During the 2024 FAA Annual Conference, the Florida Attractions Scholarship Foundation (FASF) awarded four, $2000 scholarships to employees of FAA member businesses. Since its creation in 2014, the FASF has awarded $99,975 in scholarships and grants.

Yuliia Stasiuk | Lion Country Safari | Capt. Rick Soverns Memorial Scholarship

Yuliia Stasiuk is continuing her education and pursuing a degree in hospitality management with a focus on sustainable tourism and wildlife conservation initiatives while working as a member of the team at Lion Country Safari. Her long-term career goal is to become a hospitality manager specializing in eco-friendly resorts or wildlife tourism destinations so that she can continue contributing to the preservation of wildlife and habitats for future generations.

Erionna Perez | Funspot Amusement Theme Park | Barbara Kenney Scholarship

Erionna Perez is working toward a degree in Hospitality Management through the Rosen College of Hospitality Management at the University of Central Florida (UCF). She is an employee of FunSpot Kissimmee where she is working towards becoming a department manager. She is a member of the Rosen College of Hospitality Honors Society and made the Dean’s List at UCF three semesters running. Her ultimate goal is to continue her work in theme parks once she graduates.

Justin Petrak | SeaWorld Orlando | Chad Middleton Memorial Scholarship

Justin Petrak is a self-proclaimed animal lover, who started volunteering with cats and dogs nearly 10 years ago. He has taken his love for animals and is pursuing a degree in Organizational Management with a concentration in Zoo and Aquarium Management. He currently works as part of the SeaWorld Orlando Rescue Team helping to rehab and return manatees and sea turtles to the wild. Upon graduating in 2025, Justin plans on working with elephants at Busch Gardens Tampa.

Hailey Osborn | Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts | Arthur Hertz Memorial Scholarship

Hailey Osborn is currently an employee of Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts as a member of their Production Crew while pursuing her Bachelor’s of Fine Arts from the University of Central Florida. She is studying scenic and production design which she is hoping to parlay into a career with theme parks so she can use this platform to tell immersive stories through the art of scenic and video designs.

Our 2024 – 2025 FAA Board of Directors were installed during the Celebration Breakfast on Tuesday, June 11. These professionals represent the broad range of FAA attraction members and suppliers and will serve as servant leaders, volunteering their time and talent to advance the interests of Florida’s attractions industry.

Chris Baker - SeaWorld Orlando

Lee Capitano - St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum

Keith Clark - Flamingo Gardens

Felicia Cook - Marineland Dolphin Adventure

Dan Donovan - Universal Orlando Resort

Otis Gries - SSA Group

Retta Logan - A3 Visual

Brandon Moore - Boomers! Boca Raton

Cameron O’Connell - ZooTampa at Lowry Park

Samantha Palmer - Historic Tours of Flagler College

Jared Reid - Wild Florida

Christina Schwartzman - Sawgrass Recreation Park

Laura Sherman - Flamingo Adventures

Kristen Stalker - Walt Disney World

Cindy Stavely - St. Augustine Pirate & Treasure Museum

Diana Vega - Zoo Miami

Melissa Vogt - Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre

Our Annual Conference celebrated the contributions of three of the FAA’s many outstanding members in a long history of selfless dedication and service.

Outstanding Attraction Member of the Year – Cameron O’Connell

Many of us in the attractions industry have dedicated decades to our careers, climbing the ladder to positions of leadership. Some of us have transitioned from other industries, bringing unique perspectives and skills that seamlessly translate to the attractions sector.

This year's recipient of the Outstanding Attraction Member of the Year award exemplifies this journey. After joining a Florida attraction, he quickly distinguished himself through his dedication to his employer and his willingness to share his expertise in marketing and sales, honed over many years.

His natural leadership abilities and commitment to serving his fellow industry professionals led to his appointment to the FAA Board of Directors. With humility and a strong presence, he continues to serve the industry today.

Having transitioned from the sports world to the attractions industry, he embodies selfless leadership. It is with great honor that I announce the 2024 Outstanding Attraction Member of the Year: Cameron O'Connell.

Outstanding Associate Member of the Year – John Penney

When the FAA issues a call for relevant and timely insights and knowledge regarding marketing attractions, this member eagerly answers the call. With decades of experience in advertising and marketing Florida attractions, this individual has a rich history of success.

