Three Elected to Connecticut's Sports and Tourism Board

Three Connecticut residents have been elected to the Board of Directors of the Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau (CTCSB)for its 2021-2022 fiscal year. The CTCSB is the State of Connecticut’s only statewide sales and marketing organization for meetings, conventions and sports events. The new Board members’ three-year terms started on July 1, 2021.

The Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau’s three new Board members are (bios below):

• David Kooris, President of Stamford Downtown;
• Heather Solomon, President and Founder of Solomon & Associates Event Management (S&A) in Glastonbury, Conn.; and
• Jason Soucy, Director of Business Development for the annual PGA TOUR’s Travelers Championship.

“These three dynamic individuals are tremendous additions to our Board of Directors, as we intensify our sales outreach to meeting planners and sports promoters across the U.S., especially after the challenging past 18 months,” explains Thomas Madden, Chair of the Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau and the Director of Economic Development for the City of Stamford, Conn.

“The composition of our Board of Directors reflects many of the professions and businesses involved with our nation’s meetings, sports and hospitality industries,” adds Robert Murdock, President of the Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau. “David Kooris, Heather Solomon and Jason Soucy each bring specialized expertise and perspective to the organization as we work to attract new and retain existing business for our state.”

• David Koorisis the President of Stamford Downtown, the largest business improvement district in Connecticut. He also is the Chair of the Connecticut Port Authority and is a graduate-level lecturer at Yale University’s School of Environment. He most recently served as Deputy Commissioner at the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development. Prior to that position, Kooris was the Connecticut Department of Housing’s Director of Resilience, and the City of Bridgeport’s Director of the Office of Planning and Economic Development.

• Heather Solomonis the President and Founder of Solomon & Associates Event Management (S&A) in Glastonbury, Conn. Since its establishment 1994, the firm hasprovided a full range of conference and event planning services to corporate, association and nonprofit clientsworldwide. Solomon is a member of Meeting Professionals International (MPI) Connecticut River Valley Chapter andis a Certified Pandemic Compliance Advisor for meetings. Her current focus is consulting with clients to promote and produce safe and successful gatherings in a post-COVID Connecticut.

• Jason Soucyis the Director of Business Development for the Travelers Championship and has held that position, with that of Director of Sales at Connecticut’s PGA TOUR event, since 2009. Soucy has more than 20 years of experience in marketing, selling and promoting championship golf on the PGA TOUR, LPGA Tour, and Champions Tour in multiple markets around the country. Prior to the Travelers Championship, he was a member of the IMG Golf Division, serving as Vice President of North American Event Sales, and he also spent several years as a Tournament Director for the PGA of America.

The Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau (CTCSB) markets all of the state – its convention and meeting venues, hotels, attractions, and sports facilities and athletic sites – as a premier destination for international, national, regional and statewide conferences, conventions and major sports events. In partnership with Connecticut’s businesses, institutions, nonprofit organizations and their surrounding communities, the Middletown, Conn.-based organization works to generate new and return events, thereby generating increased economic impact for Connecticut’s local regions and tax revenue for the State. For more information about the Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau, visit www.CTmeetings.orgor call 860-728-6789.