The Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach Visitor & Convention Bureau has inducted David Haynes into the Charlotte County Tourism Hall of Fame.

The 2026 Partner of the Year award was also presented to Ralph Allen and Elissa Allen, of King Fisher Fleet.

The awards were among those presented during the annual Tourism Celebration held recently at Farlow’s On The Water restaurant in Englewood.

HALL OF FAME

The Hall of Fame was established in 2014 to honor those with a substantial and long-standing body of work that has positively impacted tourism in Charlotte County, according to the county’s criteria.

Haynes, a Florida native, is president and owner of Tarpon Real Estate.

He earned his economics degree at Florida State University, then went to work for the state of Florida. He and his family moved from Tallahassee to Little Gasparilla Island about 25 years ago.

Haynes has served on the board of directors of the Englewood Area Board of Realtors and was president of the Little Gasparilla Property Owners Association for over seven years. Haynes is also involved in the local chapter of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, both as a board member and government affairs director.

In 2017, he became a member of the Charlotte County Tourism Development Council, where he continues to serve, the announcement states.

Last year, he volunteered to be part of the improv cast for the Charlotte Players community theater fund-raiser, Comedy for a Cause, raising more than $10,000 for the theater.

RISING STARS

In partnership with the Charlotte Chapter of the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association, four rising stars in the culinary and hospitality programs were awarded scholarships at the ceremony:

Richard Carey and Nicholas Stewart from Port Charlotte High School were awarded the Extra Mile Award.Jamison Hintzman from Port Charlotte High School was awarded the Hospitality Student Award.Spencer Gant was award the Culinary/Hospitality College Award.

The Charlotte County chapter of FRLA has awarded 30 students studying hospitality or the culinary arts more than $36,000 in scholarship funds.

2026 ROCK STAR S

Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach Visitor & Convention Bureau’s theme is “Hooked On Hospitality.”

As part of that mission, the VCB recognized the “hard work and dedication of the restaurant and lodging employees who are rockstar ambassadors for Charlotte County hospitality,” according to the announcement.

Those recognized as the 2026 Rockstars were:

Restaurant Front of House, Shannon Marshall with Peace River SeafoodRestaurant Back of House, Kaden Oneal with Sunseeker ResortVacation Rental, Casey Alderman with Parsley Baldwin Real Estate & Vacation RentalsLodging Front of House, Ashley Chalmers with Hampton Inn and Shelley Quirrenbach with Manasota Key ResortLodging Back of House, Larry Poplawski with Days Inn Port Charlotte and Caridad Inclan with Fishermen’s VillageAttraction, Tye Esposito with SUP Englewood and Joi Fellows with Babcock Ranch Eco ToursRetail, Mary Rundle with Beach Company, Barefoot Trader and Old Florida Gallery.2026 PARTNER OF THE YEAR

The 2026 Partner of the Year award was presented to King Fisher Fleet.

This award recognizes a tourism partner who demonstrates a high level of engagement, not just with the VCB, but with the industry as a whole.

“Their resolute ‘Yes’ to partner with the VCB, whether it be hosting media, tour operators, film crews or even assisting us with a photo shoot, has resulted in dozens of media features and FAM tours which help tell our story and promote our destination nationally and internationally,” the award announcement states.

Ralph Allen and Elissa Allen of King Fisher Fleet accepted the Partner of the Year award.

TOURISM NUMBERS

During the 2025 fiscal year, Charlotte County welcomed an estimated 1.1 million visitors where more than $80 million total taxes were paid by visitors and reached $1.26 billion in economic impact for the community, according to the VCB.

These visitor expenditures helped to support more than 10,000 jobs in our community generating over $360 million in wages and salaries while also saving the average household $865 in taxes for the year, the VCB states.