Issue link: https://tradeshowexecutive.epubxp.com/i/58649
PEOPLE The Legendary Frank Sain Passes Away Las Vegas – Frank Sain, who piloted the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority through the city's major growth spurt of the 1980s, passed away February 12 at the age of 86 after a long battle with cancer. As CEO and executive director of the LVCVA, Sain spearheaded the decade-long marketing campaign that brought additional trade show and convention business to Las Vegas and oversaw the operation of the Las Vegas Convention Center and Cashman Field Center. Sain also was instrumental in expanding the city's international visitor base, nearly doubling the number of visitors from Japan and reaching out to European markets. From 1972 and 1981, Sain was the highly respected president and CEO of the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau and was named outstanding association executive of the year in 1980 by the Chicago Society of Association Executives. He served as general manager of Chicago's O'Hare International Airport in the 1960s during the airport's $155 million makeover. He also was a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. One of his three sons, Gary Sain, followed in his father's footsteps in destination marketing, and is president of Visit Orlando, the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau. During the eulogy of Frank Sain, Gary noted that his dad, while serving in the Navy, became an all-weather, night-time aircraft fighter pilot. "Think about landing a piston-driven fighter plane going 450 mph on a carrier deck at night ..... in complete darkness ..... in heavy rolling seas without the techno- logical advances we have today. And remember, he was alone, not part of a team as they have today." Gary said his dad's work in serving our country in the Navy was extraordinary. "It also provided Dad a level of confidence, boldness and coolness we would see in him as he traded his Navy wings for the executive suite," Gary said. A scholarship fund has been established in the name of Frank C. Sain at the Destination and Travel Founda- tion to recognize his many years of leadership in the destination marketing industry. Donations may be sent to: Destination & Travel Foundation., 2025 M St. NW, Suite 500, Washington, DC 20036. Reach Gary Sain at (407) 354-5586 or gary.sain@ visitorlando.com 84 March 2012 | Trade Show Executive Te International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) appointed MICHAEL MORRISSEY the manag- ing director of ICSC Europe effective May 14. Te posi- tion places him in charge of the association's London office and its European con- ference portfolio. Morrissey was most recently general manager of the Interna- tional Federation of Airline Pilots. Reach Michael at +44 20 7976 3100 or mmor- rissey@icsc.org CINDY KONG joined Des- tination Marketing Associa- tion International (DMAI) as its director of meetings replacing PAUL GRIFFIN who leſt DMAI in December. She joined DMAI in Febru- ary aſter 10 years as director of meeting and conferences for the Association of Science Tech-nology Centers. She will be in charge of the DMAI Annual Convention and the rest of the association's event portfolio. Reach Cindy at (202) 296-7888 or ckong@ destinationmarketing.org STEVE WEITZNER, who most recently served as chairman and CEO of Ziff Davis Enterprise, has joined Summit Business Media as CEO. Weitzner replaces former CEO Andy Goode- nough, who leſt the company last October. CFO Tomas Flynn had been acting as interim CEO during the executive search, and he has returned to his original role. Summit produces about a dozen conferences and trade shows serving the insurance, financial services, legal and investment advisory markets. Weitzner has more than 30 years of B-to-B media experi- ence in a variety of roles at UBM/CMP Media, Hearst Business Communications and McGraw-Hill. Reach Steve at (212) 557-7480 or sweitzner@sbmedia.com D. CHRISTOPHER DAVIS, president and CEO of the World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) and former top executive of the Surfaces trade show, died Feb- ruary 22 aſter a sudden ill- ness, the WFCA announced. Davis oversaw all aspects of Surfaces between 1995 and 2000 and led the neg- otiations for the sale of the show to Hanley Wood Exhibitions. Prior to joining the WFCA, Davis worked as a journalist and as president and CEO of the convention and visitors bureaus in Cor- pus Christi, TX and Long Beach and Oakland, CA during the 1980s. Reach Jim Walters, chairman of the WFCA board of directors, at (920) 432-4586 or jimw@maccosflooring.com