Delaware Tourism Summit Speakers
2023 Keynote Speaker: Sara Meaney
Principal, Coraggio Group
Senior Vice President, Miles Partnership
Sara Meaney has 25+ years of leadership experience across public, private, nonprofit and government entities. She is a Principal consultant with Coraggio Group and leads the firm’s travel and tourism consulting practice. Sara also serves as senior vice president of the firm’s parent company, Miles Partnership.
She built her unique and insightful perspective across her career while serving as a gubernatorial cabinet member, a digital marketing entrepreneur, a partner and executive leader of marketing and advertising agencies, and an executive leader of an arts & culture nonprofit. Prior to joining Coraggio, Sara served as Wisconsin Tourism Secretary, where she led the state’s $22.2 billion tourism industry. During her tenure as secretary, she achieved the state’s first tourism budget increase in over a decade, established one of the first Offices of Outdoor Recreation in the Midwest, and championed the allocation of over $100 million in CARES Act pandemic funding for the state’s tourism-related businesses and organizations.
Sara’s work and insights have received recognition in many national and industry publications, including The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Outside Business Journal, Smithsonian Magazine, PR Week, and Ad Week, among others. She is a Business Journals Forty Under 40 alum and was hailed as one of “20 Executives to Watch in 2020”. In addition to her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, she completed executive education programs at both Harvard Business School and Kellogg School of Management. She has also completed the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) professional training program. Sara and her husband Brian live in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with their four children.
Summit Speakers
Tara Smith
Tara L. Smith, M.S., APR, currently serves as President for the Delaware chapter of the Public
Relations Society of America (PRSA). In her full-time work, she is Director of the M.A. in Strategic Communication Program and Instructor of Public Relations for the University of Delaware’s Department of Communication. She teaches and advises public relations undergraduates and strategic communication graduate students. Tara is also founder of Tara Lynn Communications, an independent public relations consultancy. Before joining University of Delaware, Tara lived in New York City, and worked in public relations and corporate communication roles at the headquarters of NBCUniversal News Group, Time Warner Inc., and Ketchum Public Relations.
Outside of work, Tara serves in numerous leadership roles for professional organizations. In 2019, Tara was appointed by Governor John Carney to the Delaware Women’s Hall of Fame Committee, which is the group responsible for the selection of inductees, as well as the annual induction ceremony and awards program. As a proud alumna of The Pennsylvania State University, Tara also serves on the Advertising/Public Relations Alumni Network Board of the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications.
Since 2006, Tara has been active in the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). In addition to her duties as a chapter president, she is also an active member of PRSA’s National Accreditation Marketing Committee.
Throughout her career, Tara has gained recognition from notable industry awards, including the CLIOs, SABREs, and the coveted PRSA Silver Anvil Award. She was also selected as PR Week Magazine’s 2006 Student of the Year during her senior year of college. Tara completed her M.S. in public relations and corporate communication from New York University with distinction, and a B.A. in public relations from The Pennsylvania State University. In 2017, she attained Accreditation in Public Relations (APR).
Jeff Gayduk
Jeff Gayduk is the president of Premier Travel Media, a multi-faceted publishing firm that specializes in the niche travel industry. Premier owns well-known brands such as Leisure Group Travel, Sports Planning Guide, Destination Reunions, Student Travel Planning Guide and Destination Film.
Premier’s custom publishing division partners with trade associations like IITA, state, regional and national tourism offices to help them cultivate their groups’ message through content, digital and print marketing.
Jeff is the author of the recently published book, Traveling Tribes, Your Next Side Gig as a Group Travel Influencer.
Robert Parrett, COM 
Robert “Bob” Parrett is the Guest Operations Manager & Safety Officer at Delaware’s Mt. Cuba Center, a botanic garden and leader in native plant conservation and research. A University of Idaho graduate, Bob has worked in various managerial roles at cultural institutions in Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Idaho. At Mt. Cuba, he has guided the historic Copeland House and gardens renovation with an accessibility first re-design, focusing on improving safety, accessibility, and inclusion.
