Press Releases

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News for Immediate Release

Contact:   Carol Lally, 845-229-6973 
                  

IFEC Elects Officers, Names San Diego as its 2009 Conference Site

            Hyde Park, NY -- Tia Woodward, vice president/account supervisor for Ketchum, San Francisco, has been elected president of the International Foodservice Editorial Council (IFEC).  Donna Hood Crecca, editorial director of Nightclub & Bar magazine, has been elected vice president.  The new secretary is Tom O’Brien, president of O’Brien Culinary Communications, Chicago. Foodservice consultant Patty Johnson was re-elected treasurer. Allison Perlik, senior food editor for Restaurants & Institutions magazine, becomes immediate past president.

            Newly-elected members of the board of directors are:  Liz Barrett, editor-in-chief, PMQ’s Pizza Magazine; Rachel Hermansader, account supervisor for Ketchum Food B2B, San Francisco; Jason Stemm, account supervisor, Lewis & Neale, Inc., New York City; and Abbie Westra, executive editor, Fare Magazine.  Elections took place at the association’s annual conference, held in Cleveland, Ohio, in November 2008.

Board members serve 3-year terms.  The other directors are Melinda Morgan Kartsonis, president of Morgan Marketing & Public Relations LLC, Irvine, CA; Kay Orde, editor in chief, The National Culinary Review; Kathy Hayden, managing editor of Flavor & The Menu magazine; and freelance writer/editor Karen Weisberg.

IFEC's 2009 annual conference will be in San Diego, CA at The Westin San Diego Hotel, October 12-15.  The program will feature top local chefs, tours of food-related sites, educational sessions exploring issues and best practices in communications and foodservice, and venues for showcasing new food and beverage products.  The conference is open to IFEC members and guests.

Founded in 1956, IFEC is a membership association of communication professionals working in the foodservice industry.  Its 250-plus members are foodservice trade magazine editors and public relations practitioners who represent suppliers, restaurateurs, food management companies and other foodservice industry organizations.  IFEC's mission is to advance the industry through encouraging excellence in business-to-business communication.  It offers both a student scholarship program and financial assistance to qualifying members to pursue professional development activities.

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