The Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism (ROOST) has announced its 2017 Board of Directors. ROOST elected three new, reelected five current board members, and elected officers.

The new slate was announced at ROOST’s Winter Social at Big Slide Brewery and Public House in Lake Placid, which was attended by ROOST staff, board members, businesspeople, and elected officials from throughout ROOST’s eight Adirondack regions.

ROOST CEO James McKenna spoke briefly and introduced the staff, and outgoing Board Chair Mike Beglin reviewed the dramatic growth of the organization over the three years he was chair of the board.

In the official annual meeting held just prior to the Winter Social, new board members Mark Jessie of Tupper Lake, Lisa Hess-Marks of Schroon Lake, and Andrea Holderied of Lake Placid were elected to a 3-year term. In addition, current Board Directors Chris Ericson, Charlie Cowan, Melinda Little, Jill Cardinale, and Sarah Wilson were all reelected to an additional term.

The 2017 ROOST board is comprised of the following:

Chair: Ed Finnerty, Vice President/Counsel, Champlain National Bank
Vice Chair: Melinda Little, President, Point Positive, Inc., Saranac Lake
Treasurer: Charlie Cowan, financial consultant with Longrun Wealth Advisors LLC
Secretary: Bob Hockert, owner of Adirondack Sauna in Wilmington

Mike Beglin, immediate past ROOST board chair and owner of Beglin’s Lake Placid Jewelry and Gifts

Beth Hill, executive director at Fort Ticonderoga

Jill Cardinale, owner of The Pines Inn

Sarah Wilson, Sarah Wilson Communications in Keene

Chris Ericson, former ROOST board chair and owner of the Lake Placid Pub and Brewery

Marc Galvin, owner of the Bookstore Plus and past president of the Lake Placid Business Association

James Lemons, executive director of the Lake Placid Center for the Arts

Jecinda Hughes, owner of Origin Coffee in Saranac Lake

Mark Jessie, owner of Raquette River Brewing in Tupper Lake

Lisa Hess-Marks, owner of Pine Cone Mercantile in Schroon Lake

Andrea Holderied, operations director at Golden Arrow Lakeside Resort in Lake Placid

For more information about ROOST, visit their website.

Photo of ROOST’s Winter Social provided.