meeting you all at upcoming events or one-on-one. ~Jeof president@rockymountainasta.org (720) 828-7665 Hello Friends!
I, and several chapter members, have just returned from the ASTA Global Convention (AGC) 2023 last week, where we were updated on the latest industry happenings and ASTA news. This convention is always a highlight of the year since one also gets great educational offerings from top presenters and the opportunity to network with other industry peers and our industry's top movers and shakers. AGC also marks the turn of the ASTA calendar year, which means that this note will find us now at the beginning of ASTA's January! Like all new years, this season represents the opportunity for new beginnings and fresh starts. To that end, I am happy to report that your chapter has recently added two new board members – Jennifer Grey as the new Chapter Treasurer and Sheila Hixon as a new YPS representative. Jeof Oyster will also continue with us. With these additions, we have a full chapter board. However, do not fear if you desire to help our chapter continue to grow. Various committee roles are still available in a variety of areas. Therefore, if you have a particular talent you wish to contribute, please get in touch with us and let us know. Your interests and unique skills can likely find a happy home with our team! Also, as we move into a new ASTA "year," a fresh emphasis will be put on ASTAPAC. Why? ASTAPAC is the only PAC (Political Action Committee) for travel advisors and the travel agency industry and enables the travel agency community to speak with one voice in educating elected federal officials about our issues. This PAC has achieved many solid achievements that benefit our industry and each of our agencies individually. More information will be coming out about ASTAPAC regularly to educate you on the benefits of this PAC. We hope you will consider donating to this vital PAC as you learn more about it. We appreciate your membership to ASTA and your local chapter, and we look forward to serving you in the year ahead! Please reach out to us at any time. We are here to serve you! Respectfully yours, Rob Hale | Chapter President A Season of Transition
Dear Rocky Mountain ASTA Members, Soon, on May 2 – 4, the ASTA Global Convention will begin, which marks the turning of the ASTA Calendar year. May 5 will be "New Year's Day" in ASTA's calendar. Like all seasonal and calendar transitions, one discovers that elements change as each calendar page turns. This year the winter winds have been blowing hard, and our chapter, too, will see some exciting changes that will bring new things to you! ASTA elections have just concluded, and I was extremely humbled and honored to have been elected by the other ASTA Chapter Presidents to serve as the new Northwest Regional Director for ASTA … and… as a new member of the ASTA National Board of Directors. I say this… NOT… to toot my own horn. Those who have come to know me know that that is not my style. ASTA is about …YOU… our members, and I am here only to serve you. Therefore, I say this instead simply to make you aware that we will likely have some very positive transitions at the Chapter Leadership level, and I do not want you to be surprised by these when they happen. With that spoken, please know that your chapter will continue in excellent hands, and while new faces may be present, old faces, including mine, will still be seen and found. More details will be forthcoming soon. But for now, I ask you to rest easy knowing that my goal is to make any transitions as smooth and seamless as possible so that we may continue to serve you, our membership, in the best ways imaginable. If you are attending the ASTA Global Convention, please drop me a note to let me know - I would love to connect with as many of you as possible at the conference! If you have not had the opportunity to complete our chapter member survey yet, I strongly encourage you to fill that out now so we may learn your preferences for our chapter and serve you better. Remember, those who fill out the survey in full by April 19, 2023, are eligible for the prize drawing for one of two $50 Amazon Gift cards! Don't lose your opportunity to win twice – (1) by letting us bring you more activities and events of value to you and (2) one of the possible gift cards to Amazon! Please know that we will not share or sell any information in the survey with others. The survey is strictly so we can learn your preferences to better serve you and will be held in complete confidentiality from others outside of chapter leadership. The link to the survey can be found here [outdated]. As always, thank you for your membership to ASTA, and Rocky Mountain ASTA! We appreciate your membership! Respectfully yours, Rob Hale | Chapter President | RobH@Travelnrelax.com | 303.317.6945 As the saying goes, March comes "in like a lion, out like a lamb."
