Visit Sarasota County Employee Wins Florida Public Relations Association Chapter Award

Nate Sweetman, the Sports Marketing Coordinator of Visit Sarasota County, was recognized with an award from the Central West Coast chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association last week. His accolade comes not without the acknowledgment from his own company as well. Pete Harvey and Andrea Hunt, both of Visit Sarasota County, managed to surprise Sweetman by arriving at the ceremony after previously stating they were unavailable. The support of co-workers and the new achievement made the event a very memorable one.

Each year chapters recognize those who promote public relations as well as the individual chapters themselves by presenting awards to four stand-out members. Visit Sarasota County’s own Nate Sweetman was honored with the Ginnie Duffey Troyer Award of Professionalism. This particular award is presented to the member of the chapter who has displayed the highest level of professionalism in the public relations field over the year. “Dedicated professionalism is exactly what comes to mind when I think of this year’s recipient.” said this year’s chapter president, Sheryl Vieira. “As a first-time board member and events director, he jumped in and handled this large undertaking with a smile.” she continued. A long-time member of CWC-FPRA, Sweetman took on the role of events director this year as part of the chapter’s board. The events director coordinates all programs, locations, catering, and workshops. This role is also responsible for booking speakers at professional development events. Some of the speakers Sweetman brought in this year were: Amber Wilson of ESPN Radio, Mark Gordon of the Business Observer, Cooper Levey-Baker of Sarasota Magazine, Brian Ries of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, and Chadd Scott of Forbes to name a few.

FPRA as a state organization is the oldest public relations association in the United States. Founded in 1938, the group was originally titled the Florida Association of Publicity Directors. The Central West Coast chapter, or “Ringling Chapter” as it was referred to early on, launched at the beginning of 1966 and has grown to be the largest chapter in Florida. Overall, the organization’s goal is to provide public relations professionals with a space to discuss the challenges they face in their jobs and learn how to better perform in their careers. The Sarasota area chapter offers leadership opportunities, continued education, professional development, and exceptional networking connections. Membership across the state surpasses 1,200 individuals and even offers its members two different credentialing opportunities within the public relations realm.