MEETING PROFESSIONALS INTERNATIONAL (MPI) announces the 2006 Meeting Professional Award recipients, sponsored by Hilton Hotels, recognizing the contributions of individual planners and suppliers who lead the meetings industry. Winners were announced during the opening session at MPI’s 2006 World Education Congress in Dallas.

Sally Goldesberry, CMP, CMM, was named International Planner of the Year, and Barb Taylor Carpender, CMM, received the International Supplier of the Year award. Betty E. Garrett, CMP, was honored with the Marion N. Kershner Memorial Chapter Leader award. Two winners were selected for the Tomorrow’s Leader award: Natalie Nardone, CMP, and Craig Raughton.

“I offer my most sincere congratulations to the winners and am inspired by these examples of outstanding members who strengthen the meeting industry and will lead us into a more strategic future,” said Mark S. Andrew, CMP, CHA, MPI’s 2006-2007 chairman of the International Board of Directors. “These winners exemplify today’s meeting professional: concerned, involved and passionate leaders who give an amazing amount back to their chapters, to MPI and to their respective communities.”

The MPI International Planner of the Year and International Supplier of the Year awards recognize outstanding association and industry contributions, leadership and professionalism. The Marion N. Kershner Memorial Chapter Leader award, named in memory of MPI’s first president and founder, is presented to a member who motivates others, stimulates volunteerism and acts as a catalyst for exceptional results. The Tomorrow’s Leaders award is presented to an MPI member/members who make a significant contribution to the association at the international and/or chapter level.

Sally Goldesberry, CMP, CMM, senior manager of meetings and exhibitions for the Dallas-based Society of Petroleum Engineers, was honored with the International Planner of the Year award. A 25-year MPI member, she has been on the boards of three different MPI chapters, served on MPI’s Board of Directors twice and is the president of the MPI Dallas/Fort Worth Chapter. Goldesberry has served on dozens of chapter and international committees and also devotes her time to other meetings industry organizations—clearly demonstrating her commitment to MPI and the industry as a whole. She has written for and been featured in a variety of industry publications and has spoken at over 20 events. In addition to her Planner of the Year nod, Goldesberry has been recognized multiple times by her chapter and the meetings industry.

Barb Taylor Carpender, CMM, named International Supplier of the Year, is founder and chief alliance officer of Colorado-based Taylored Alliances. Having first joined MPI in 1978, she has served on dozens of committees and held various board seats for both the MPI Rocky Mountain Chapter and the MPI Board of Directors. Most recently, Carpender has been active in efforts to move the meetings industry in a more strategic direction. She worked for five years with federal and state governments to bring attention to the meetings industry and profession. As an MPI Platinum Speaker, she educates members about strategic meetings management and was one of the first trainees, and then presenters, of the ROI Methodology for Meeting Professionals program. Carpender believes that ROI is just as important for suppliers as planners and uses that focus to educate the industry and elevate the profession.

Betty E. Garrett, CMP, president and CEO of Garrett Speakers International Inc. in Dallas, was the choice for the Marion N. Kershner Memorial Chapter Leader award. During the last decade, she has chaired multiple committees and served on the MPI Dallas/Fort Worth Chapter Board of Directors—often holding several titles each year. As the 2001-2002 chapter president, Garrett helped guide the chapter through Sept. 11 and the industry turmoil that followed—and led the chapter to its fifth MPI Chapter of the Year award. Several of the chapter programs she’s chaired have been nominated for and/or won the chapter’s “Program of the Year” award. She’s also been instrumental in the chapter’s community outreach, leadership development, marketing efforts, membership growth and revenue increases.

Natalie Nardone, CMP, event specialist and owner of the Nardone Consulting Group Inc. and member of the MPI Georgia Chapter, is the first of two recipients of the Tomorrow’s Leader award. Since joining the chapter in 2002, she has served on the Education, Membership and Communications committees. Nardone worked as managing editor of the chapter’s BreakOut publication for two years, and is the chapter’s Director of Publications. She was recently named the Georgia Chapter’s 2005-2006 Planner of the Year. Her willingness to serve her chapter and community, as well as mentor others made her an obvious choice for the award.
Craig Raughton, director of client development for One Smooth Stone in Downers Grove, Ill., and member of the MPI Chicago Area Chapter, is the second recipient of this year’s Tomorrow’s Leader award. Since joining MPI in 2003, Raughton has served on several chapter committees and is the Chicago chapter’s president-elect. He was honored with his chapter’s Rising Star Award in 2005 and is involved in numerous community service projects. Raughton has also been called upon to speak at chapter and international MPI education events.