Patti Grimes 
Based in Selbyville, DE, Patti Grimes leads the Joshua M. Freeman Foundation (JMFF) with a passion for arts, people and service. As the 3rd largest arts organization in Delaware, JMFF serves communities all over Delmarva and beyond, focused intently on their purpose: creating opportunities to elevate the human spirit. In 2023, over 132,0000 individuals had a live arts experience through one of JMFF’s Arts Access Initiative programs, including Freeman Arts Pavilion, Arts Education, and Community Access. Patti is a fierce advocate for the arts and passionately believes in the impact that the arts can make on quality of life for residents and visitors, in addition to being a source of hope and joy for the community. She leads the organization in building and sustaining relationships with the communities that JMFF serves while overseeing programming at the Freeman Arts Pavilion, which has had an economic impact of more than $120 million for the local community since our first performing season in 2008. Since inception, the organization has impacted more than 700,000 people, including almost 210,000 students through the Arts in Education program. That success is made possible by the help of a strong Volunteer Corp who have served over 140,000 hours since 2008 and contributing over $3,675,000 in value to the organization.
As the Executive Director of the Carl M. Freeman Foundation, a private family foundation which provides grants and guidance to nonprofits in Sussex County, Delaware and Montgomery County, Maryland, Patti leads in giving to organizations working to make change in in their communities The Foundation, established in 1960, seeks to honor their founders’ legacies and passions by endorsing excellence and leveraging resources. Since inception, the Foundation has committed over $58 million to over 1,000 nonprofit organizations, both large and small.
Patti’s service to others extends far beyond her day-to-day roles as Executive Director. Her leadership vision is to be a leader who inspires herself and others to make a greater impact beyond what is believed to be possible. She puts her vision into action in leadership roles for a number of organizations across the state, including Vice Chair for Delaware Technical Community College and serving on the Board of Leadership Delaware and Southern Delaware Tourism Advisory Board as well as several community organizations in Sussex County.
William Strickland
Since taking over as agency President in 2005, Bill has been credited with advancing the size and scope of L&W Insurance, which now employs 40 team members & is the only independent insurance agency in Delaware with locations in all three counties. As a Delaware native, Bill remains an active community advocate, serving on various boards & leading local initiatives that promote economic growth & community impact.
Jon Schmieder 
Jon has 27 years of direct experience in the sports tourism industry
having held the top role with three different sports commissions:
Phoenix, Tulsa, and Denver. Schmieder brings a wealth of experience in
sports tourism and economic development having also served in lead
staff positions for the Senior Olympic Games and Pop Warner Football
and Cheerleading. Schmieder is one of only three two-time Chairman of
SportsETA, formerly the National Association of Sports Commissions
(NASC) and was on the organization’s Executive Committee for six
years. While Schmieder served as the President of the Phoenix Regional
Sports Commission, the NASC chose the organization as the 2012 Large
Market Sports Commission of the Year.
Schmieder was named the 2012 CEO of the Year by the Phoenix
Chapter of the Organization of Non-Profit Executives. In 2016, Connect
Sports honored Schmieder as an industry “Game Changer
Mike Dickinson 
Mike was born and raised in East Stroudsburg, PA, the older son of two public school teachers. He spent his summers in Rehoboth Beach. His first job was serving at Grotto’s Pizza, where he would return full time after graduating from Muhlenberg College. He was quickly promoted to assistant manager, and later was promoted to General Manager.
In 2005 Mike joined the rapidly expanding SoDel Concepts' team. He became the General Manager of Bluecoast Seafood Grill and Raw Bar in Bethany Beach. In the years that followed he assisted in opening three new SoDel restaurants while maintaining his duties as GM. He has worked with HaleyKammerer, the restaurant consulting arm of the company, where he worked in many different capacities for a variety of businesses.
In 2016 Mike became the Vice President of Operations for SoDel Concepts, overseeing operations in 10 restaurants, a wedding and event venue, and concessions at Delaware’s two largest armature sports facilities. In 2017, Mike was named to Delaware Business Times List of 40 of the,“best and brightest young professionals under 40.” In 2020, Mike was promoted to Vice President of SoDel Concepts, overseeing all aspects of the business, which continues to expand, increasing to 14 coastal Delaware restaurants by spring 2022.
In 2023, Mike was promoted to President of SoDel Concepts. He is responsible for overseeing all day-to-day operations for the company.
Mike currently resides in Lewes with his two children.
Carrie Leishman
Carrie Leishman is the President & CEO of the Delaware Restaurant Association (DRA) and its philanthropic arm—The Delaware Restaurant Foundation (DRF). 2023 marked Carrie’s 23rd year as President & CEO of the DRA, the state trade association dedicated to promoting, educating and advocating for Delaware’s foodservice industry; which represents 1,900+ restaurants and over 53,000 employees in the state.