With success comes responsibility, and he has consistently demonstrated a commitment to serving his fellow industry professionals through his dedication to his attraction clients and his willingness to share his expertise with FAA members. Whether leading Breakout Sessions, facilitating Roundtable discussions, or generously providing financial support as an event sponsor, this dog’s bark leaves a lasting impression on our members.

In recognition of his unwavering support of the industry, I am pleased to announce that the 2024 Outstanding Associate Member of the Year is John Penney of BlackDog Advertising.

Chairman’s Award – Sonny Flynn

This year's recipient of the Chairman's Award has demonstrated exceptional leadership within her community. Her compassion extends not only to her fellow leaders, but also to the well-being of the most overlooked and marginalized creatures in the animal kingdom.

Driven by her love for all creatures, big and small, she established a unique attraction that showcases the wonders of nature while providing care for animals in need of rehabilitation. Unfortunately, her dream was recently shattered by a devastating fire that claimed the lives of some of her beloved animals and forced her business to close its doors.

However, true to the saying "you can't keep a good woman down," she refused to be defeated. Instead, she assessed the situation, swiftly devised a plan to provide temporary shelter for her wildlife and began the process of rebuilding her business.

Her unwavering strength and resilience in the face of adversity have earned her the admiration and support of many in her community, as well as those gathered here today. In recognition of her remarkable generosity, fortitude, and empathy, it is my honor to present the 2024 Chairman's Award to Sonny Flynn.

Dear fellow FAA Members,

It seems like only yesterday when I had the honor and privilege or receiving the FAA gavel from my friend John Dent and began my year serving as Chairman of the FAA.  But a year has passed, and our time-honored tradition will continue later today when I have the honor of passing this gavel to our next Chairman, Dan Donovan. 

I have been involved with the FAA for 25 years. There are many words that come to mind when I think of the hundreds of FAA members I’ve met, dozens of attractions I’ve visited, and thousands of hours invested in my professional development and networking opportunities provided by the FAA.

Words such as Family. Caring. Concern. Helper. Sharing. Professional. Our association culture is unique and is greater than the sum of all of us. It is the greatest asset we possess. One that has endured the test of time, the dynamic forces of our world, the fickle demands of our guests, the development of our staff and the lightning speed of technology. Our FAA culture is to be protected and celebrated. One recent attendee to our annual conference described it like this – an FAA meeting was less like a conference and more like a revival!

Like our FAA members – attractions, Associate members and DMOs, the past 12 months have continued the necessary evolution required to thrive and it is incumbent on us as leaders of Florida’s attractions industry not to simply embrace the change, but be leaders in it, and to be the catalyst that produces it.

As it relates to the FAA, this change has affected us all this year. In an efficient and effective Strategic Planning Session our Board of Directors spent two days wrestling with creating the next chapter in the FAA story. Our planning session ended with the development of five working groups each tasked with renewing and recharging aspects of our association.

Two FAA events were retired this year. Our winter Attraction Regional Forums and fall Networking Nights required a fresh vision. Our new FAA event, Expedition FAA coming this fall will combine the best elements of these two events with hours of professional development combined with an evening networking event and back-of-the-house tour of an FAA member attraction.

The introduction of a fall and winter online webinar series delivered twelve unique education and development programs online directly to you and over 200 FAA members participated in this new, free program.

Our Annual Conference was refreshed with more educational content, more topics, more speakers, more networking time than any conference in our history.

Our Board continues its work to create more opportunities for Board members to engage with our FAA members, more occasions for our members to volunteer and serve on committees, better communication methods, a quarterly e-newsletter, a stronger advocacy effort and refreshing of our FAA brand and value proposition.

It has been a year of change and we’re just getting started.

I want to thank our 2023-2024 Board of Directors for their support and involvement in serving the FAA. (anyone else to thank). Finally, and most importantly, I want to thank our FAA Members who have made the commitment to join, participate and serve their fellow attraction professionals.

I think back to how our members and leaders of the past have served us. For 75 years, men and women in Florida’s attractions industry have selflessly served the collective. Each generation believes they are living in our industry’s “golden age.”  We should approach each day with wisdom, courage, and responsibility on our shoulders, for today we stand on the shoulders of those before us who dreamed of an association of Florida attractions. Certainly, we have far surpassed their wildest dream. Today, we must continue that tradition so that in the year 2099, 75 years from now, that generation of attraction leaders may also say “we stand on the shoulders of giants.”

