{"id":118298,"date":"2026-01-14T21:17:06","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T21:17:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/118298\/"},"modified":"2026-01-14T21:17:06","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T21:17:06","slug":"florida-restaurant-and-lodging-association-announces-2026-board-of-directors-executive-committee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/118298\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association announces 2026 Board of Directors Executive Committee"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">One of Florida\u2019s largest organizations representing the service industry has appointed its team to lead the association this year.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association (<a href=\"https:\/\/frla.org\/\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener noreferrer nofollow\">FRLA<\/a>) selected its 2026 Board of Directors Executive Committee to oversee the organization during its 80th anniversary. The FRLA is a service and hospitality industry advocacy group that represents about 2 million workers generating about $112 billion into the state economy.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cAs FRLA marks its 80th anniversary, we are reminded that our strength has always come from the dedication of our members and leaders,\u201d\u00a0said Carol Dover, President and CEO of FRLA.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cThe 2026 Executive Committee brings extraordinary experience and passion at a pivotal time for our industry. Their leadership will help us build on eight decades of advocacy, innovation, and collaboration as we champion policies that support our workforce, our businesses, and Florida\u2019s position as a global hospitality leader.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The FRLA Board of Directors Executive Committee includes:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/helios.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener external noreferrer nofollow\" data-wpel-link=\"external\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-772863 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/25HLS035-General-Web-Ad-FL-Politics-728\u00d790.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"728\" height=\"90\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u2014 Chair: Greg Cook, Luxury General Manager of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ritzcarlton.com\/en\/hotels\/jaxam-the-ritz-carlton-amelia-island\/overview\/\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener noreferrer nofollow\">The Ritz-Carlton on Amelia Island<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u2014 Vice Chair: Henry Delgado, Managing Partner of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.smithandwollensky.com\/\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Smith and Wollensky Restaurant Group<\/a> in Miami Beach.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u2014 Secretary, Treasurer and Lodging Director: Chuck Prather, President of <a href=\"https:\/\/thebirchwood.com\/\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Birchwood Development<\/a> in St. Petersburg.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u2014 Restaurant Director: Dennis Chan, Chef and Owner-Operator of <a href=\"https:\/\/bluebamboojacksonville.com\/\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Blue Bamboo<\/a> in Jacksonville.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u2014 Lodging Director: Aaron Hoefen of Marriott International and Dual Hotel, Manager for the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marriott.com\/en-us\/hotels\/tpajd-jw-marriott-tampa-water-street\/overview\/\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener noreferrer nofollow\">JW Marriott Tampa Water Street<\/a> and the Tampa Marriott Water Street in Tampa.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/bailproject.org\/?utm_source=website&amp;utm_medium=display&amp;utm_campaign=florida_politics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener external noreferrer nofollow\" data-wpel-link=\"external\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-741372 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/we_protect_due_process_floridapolitics_ad-09.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"728\" height=\"90\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u2014 Restaurant Director: Richard Schneider, Chief Operating and Development Officer of <a href=\"https:\/\/us.areas.com\/\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener noreferrer nofollow\">AREAS USA<\/a> in Miami.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u2014 Immediate Past Chair: Nick Sarra, Partner and CEO of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.saltwaterrestaurants.com\/\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Saltwater Restaurants Inc.<\/a> in Destin.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cI am honored to serve as the 2026 FRLA Chairman of the Board as our country also celebrates its 250th anniversary this year,\u201d Cook said.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cRestaurants and hotels have long played a vital role in shaping our culture and driving our economy. I\u2019m committed to championing our industry as we build on FRLA\u2019s great legacy of advocating for policies that support growth, empower our workforce, inspire our next generation of leaders and ensure Florida remains the leading destination for hospitality excellence.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"One of Florida\u2019s largest organizations representing the service industry has appointed its team to lead the association this&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":118299,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[59475,59476,59477,11337,59478,28,30,29,59479,59480,59481,59482,59483,59484,59485],"class_list":["post-118298","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-2026-board-of-directors-executive-committee","tag-aaron-hoefen","tag-carol-dover","tag-chuck-prather","tag-dennis-chan","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-florida-restaurant-and-lodging-association","tag-frla","tag-greg-cook","tag-henry-delgado","tag-nick-sarr","tag-richard-schneider","tag-service-and-hospitality-industry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118298","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=118298"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118298\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/118299"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=118298"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=118298"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=118298"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}