Carrie grew up in upstate New York and graduated from the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. After spending 10 years with the Maryland Restaurant Association, she became the President of the Delaware Restaurant Association. She is credited with building and strengthening the DRA—taking a handful of members and a minuscule yearly budget and turning it into one of the most influential business organizations in the state. Carrie is often described as a passionate and fearless advocate for the industry, and has been featured in Delaware Today Magazine where she was recognized as an influential Woman in Business as well as The Delaware Business Times “25 People to Watch" and Non-Profit CEO of the Year. In 2020 she was appointed to the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation Board of Directors, and in 2024 will be appointed Treasurer; from this seat she will ascend to Chairperson of NRAEF Board.
Carrie was recognized by The White House In late 2018 and attended the signing of President Trump’s landmark, bipartisan legislation to combat substance abuse and addiction. Carrie represented the nation’s restaurants for her organization’s development of the first, industry training for substance abuse awareness and prevention and a nationwide online certification course in collaboration with The University of Delaware for hospitality human resources.
In 2014 Carrie expanded the DRA by forming the Delaware Restaurant Foundation (DRF). This non-profit entity of the DRA focuses on training, education and workforce development for students, underserved populations, and those building careers in the foodservice industry. The DRF’s premier culinary and management program is the ProStart Program, which currently reaches over 3,000 students in 20 high schools throughout Delaware as well as in Delaware’s prison system. The Foundation expanded by developing one of the first in the nation’s cook apprenticeship programs and is now leading in the state’s effort to expand youth apprenticeship.
Carrie has spent time mentoring high school youth in Delaware’s foster care system, is an avid writer and national speaker, and is an adjunct professor in the University of Delaware’s Hospitality Management Program.
Emmanuel Jenkins 
Emmanuel is employed by the state of Delaware, working full-time for the Delaware Developmental Disabilities Council as a Community Relations Officer. Emmanuel serves on many Boards and Commissions, locally and nationally. He is the chair of the state of Delaware’s Rehabilitation Council, the chair of the Delaware Employment First Oversight Commission, and the vice chair of the Delaware Developmental Disabilities Services Advisory Committee. Emmanuel graduated from the Partners in Policymaking program in 2014. Emmanuel recently joined the Advisory Committee for the Self-Advocacy Resource and Technical Assistance Center. He is also the chair of the National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities (NACDD) Self-Advocacy Committee. After completing his LEND cohort, Emmanuel Became a LEND Faculty Member for the University of Delaware, Self-Advocacy Discipline. He also founded a nonprofit organization called We Stand 4 Something. His organization supports individuals with disabilities and their families. Emmanuel married his wife in 2009. He is the proud father of a 17-year-old; Emmanuel is also a motivational speaker with over 20 years of experience. Emmanuel hopes to hold a seat in Congress.
Derrick Stanley 
Derrick Stanley currently serves as Bally’s Dover Director of Operations, which includes Hotel Operations, Banquet Sales, Retail, and Regional Call Center Management. Derrick has been at Bally’s Dover (previously Dover Downs) for over 20 years in various roles throughout the Casino and Hotel. He has been in the Hospitality industry for over 30 years, starting his career at Walt Disney Company in Orlando, FL. He served in various roles in Walt Disney World, Walt Disney Travel Company and Disney Hilton which drove his passion for a customer first experience. While working for Walt Disney Company, he served as one of the founding members of Disney’s Diversity steering committee which allowed him to drive the diversity agenda within the company.
Derrick is a graduate of Central Delaware Leadership 2015. He is also representative for the state of Delaware Challenge Program, which provides opportunities for children to excel in school while learning new skills, connecting business and education.
Chris Strand
Chris Strand was named the Charles F. Montgomery Director and CEO of Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library in October 2021.
As director, Strand is responsible for all aspects of museum, library, and garden operations, including management of Winterthur’s academic programs through the University of Delaware, fundraising, Board relations, long-range planning, budget oversight, and daily coordination of the senior management team in service of Winterthur’s mission.
Strand had served as Brown Harrington Director of Garden and Estate at Winterthur since May 2005, managing the care of Winterthur’s nearly 1,000 acres and its diverse resources through close work with its horticulture, natural lands, facilities, and security teams.
Strand has enjoyed a long career in horticulture outreach, education, and management. Prior to joining Winterthur, he worked as director of Green Spring Gardens in Fairfax County, Virginia, from January 1998 to May 2005, managing its continuing evolution from a private property to a public garden and historic site, and as outreach horticulturist at The Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University from July 1993 to January 1998. Strand earned a bachelor's degree in Environmental, Population, and Organismic Biology from the University of Colorado in 1989 and a master’s degree in Public Horticulture Administration with a certificate in Museum Studies through the Longwood Graduate Program Fellowship of the University of Delaware in 1992.