Respectfully submitted,

Cindy Stavely

Florida Attractions Association

Chairman of the Board

June 11, 2024

The Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse and Museum offers visitors a glimpse into the area's rich history. Built in 1860, the lighthouse stands at 105 feet tall and has been fully restored to its original glory. Visitors can climb to the top of the lighthouse for a panoramic view of the surrounding area, including the beautiful Jupiter Inlet and the Atlantic Ocean.

In addition to the lighthouse itself, the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse also features a museum that showcases the history of the area and provides information on the lighthouse's role in maritime navigation. The museum features exhibits on the lighthouse keepers, shipwrecks, and local wildlife. Visitors can learn about the importance of lighthouses in guiding ships safely to shore and the fascinating stories of those who lived and worked at the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse.

The Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse is a fascinating destination for history buffs, nature lovers, and anyone looking to experience a piece of Florida's unique heritage. Whether you're interested in climbing to the top of the lighthouse for a breathtaking view or exploring the museum to learn more about the area's history, the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse is sure to impress!

If you thought debates about taxes or license plate slogans is a modern phenomenon, you would be mistaken. At the semi-annual meeting of the Florida Attractions Association held at Silver Spring on May 23, 1950, there was much to say about taxes, license plates – and a few other issues, too!

Though the state of Florida had been issuing license plates since 1918, the first year Florida’s plate had a slogan, “Sunshine State” was in 1949. In 1950, there was a move to change the slogan to “Keep Florida Green” demonstrating the beginning of the environmental movement. The

 membership of the FAA opposed the move to change the license plate slogan, but lost that battle and for one year, 1951, the state’s plates carried the “Keep Florida Green” slogan. A year later, they returned to Sunshine State and that has been the predominant slogan used for the last 75 years.

The FAA membership also voted to oppose the state’s 3% sales tax be imposed on the admission of amusements such as attractions. In a related position, FAA members were encouraged to contact their US Senators and Representatives to oppose a Federal admissions and transportation tax.  

Hertz U Drive became one of the FAA’s early advertising partners and Silver Springs offered to turn over 100 of their sign boards (billboards) to promote FAA members for a month during the summer. Wasn’t the art on the Silver Springs Billboard foretelling?

And that was the FAA in spring 1950.

Doug Lansky wowed attendees at our 2016 Annual Conference in West Palm Beach and will be making an encore appearance for this year’s conference traveling all the way from Stockholm Sweden.

Doug Lansky has been living abroad and traveling for the last nearly 20 years in over 120 countries. He is the author of 10 books, including 2 for Lonely Planet and 3 for Rough Guides, had a weekly syndicated travel column in over 40 newspapers for five years, hosted a Travel Channel show, served as a correspondent for Public Radio’s Savvy Traveler show, served as travel editor for Scandinavian Airlines inflight magazine for three years and contributed to publications such as National Geographic Traveler, Reader’s Digest, Esquire, Men’s Journal, The Guardian, National Geographic Adventure, Huffington Post and Skift.

On the speaking circuit, Doug has given acclaimed lectures at nearly 100 universities, spoken to a sold-out audience at National Geographic Headquarters, for the United Nations World’s Tourism Organization, as an after-dinner speaker at corporate events and at both public and industry travel/tourism conferences, at TEDx Stockholm, and set the attendance record for keynote lectures at the 2012 and 2013 ITB Berlin conferences.

His next stop – The World Equestrian Center for the FAA’s big 75th Annual Conference!

Following the passing of the historic FAA gavel from now Chair Cindy Stavely (St. Augustine Pirate and Treasure Museum) to our new Chairman Dan Donovan (Universal Orlando Resort), we’ll gather at one of our association’s founding members, Florida’s Silver Springs for an enchanting evening at this Florida legacy attraction.

Silver Springs was one of Florida’s original tourist attractions (if not THE original). After the American Civil War, the springs began to attract tourists from the North via steamboats up the Silver River. Silver Springs gained national attention through journals and guidebooks and became a mandatory stop on the "grand tour" of Florida.

In the late 1870s, the glass-bottom boat and the glass-bottom rowboat were introduced to take visitors on the river to give them a unique view of the springs. In the 1890s, commercial-sized glass-bottom boats were developed and placed in operation.

We’ll gather at this historic place and enjoy a sumptuous buffet dinner and drinks, surrounded by the natural beauty of Florida, serenaded by music and venture into the river on one of the world-famous glass-bottom boats. We’ll honor Florida’s rich attraction history as we brave the new frontier as leaders of Florida’s attraction community.