Here at Rocky Mountain ASTA, perhaps it is more appropriate, as we work to increase the value of your membership, to consider the reverse of that statement – that we come in like a lamb and out more like a lion. We continue to partner with Rocky Mountain Association For The Promotion of Tourism to Africa and invite you to take advantage of our mutual events. Similarly, we are putting together a slate of events that will consider your desires and what is valuable to you. To determine this, a survey will be coming to you soon to gauge your interests. We strongly encourage you to take a moment to complete this when it comes so that your desires can be taken into consideration. Your chapter is also looking for a Chapter Treasurer and other chapter positions. Despite these roles' lofty titles, these openings are… not…. significant time-consuming roles. Please contact me directly for more information on our available positions. As always, we want to serve you the best we can. However, we are limited in our ability to do this based on the volunteer help we can attain and the feedback you provide. To be a strong chapter, we require your assistance. We can only be as strong as what you are willing to help put into this through your feedback and support. We appreciate your membership in ASTA and look forward to hearing from you. Respectfully yours, Rob Hale | Chapter President February, The Month of Love!
And here at your chapter board level, we sure love you! Our members! Without you, there would be no chapter. While this month’s newsletter may be arriving a bit delayed, our passion for growing our chapter into the best it can be for you remains firm. Yet a chapter can only be as strong as the help it can attain to lead it. It is ultimately up to you, our members, to determine the quality of the chapter you desire to create for yourself. To this end, ASTA election season is now beginning, and ballots will come to you soon (from ASTA National) to select your next slate of ASTA National board members. Those selected will be seated at the upcoming ASTA Global Convention at the beginning of May. More information on this election will come to you in March. Locally, we are actively needing and seeking a new Chapter Treasurer who can assist us with our chapter’s financial records. Should you be interested or know someone who may be a fit, please have them contact me directly at RobH@TravelnRelax.com for more information. This position does NOT require you to be living on the Front Range. Anyone in our Chapter region is eligible. We appreciate your help in this search. March will be here soon. So I will keep this month’s message short. But know that we are striving to create the best chapter for you based on the level of help we can attain to support our efforts to serve you. We appreciate your support of ASTA and our Rocky Mountain ASTA Chapter! Thank you for being a member! Respectfully yours, Rob Hale Happy New Year!
We've Arrived! 2023 is now here and hopefully your year is off to a prosperous and successful start! This has been an odd winter so far with Christmas snow still lingering and periods of intense cold and fog dotting our days and nights. Peculiarities for a Colorado Front Range winter. However, such weather bodes well for the ski resorts in our states and the tourism business winter can bring. As with everyones new year, your chapter also is looking forward to new starts and fresh beginnings! Our kickoff event will be a virtual presentation on the Secrets of Japan and South Korea to be held Thursday January 19th over the lunch hour. By now you should have received your first invite to this event. Some have expressed a strong preference for live events and have asked me why we do virtual events at all. I too much prefer live events, it is more meaningful to connect face to face, and we will continue these as much as possible. However, there are some events, such as this month, that we do present virtually for a couple of reasons:
For these reasons we do hold virtual events from time to time. I hope we can look forward to your continued support and attendance at our events, no matter if they are live or virtual. Each will provide value to you starting with our Japan and South Korea event on January 19th! Please let us know if you have ideas you would like us to consider for future events. We are always open to hearing from our membership so that we may strive to serve you better. We appreciate your ASTA membership and look forward to serving you in the year ahead! Respectfully yours, Rob Hale Chapter President Message from your Chapter President
