Author
Heather Larson

Partner Spotlight: Meet Stefani Jerard

MEET Stefani Jerard, General Manager at IMPROV Chicago Stefani Jerard grew up in Lake Zurich and now resides in Wauconda. Her family has a long history of hospitality in Chicagoland, running a bar and grill in Lake Zurich since 1926. Upon graduation from Winona State University, she started her…

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Partner Spotlight: Meet Lori Frycz

MEET Lori Frycz, Regional Director of Sales, Trivedi Hospitality Lori Frycz grew up in Norridge, near O’Hare International Airport, as the oldest of three children and where most of her family still lives today. A lifelong fan of Disney, she had visited Disney World several times with her family…

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Partner Spotlight: Meet Tiana Weiler

MEET MEET Tiana Weiler, Director, Department of Cultural Services, Village of Schaumburg Tiana Weiler grew up in a small town in Montana on the Canadian and North Dakota border. She graduated in a class of only ten school mates. Her parents still live in the house she grew up in. She has an…

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Partner Spotlight: Meet Christopher Bonk

MEET Christopher Bonk, Owner of Bottle & Bottega in Arlington Heights A Chicago native who spent the first 5 years of his life in the city, Christopher Bonk’s family moved to the northwest suburbs of Chicago. His father still lives in the family home where Chris grew up in Mount Prospect. He…

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Partner Spotlight: Meet Cristal Montero

MEET Cristal Montero, General Manager of Chuck’s Famous Pizza in Arlington Heights Cristal Montero is the General Manager of the newly opened Chuck’s Famous Pizza in downtown Arlington Heights. Hailing from Sparrow Hospitality, the ownership group that gave us Passero, where Cristal served as…

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Partner Spotlight: Meet Chuck Valenti

General Manager and Meet Chicago Northwest Board Member; Treasurer Chuck Valenti grew up in Wood Dale, Illinois with his twin brother and two older brothers. A son of immigrant parents from Sicily, his parents moved to the northwest suburbs of Chicago at an early age to find work and start a family…

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Partner Spotlight: Meet Becca Clark

Director of Sales Hilton Garden Inn Schaumburg Becca Clark graduated from Northern Illinois University College of Business in 2014 with a major in Marketing and certificates in Sales and Social Entrepreneurship. She was taking a Professional Selling class that brought her to a golf outing where she…

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Partner Spotlight: Meet Michael Kudrna

Owner of Frato's Culinary Kitchen and Co-Founder of District 214’s Culinary Arts Apprenticeship Program Please tell us a little about yourself and how you got into the restaurant business. Since I was a child, I've had an entrepreneurial spirit and a desire to problem solve which fueled my craving…

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Partner Spotlight: Meet Michael Benjamin

Welcome to Partner Spotlight! A highlight of the diverse and talented individuals in our Chicago Northwest region’s hospitality industry. MEET Michael Benjamin, General Manager at ENTERRIUM Michael grew up in south suburban Oak Lawn and attended Marist High School. He later studied hospitality…

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Partner Spotlight: Meet Shirlanne Lemm

Welcome to Partner Spotlight! A highlight of the diverse and talented individuals in our Chicago Northwest region’s hospitality industry. MEET Shirlanne Lemm, President & CEO, GOA Business Association, Chairman of the Board, Meet Chicago Northwest Shirlanne grew up in Peoria, Illinois and moved to…

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