Four Seasons Resort and Residences Vail announces the appointment of Kevin Erving as its new Executive Chef. Chef Erving, a Four Seasons veteran of 23 years, will be overseeing all of the Resort’s culinary operations including its 121 room property and three restaurants: Flame Restaurant, Fireside Lounge and Bean & Gone.
With more than 22 years of hospitality experience, Elston was most recently the General Manager of Denver’s Curtis, a Doubletree by Hilton. Denver’s Sage Hospitality, one of the top hotel investment and management companies in the United States, manages both the JW Marriott Denver Cherry Creek and the Curtis. Elston joined the Curtis team in 2010 as the Director of Sales & Marketing and was promoted to General Manager in 2012. She also served as Sage’s Sales & Marketing Leader for its Team Denver business group. Other previous management experience includes The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island in Florida, The Paramount Hotel in New York, the Wyndham Bristol Hotel in Washington, D.C. and the Wyndham Copley Plaza in Boston. Elston has been honored with numerous awards, including receiving Sage’s Property of the Year, Community Service Award, Excellence in Profit Performance and Excellence in Revenue Performance while at the Curtis. She also earned the President’s Award at Wyndham Hotels and the Golden Circle Silver Level at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company for being in the top 6% of all sales people.
The Westin Riverfront Resort & Spa at Beaver Creek Mountain is pleased to announce that it has hired Jayden Callahan to serve at the Director of Food & Beverage at the award-winning resort. Callahan will oversee all operations at Maya, The Westin Riverfront’s popular modern Mexican kitchen and tequileria by Chef Richard Sandoval, the Lift, which serves breakfast and lunch daily, the Lobby Bar and a new full-service Starbucks opening this August. In addition, she will oversee all food and beverage offerings in the resort’s more than 7,500 square feet of banquet and meeting space, including the 4,000 square foot Riverside Ballroom with floor-to-ceiling windows offering stunning Beaver Creek Mountain views, and 2,000 square foot outdoor banquet terrace. Callahan joins The Westin Riverfront from Hawaii’s Sheraton Kauai Resort, where she served as the Director of Food & Beverage for more than two years. Other previous experience includes serving as the Food & Beverage Venues Manager at The Westin Princeville Ocean Resort and as the General Manager of several restaurants in Hawaii and Colorado.
Kaminsky joins Four Seasons from The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo. A native of Kansas City, Kaminsky is a graduate of the University of Kansas with degrees in marketing and journalism. From Kansas, he relocated to Colorado for positions as a food and beverage manager at Park Hyatt Beaver Creek and then, Vail Marriott Mountain Resort. Kaminsky continued his career in food and beverage in California with positions at Renaissance Montura Hotel (Los Angeles) and The Ritz-Carlton (Marina del Rey). When an opportunity in Asia presented itself in 2010, Kaminsky transferred to The Portman Ritz-Carlton in Shanghai. At the hotel, located on the famous Nanjing Xi Lu, Kaminsky acted as executive assistant manager of food and beverage. In 2012, Kaminsky was named executive assistant manager at The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo, which occupies the top nine floors and the first three levels of the tallest skyscraper in the city, Midtown Tower.
Benchmark Hospitality International, a leading US-based hospitality management company, has named Cathy Matthews-Kane club general manager for the Country Club of Colorado, located at Cheyenne Mountain Resort, a Benchmark Resorts & Hotels property in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Greg Champion, Benchmark’s executive vice president and COO, made the announcement. Cathy Matthews-Kane comes to her new position with extensive experience in club management and golf operations. She was previously the director of membership for the Colorado Springs Country Club. Prior to this, Ms. Matthews-Kane served as assistant golf professional and membership golf professional for The Broadmoor. Earlier in her career she held the title of assistant professional at the Hole-In-The-Wall Golf Club, located in Naples, Florida.
Sage Hospitality has named Frederick J. Kleisner II as the Area Managing Director overseeing The Oxford Hotel and the new 112-room Crawford Hotel, an independent hotel opening in Denver’s revitalized Union Station this July.
Spire Hospitality, one of the nation's leading and most respected hotel management companies, announces Jeff Zelkin as general manager of Embassy Suites Hotels Colorado Springs. Responsible for consistent delivery of product quality and service, Zelkin brings more than 13 years of management and leadership to the property and the Spire Hospitality team.
–Sage Hospitality, one of the nation’s top hotel investment and management companies, has named Michelle Baca a Senior Sales Manager at Denver’s Oxford Hotel and the new Crawford Hotel, an independent hotel opening in Denver Union Station this July. With a decade of hospitality experience, Baca started her career with Marriott International before joining Sage in 2008 as a Total Account Manager at The Oxford. She has also served as an Area Sales Manager overseeing several of Sage’s select service Marriott properties and most recently as a Business Travel Sales Manager at The Westin Westminster. Situated in the heart of Denver’s LoDo district, the 80-room Oxford Hotel was featured on Condé Nast Traveler’s 2014 Gold List as one of the “511 Best Places on Earth.” Last fall, the historic property completed a $1.5 million renovation of its 10,000 square feet of meeting space, as well updates to its restaurant and popular Cruise Room martini bar.
