�The hospitality industry is a key element to the well-being of the city and the state economy,� said Spurgeon Richardson, ACVB president. �The Hospitality Hall of Fame is a special way for our industry to honor those special leaders who dedicate their time and efforts to make Atlanta a better city.�

Bill T. Hardman, President Emeritus, Southeast Tourism Society
Bill Hardman was Georgia�s first tourism director and created the Georgia Tourist Division under then Governor Ernest Vandiver in 1959. He created the state�s Welcome Center program and built its first eight centers while carrying the Georgia story all over the United States, Canada and Europe through travel shows. In the mid �60s, Hardman helped create and was the first president of the Southern Travel Directors� Council (STDC), which was later known as Travel South USA, and coordinated the first Governor�s conference on tourism ever held in the US.

This regional organization, whose membership consists of state travel directors from the Southern states, still exists today, 37 years later. In the �70s, Bill was hired to lobby the legislature for the creation of the Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC). The first show presented at the GWCC was Hardman�s first Atlanta Camping & RV Show, a show that he has produced for 27 years.

In 1983, Hardman and a few key travel promoters from the region started Southeast Tourism Society (STS), where he served as president for 13 years. STS has grown from the original 21 to a membership of more than 500 and plays a dynamic role in promoting travel in the Southeast through advertising, promotion and the development of tourism. Hardman is the past Chairman of the Board of the 2300-member Travel Industry Association of America (TIA) and has been on its board of directors for more than 40 years, its longest serving board member. He has been awarded TIA�s highest honor, the Golden Horseshoe Award, for his efforts in promoting travel to the US from abroad, and he was recently awarded the 2002 Tourism Lifetime Achievement Award presented by the Georgia Governor�s Conference on Tourism.

Besides, Bill T. Hardman, honorees included John E. Aderhold, Chairman, Aderhold Properties, Inc.; Ivan Allen, Jr. City of Atlanta Mayor from 1962-1969 and Chairman Emeritus, Ivan Allen Company; and Walter Banks, VIP Usher at Turner Field all who were recognized for their dedication and commitment to Atlanta.

About Southeast Tourism Society
Founded in 1983, the Southeast Tourism Society (southeasttourism.org) is dedicated to the promotion and development of tourism to its 11 member states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. The membership includes state travel offices, attractions, hotels, motels, resorts, convention & visitors bureaus, airlines, car rental agencies, newspapers, magazines and other travel-related organizations. Its corporate partners are American Express, Amtrak, Delta Air Lines, Southern Living Magazine, TRIPsouth and State Nets Radio.

Contact:
Chuck Bonelli
Southeast Tourism Society
404-364-9847
cbonelli@mindspring.com

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Placement Dates: 11/22/02 � 01/22/03
�Service of Hospitality 1ST and Subscribing Members