Skal USA welcomes first female President

FT. WORTH, Texas – Skal International-USA (SIUSA), a professional organization of tourism leaders, today named Llana Y. Smith as its first ever Madam President. Founded in 1949, SIUSA is the United States affiliate of Skal International, the only international group uniting all branches of the travel and tourism industry.

“Since her induction into Skal International Memphis in 1994, Llana has worked her way up through Skal International USA committees, held positions in administration and has helped to grow the organization through her participation in most of the past Skal International World Congresses and NAASC Congresses since 2003,” said Mr. Mok Singh, Vice President–Skal International, who was in attendance at the Congress, along with his vibrant wife, Renu. “With her vision, work, and community service experience over the years, Llana is ideally qualified to manage and grow our organization in the USA,” Mr. Singh added.

In 1999, Smith was chosen for “50 Women Who Make a Difference in Memphis.” Today, Smith is the owner and sole proprietor of Broadway Travel in West Memphis, Arkansas. She serves on the Board of College of Arts and Sciences for Mississippi State University and on the Mid South Community College Foundation Board.

“While we are still in difficult economic times, global travel seems to be on the rise again,” said Smith, “The members of SIUSA, are uniquely positioned to take advantage of the increased traffic. One of the strongest benefits of membership in our organization is members doing business with other Skal members. My focus is on making the Skal organization in the USA stronger with a dedicated membership development campaign, which I am excited to help lead in this coming year.”

Originally founded in Paris in 1934, Skal International today has approximately 20,000 members in 450 clubs throughout 85 nations and is headquartered in Torremolinos, Spain. Skal International has been a powerful force in the travel and tourism industry to initiate change and encourage the conservation of the environment, including their efforts to promote green meetings. For 9 years, they have held the Ecotourism Awards to highlight best practices in tourism around the world and also to emphasize the importance the traveler’s impact on the environment and the need for active community participation for sustainability.

SIUSA is made up of over 2,500 travel industry professionals from almost every state. In addition, many local clubs in SIUSA provide scholarships to various hotel and tourism schools at universities and colleges throughout the USA and supports young career professionals in the hospitality and tourism industry through the creation and development of Young Skal.

http://www.skal.org