Travel Lane County Announces Samara Phelps as President/CEO

Travel Lane County is pleased to announce Samara Phelps as the organization's new President/CEO. Ms. Phelps will join Travel Lane County in mid-September and have an opportunity to work alongside retiring President/CEO Kari Westlund before her departure this fall. 

Ms. Phelps grew up in Eugene and began her career in the visitor industry working for Travel Lane County where she gained experience as a Visitor Services Coordinator, Director of Visitor Services and Director of Stakeholder Relations between 2007-2015. In 2015, she joined Clackamas County Tourism and in 2019 was named Executive Director of Clackamas County Tourism which is the destination marketing and management organization promoting the Mount Hood Territory region. She also gained valuable experience in managing a regional destination management organization (RDMO) by leading the Mt. Hood & the Columbia River Gorge RDMO's.

Samara attended the University of Oregon where she attained a Bachelor of Arts in General Science with a minor in Business Administration. She holds a VisitAble Disability Inclusion Certificate and is a graduate of both the Oregon Tourism Leadership Academy and the Chinook Institute for Civic Leadership. She has been active within her community and serves as the President of Nearby Nature here in Eugene.

Ms. Phelps commented in her interview, "I have two motivators that drive my passion for this work. One is stewardship for the place, people and partners of the destination. The second is developing, empowering and supporting individuals to create a team aligned with a mission, vision and strategy. Weaving together these two motivators makes the work engaging, meaningful and creative.

Board Chair Dana Turell noted, “the Travel Lane County Board succession planning committee was pleased to see nationwide interest in the President/CEO position. More than 40 applications were received and four candidates were interviewed. It was the committee's intention to move the top candidates to second interviews, however the committee was so impressed by Ms. Phelps background, her vision for our region and her passion for the industry that a recommendation was immediately sent to and approved by the full board."