The Four-Year Journey of Service: What It Means to Serve as Secretary
Serving as AAHOA Secretary marks the beginning of a four-year journey of service. It’s a commitment to give your time, focus, and full attention to the work of this association. When done with care, the role becomes a full-time responsibility built on listening, teamwork, and steady leadership.
Each stage of the journey builds experience and perspective. The goal is to grow into shared leadership, and to understand how AAHOA functions, how decisions are made, and how those decisions shape the future for members, our industry, and the hospitality community.
Year 1: Secretary — The Foundation of Service
This is where the real work begins. The Secretary learns the organization from every angle: How governance is applied to the association, how committees set priorities, and how advocacy takes shape across our regions.
More than anything, this first year is about listening. The Secretary travels, meets members face-to-face, and sees how policy decisions translate into daily challenges at the property level. This is the year to build relationships, earn trust, and understand what fairness and progress look like in practice.
Year 2: Treasurer — Stewardship and Strategy
With each year, the responsibility grows. As Treasurer, the focus shifts to financial stewardship, including understanding budgets, planning responsibly, and ensuring AAHOA’s programs and initiatives are funded with long-term sustainability in mind.
The Treasurer works closely with the Officer group and staff to connect numbers to mission: how every dollar supports education, advocacy, and member value.The role requires foresight and responsibility, and each budget choice shapes what the association can deliver for its members in the years ahead.
Year 3: Vice Chairman — Leading Through Collaboration
By this point, you’ve learned the rhythm of the organization. As Vice Chairman, the role becomes one of partnership: supporting the Chairman, guiding discussions, and helping the Board stay focused on what matters most to members.
This is a year of collaboration and balance. The Vice Chairman helps navigate challenges, encouraging unity even when viewpoints differ. It’s about creating alignment and keeping progress steady so decisions reflect both fairness and foresight.
Year 4: Chairman — Serving the Industry
The final step of the journey brings full responsibility. The Chairman leads the Board, works with the Officer group, and represents the collective voice of hotel owners across the country.
The Chairman leads with integrity, vision, and purpose, shaping advocacy priorities, strengthening education, and guiding AAHOA’s continued growth as a trusted voice for hotel owners. The role carries the responsibility to protect what has been built and to create new opportunities for the next generation of leaders.
Leadership Built on Trust and Time
This four-year journey matters because AAHOA is guided by many voices working together. The Chairman, the Board, and the members each play a part in shaping the association’s future. Leadership at this level grows through trust, understanding, and unity built over years of shared work and service.
If I have the honor to begin this journey, my commitment is clear:
To dedicate the time.
To listen closely.
To do the work.
To lead with steadiness, transparency, and respect for every member I serve.
Leadership is a responsibility you earn through consistency, by showing up, following through, and keeping your word. Over time, that’s what builds trust. When members can count on you to listen, to act fairly, and to stay transparent, the whole organization grows stronger.
AAHOA’s progress has always come from working together. Every member, every leader, every region plays a part in that success. My goal is to keep that spirit alive, and to lead with steadiness, fairness, and respect for the people who make this association what it is.
