Press Release - Front-line CTA Receives 2011 National CTA of the Year Award

June 10, 2011

Contacts:

Mickey Schaefer, CAE, 520-219-0469,mickey@mickeyandassociates.com, Tourism Ambassador Institute
Liz Murphy, CTA, 816-736-8500, lizmbsales@juno.com, The Jesse James Farm & Museum
Susan Blanco, CTA, 816-691-3879, sblanco@visitkc.com, Kansas City Convention & Visitors Association


Front-line Certified Tourism AmbassadorTM  Receives 2011 National "CTA of the Year" Star Award

Historical Interpreter Liz Murphy, CTA shares her vast knowledge of Jesse James history with visitors and museum staff.

Missouri historian Liz Murphy, CTA was named CTA of the Year in the annual Star Award program that recognizes excellence among Certified Tourism Ambassadors (CTAs) nationwide.

Murphy, a CTA since 2006, works as a historical interpreter, historian and archive librarian for The Jesse James Farm & Museum in Kearney, one of the Clay County Historic Sites.

The Certified Tourism AmbassadorTM program teaches members of a community how to enhance their area's total visitor experience. They learn the importance of tourism and their role in "living" the destination's brand. The certification program is offered by the Tourism Ambassador InstituteTM (TAI).

Participating TAI licensed and accredited programs named their local CTA Star, who then qualified for the national CTA of the Year honor.

"We selected Liz for her dedication and tireless commitment to the visitor experience," says John Marks, co-chair of the TAI Selection Committee and past President of the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau.  "She brings local history, coupled with the specific history of the Jesse James family and Civil War to life."

Murphy won the local Star Award presented by the Heartland Tourism Ambassador Program administered by the Kansas City Regional Destination Development Foundation.

Western movies compelled the 72-year-old former journalist to learn the real scoop on events they depicted. "History is my real love," says Murphy.

"She's a great encyclopedia of information," says Emily M. Doolan, assistant superintendent of Clay County Historic Sites. "She's the go-to person when staff and visitors have questions about history and the contents of the museum library that she established."

Murphy has a gentle way with visitors who want to contribute to the vast knowledge of outlaws Jesse and Frank James. "I admire her great ability to deal with the public," says Doolan. "Liz is the model for dealing with people."

Murphy is among more than 1,400 CTAs trained within the Heartland Tourism Ambassadors Program, which began in 2006.

"The program has been instrumental in educating and training local hospitality workers so that day-to-day visitor encounters are consistently turned into positive experiences," says Rick Hughes, president and CEO of the Kansas City Convention & Visitors Association. "That trained force will be particularly important when Kansas City hosts the 2012 Major League Baseball All-Star Game," Hughes said.

Going through the program helped Murphy understand a broader picture of local tourism. "It gives an organization the opportunity to know what's going on in other parts of our area," she says.

Murphy says she is merely an example of the helpfulness found among the museum staff, all CTA-certified. "All of my co-workers just bend over backwards to make people comfortable," she says.

As the national winner, Murphy received a distinctive crystal star award and earned a continental U.S. trip for two that includes airfare and two nights' lodging.

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ABOUT TAI AND CTA

The Tourism Ambassador InstituteTM licenses and accredits local TAI Accredited Providers, often destination management organizations (DMO) such as convention and visitors bureaus, to offer the CTA program at the local level.

The institute, founded by Mickey Schaefer, CAE, president of Mickey Schaefer & Associates LLC, customizes the CTA program for each destination through research and collaboration with the TAI Accredited Provider and local stakeholders.

More than 8,000 CTAs enhance the visitor experience in retail and restaurant businesses, lodging, government, community service and other settings. Thirteen CTA programs exist in 14 states and involve more than 100 DMOs.

RELEVANT LINKS

Kansas City Convention & Visitors Association, http://www.visitkc.com/
The Jesse James Farm & Museum, http://www.jessejamesmuseum.org/
Certified Tourism AmbassadorTM program, http://www.ctanetwork.com/
Tourism Ambassador InstituteTM, http://www.tourismambassadorinstitute.com/