ON THE MOVE
PlannersHidalgo joins Urban Land InstituteKenita D. Hidalgo, CMP, has been appointed director of meetings and events for the Urban Land Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit research organization devoted to sustainable land use and development. Hidalgo will open the group’s Western regional office in Los Angeles. Previously, she served as director of meetings at the American Council of Engineering Companies in Washington, D.C.
SuppliersMaria Brondyke has been promoted to director of sales at Visit Milwaukee, the city’s convention and visitors bureau.
Michael Chagnon is the new director of sales and marketing at the 183-room Equinox in Manchester Village, Vt.
Chy Charles has been promoted to sales director for Corvallis (Ore.) Tourism, the convention and visitors bureau.
Breanne Hyland Dunn has been promoted to director of group sales for the Hyland Group’s Washington, D.C., office.
Timothy A. Fields has been hired as director of group sales for the 300-room Columbia (S.C.) Marriott Hotel.
Mark Galbreith has been hired to serve as director of sales at the 305-room Landsdowne Resort in Virginia.
Steve Garner has been named sales director at the Walt Disney Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. His team is responsible for Disney outreach to Midwest corporate markets and overall incentive business.
Jeffrey Klein has been appointed director of food and beverage operations at the 1,504-room Fontainebleau Miami Beach.
Marta Lautin has been named vice president of marketing for Las Vegas-based Fontainebleau Resorts LLC.
Felicia Madison, CMP, has been hired as the new director of sales for the San Antonio Convention & Visitors Bureau.
David Ross has joined AVW-TELAV Audio Visual Solutions as general manager of the Chicago branch.
Naz Sabripour has been hired as senior event manager for the Pasadena (Calif.) Convention Center.
Trudy Singh has been promoted to regional director of sales for NYC & Company’s Washington, D.C., sales office.
If you would like notice of a career move considered for inclusion in this column, contact Kaylee Hultgren, People Page, M&C, 100 Lighting Way, Secaucus, N.J. 07094; fax: (201) 902-2032; e-mail: [email protected] 
“I try to take in events as our guests would, so
in a way, I participate in each...”
Andy Frezza, CMP, is
the new program director at R/A Performance Group, a San
Francisco-based corporate meeting and event management company
specializing in experiential events. Frezza’s previous positions
include meeting and conference manager for the national insurance
company The Standard, event manager for American Le Mans Grand Prix
of Portland (Ore.) and, last but not least, race car driver.
What kinds of events will you
be managing at R/A? I will be responsible for the design
and delivery of our “Ride and Drive” events, in addition to other
corporate incentive programs. I’ll also be involved in business
development, with a focus on experiential and mobile marketing
programs.
What will you bring to the
company? Tireless energy. Plus, I have extensive
experience in the motor-sports industry, in sponsorship management
and in implementing innovative promotional strategies.
Do you participate in your own
events? I do try to take in events as our guests would, so
in a way, I participate in each event or conference that I manage.
This is the best way to really involve yourself in the product that
you are presenting to the guest.
What would you do if you
weren’t planning events? I would be managing and racing a
two-car race team within the Speed Channel Race series. Oh, and I’d
love to tour the country with a comedy improv team. There is
nothing better than making people laugh.