Jayne O'Connor Named Travel Person of the Year

Jayne O'Connor, president of White Mountains Attractions Association, was chosen as this year's recipient of the Mildred Beach Travel Person of the Year award, presented earlier this month at the Governor's Conference on Tourism at the Governor's Tourism Summit, which took place at the Attitash Resort.
 
The award, presented annually by the New Hampshire Travel Council, honors a person in the state's travel industry who has made a significant and continuing personal contribution to NH's travel industry, through leadership, community relations and strong business ethics.
 
 O'Connor has worked for White Mountains Attraction since 1997 and became president in 2005.
 
"What an honor to receive this award," O'Connor said. "I've always felt very fortunate to work in the tourism industry in New Hampshire, with some of the best people in the state, who recognize the importance of tourism to our economy here in the State."
 
The award is named in honor of Mildred Beach, the longtime president of the Lakes Region Association and one of the founding members of the New Hampshire Travel Council.
 
"I have admired Miss. Beach for a long time and she has always been extremely supportive of what we are trying to do in the tourism industry," O'Connor said. "She is an inspiration."
 
O'Connor, a Franconia native, was the executive director of the Lincoln-Woodstock Chamber of Commerce from 1987 to 1997 and, before that, a reporter for the Littleton Courier.
 
White Mountains Attractions, founded in 1958, is the marketing association for the region, and its 16 major attractions, including Attitash, Cannon Mountain, Clark's Trading Post, the Cog Railroad, the Conway Scenic Railroad, Flume Gorge, the Hobo Railroad, Loon Mountain, Lost River Gorge, Mount Washington Auto Road, Polar Caves, Santa's Village, Six Gun City, Story Land, Whale's Tale and Wildcat Mountain. For information about the White Mountains, the visitors' center, located off exit 32 on Interstate 93 in North Woodstock, visit www.visitwhitemountains.com or call 800-FIND-MTS.