Four Seasons Resort and Residences Vail has also appointed Randi Alt as the newest member of the marketing and communications team. Alt comes to the resort with over six years of experience in the hospitality industry and most recently, she served as Catering & Conference Services Manager at Four Seasons Resort Lana’i.
In his new role, Gubrud provides leadership on the day-to-day operations of the sales and marketing departments, while maintaining focus on the company’s strategic goals. Gubrud brings more than 25 years of experience in sales and hospitality to the resort. He joins the Four Seasons with a long track record as the Director of Sales and Marketing at a variety of resorts in the Vail Valley, most recently at Park Hyatt Beaver Creek Resort & Spa, where he had been since 2005.
McHugh most recently served as a Catering Sales Manager at the Four Seasons Hotel Denver. Prior to that, she spent six years as the Director of Catering/Regional Resource at Denver’s Hotel Monaco and Panzano Restaurant, where she was responsible for a 16 person Banquet & Conference Services team. McHugh also previously served as a Catering/Conference Services Manager at the Doubletree Paradise Valley Resort and the Scottsdale Plaza Resort, both in Arizona. A graduate of the University of Alaska, McHugh also previously owned Denver’s Newport Furnishing.
Ruth Kilzer brings over two decades of hospitality industry experience to her new role as Account Director of Group Sales. Her markets will include Colorado Corporate and Association, and Government. Prior to joining the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel, Kilzer served as a Senior Account Executive for Marriott International, in which she managed the Association market. Before that, she served as Group Sales Manager at the Denver Tech Center Marriott and Director of Event Management at the Renaissance Denver Hotel. Kilzer also served for over six years with the New Orleans Marriott. Originally from Ireland, Kilzer is active with many local organizations including the Colorado Society of Association Executives and the Professional Convention Management Association.
With nearly 25 years of industry experience, Deseri Martinez will be responsible for group sales throughout Colorado and the Rocky Mountain region. Prior to joining the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel, Martinez was the Group Sales Manager for the 430-room Westin Denver Downtown. She previously served as Catering Sales Manager at The Westin Denver Downtown and at the Colorado Convention Center. Martinez also served for over eight years with Hyatt Hotel and Resorts. A Colorado native, Martinez is active with many organizations including the Denver Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Denver Women’s Chamber of Commerce, the Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA) and Meeting Professionals International (MPI).
CSM Lodging, a division of CSM Corporation, has named Kayla Lynn Dacosta-Avery director of sales for the Courtyard and Residence Inn Denver South Park Meadows. Tara Cates and Michelle Davis, general managers of the properties respectively, made the announcement. Kayla Lynn Dacosta-Avery was previously owner and principal of KLD Media and Design, a marketing communications consulting firm. Prior to this Ms. Dacosta-Avery was national sales manager for the Plantation on Crystal River Resort in Crystal River, Florida. Earlier in her career she held sales leadership positions for Fairfield Inn and Suites, Springhill Suites, and at Hotel Indigo, an Intercontinental Hotel Group property.
Larsen fell into the hospitality industry in the early 2000s. She has held a tenured career with two Hotels in the Denver Airport area, recently making the leap to the downtown market. She marries her passion for hotels with her love of hospitality and plans to use her experience to strengthen the sales team and help young talent move up the ladder. Larsen has earned many accolades in her career such as; Supplier of the Year by Rocky Mountain chapter of Meeting Professionals International, Connect Magazine's 40 under 40, Marriott's Meeting Excellence award and Colorado Business Council Excellence Award. She also formed the Gateway Park Hotel Association, uniting neighboring hotels for events such as blood drives and volunteering at children’s clinics. Larsen is a Colorado Native and is married with three teenage daughters.
Newman brings to the position more than 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry. She is currently the general manager of the Denver Marriott West.Newman began her career in 1991 as a housekeeping intern at Marriott’s Tan-Tar-A Resort in Osage Beach, Missouri. She then served in several operations positions in the Chicago area, helping her gain a working and thorough knowledge of the company and leading her to the position of director for the event booking center in Nashville.
With more than 15 years of luxury hotel experience, Gaherty was the Director of Sales & Marketing at the JW Marriott Denver Cherry Creek from its opening in 2003 through mid-2011, when she took a break to spend more time with her young children.
Park Hyatt Beaver Creek Resort & Spa is pleased to announce Thomas Gutmann as the director of restaurants. Gutmann rejoins the celebrated mountain resort with more than 15 years of experience and success in the hospitality industry, most recently serving as the head of food and beverage operations at the Brown Palace Hotel in Denver where he managed seven food and beverage outlets.
The Westin Riverfront Resort & Spa at Beaver Creek Mountain is pleased to announce that it has promoted Beth Olson to the position of Director of Catering & Events. The award-winning resort has also hired Jing Butler to serve as the Executive Meetings Manager and Jessica Gillespie to serve as the Catering & Events Manager. Olson joined The Westin Riverfront’s sales team more than a year ago as the Catering & Conference Service Manager. She previously served as the Banquet Captain at the Arrabelle at Vail Square in Vail and as an Account Manager for Vail Resorts, Inc.
Jay Rocha comes to Cheyenne Mountain Resort with significant leadership experience gained in general manager assignments at multiple properties throughout the United States. These include the Reunion Resort of Orlando, The Richardson Hotel of Richardson, Texas, and the Inverness Hotel and Conference Center located in Denver.