Hi friends! June is always a transitional month for me. On the one side, we leave behind the rush of graduations, proms, and other family milestone events to enter into the other “calmer” side of the lull of summer that the next two months represent. Here at ASTA, we also are beginning to transition, recognizing that the ASTA Global Convention in August represents the end of the ASTA calendar year and the beginning of the next ASTA year (which starts in September). Today we closed out our chapter event’s for this ASTA year with an excellent presentation from Tourism Australia! Hopefully, you were able to attend and go “Down Under” with us! At the same time, we are preparing for our next ASTA calendar year with a great kickoff event in September and our chapter’s first trade show event to be held on Friday, October 7, 2022. Please mark your calendars for this! You won’t want to miss it! Further details will follow. Just this week, I, and some other chapter members, headed to Washington, D.C. for ASTA Legislative Day, which was held on June 22, 2022. I will have a report on this in next month’s newsletter. Also, space is still available for the ASTA Global Convention in San Francisco on August 24 – 26, 2022. This is always a great event with excellent speakers, solid educational opportunities, and a good opportunity to network with your peers! I hope you will consider joining us in the “City by the Bay” for this event! The board and I thank you for being an ASTA member. As always, if we can assist you in any way, please reach out to us. Our door is always open to you! Until next month I am… Respectfully yours, Rob Hale | Chapter President | RobH@Travelnrelax.com | 303.317.6945 Message from your Chapter President
May – A month that represents spring and change. Here in the Rocky Mountains, that can mean we move from one day in the upper 80s with beautiful new spring delights and flop the very next day to the lower 30s with snow! Indeed there is nothing quite like the unique Rocky Mountain Spring! Like this fluctuation, your chapter is also working to flip the other way from that cold, snowy winter weather to a season of new buds and beautiful blooms that will hopefully please all of your senses and enchant you! This means new events and activities to engage in and opportunities for you to learn and grow! From live events to virtual presentations, we continue to develop new ways that will hopefully surprise and delight you! Next up on our list of chapter events is a June luncheon with our friends from Tourism Australia, where you will have the opportunity to learn about the land down under! Slightly further afield in San Francisco will be the national ASTA Global Convention in August, where we hope you will join your chapter in this annual educational and networking event. You can find more details on both in the “Events” section below. We welcome your feedback and suggestions on how we can best serve you. Should you have any contributions you wish to make, please let me or a board member know. Our door is always open! Thank you for being a Rocky Mountain ASTA member! Respectfully, Rob Hale | Chapter President | RobH@Travelnrelax.com | 303.317.6945 Message from your Chapter President
Hi Friends! Our little bold tree in the front of our house has begun to bloom, which can only mean one thing… April has arrived! This little tree is a trooper, always taking a bold, strong role to be the first tree in our neighborhood to bloom and blossom. It has found a way to outthink the other trees around it to show itself as the annual "winner" when it comes to first out of the gate to blossom. Like this tree, your local ASTA chapter is always looking for new ways to be first out of the gate to serve our members in better, more powerful ways that will benefit you, our members. We are always looking for ways to blossom more brilliantly to better profit you. Your local chapter board meets to consider our best path to serve you each month. Did you know that these board meetings are open for you to attend virtually with us should you wish to attend? While visiting non-board members are not provided a vote at these meetings, you are welcome to observe and input your thoughts. Likewise, at any time, we also welcome your ideas and thoughts to consider for the future path of our chapter. Should you wish to participate either way, please reach out to one of the board members below or me. On the topic of participation, it was a pleasure to see many of you at our chapter's recent live event at Denver's Thompson Hotel. Hopefully, those who attended found our first live meeting (post-COVID) beneficial to you. To those unable to participate, we hope to see you at other chapter events (virtual and live) that we will be hosting. Please see below for upcoming events and continue to check your inbox for event invitations as each event gets near. We appreciate your membership and look forward to seeing you at future events! Respectfully, Rob Hale | Chapter President | RobH@Travelnrelax.com | 303.317.6945 Board Members: Mitch Krayton | Chapter Vice President| Mitch@Kraytontravel.com | 303.365.0051 Darcie Bolton Weiser | Chapter Secretary| Darcie@Weisertravels.com | 303.725.7042 Trent Rogers | Chapter Treasurer | Trent@picturesqueexpeditions.com| 303.704.1262 Debi Kelley | Membership Chair | Debi@Premieretravelplanners.com | 303.589.1413 Lisa Hale | Social Media Chair | LisaH@Travelnrelax.com | 303.317.6945 Sally Sparhawk | Chapter Events Chair| Sally@envoyagetravel.com |970.618.1442 John McMillen |Supplier Representative | John.McMillen@insidetravelgroup.com | 720.316.0191 Skyler Mason |Supplier Representative | Smason@liveskyin.com | 303.548.2120 |
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