EDITOR’S LETTER

Teresa Kenney, editor

TERESA.KENNEY@TIGEROAK.COM

Welcome 2021, We’ve Been Waiting for You

IS IT OVER YET? 2020, I MEAN. This doozy of a year has hit the meetings and events industry particularly hard. But as expected, the industry rose to the challenge.

In this issue, we asked industry experts how they were able to pivot during the pandemic. Check out our feature, “Work in the Time of Corona,” on page 19. New programming, innovative safety precautions, and a healthy dose of perseverance have been keeping these companies—and many more—moving forward in these uncertain times.

In our destination article (page 14), I also take you on a little editorial FAM tour of my hometown, The Woodlands. I moved here 13 years ago from out of state and am so proud to call this community and state home.

Also be sure to read our profile on Rodolfo Bianchi (page 34). This past spring, he opened the doors to his new restaurant, The Empanada CookHouse, just as the world was shutting down. Despite this, he remained persistent and continued catering when on-site seating wasn’t an option. Today, his restaurant is a Dallas favorite.

In these times of social distancing, space is a valuable commodity. So, head to a Texas ranch— where wide open spaces prevail—for some corporate team building. In this issue’s venue report (page 16), we look at the team-building opportunities at two Texas favorites that cater to corporate and private groups.

And finally, our Snapshots section captures the fun had and precautions taken at MPI’s 2020 World Education Congress held in Grapevine at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center. Under the theme “Reunite for Recovery,” the event set the bar for future large-scale events, when the world is ready to meet again in person.

Putting together this issue made one thing clear to me: The Texas meetings and events industry will come back from the pandemic stronger than ever. Referring to the Lone Star State, hotelier Conrad Hilton, once said, “There’s a vastness here and I believe that the people who are born here breathe that vastness into their soul. They dream big dreams and think big thoughts, because there is nothing to hem them in.” Let’s continue to dream big dreams and think big thoughts. Because that’s what Texans do.

Cheers,

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