FROM YOUR CHAIRMAN
THEY SAY THAT WHEN LIFE HANDS YOU LEMONS , you should make lemonade . Well , from May 10 – May 14 , 2021 , the ISPA community embraced that old expression with zeal during the first-ever ISPA Stronger Together Summit . From the moment the 2021 ISPA Conference & Expo was canceled , the ISPA Headquarters Team turned to the task of organizing hours of virtual programming featuring top talent from inside and outside the spa and hospitality industries , including an impactful lineup of speakers , influencers and thought provokers .
Our Power Session speakers ( thank you Seth , Seth and Bryan ) delivered equal parts big-picture inspiration and practical , detail-oriented takeaways . Knowledge Builder Sessions the insights of voices new to our industry like Jane Cho , industry icons like Jeremy McCarthy and Mia Kyricos and innovative spa operators like Magdaleena Nikolov and Jamee Taylor , among countless others . Hours of Product Learning Labs highlighted new and exciting developments from ISPA resource partners and event sponsors , from industry vanguard brands like Eminence Organic Skincare and ResortSuite to new players on the scene like Moon Mother Hemp and Cocktail Sneakers to staunch ISPA supporters like Supracor and Noel Asmar Inc .
Still , we wondered how we would be able to create an intimate and meaningful experience for our attendees through a medium — the virtual video chat — that , in all honesty , most of us probably love to gripe about . However , having the content available both live and on demand and getting to see the speakers up close and personal made for a unique experience of feeling like the moderators , hosts and guests were speaking directly to me .
In the end , the takeaway that hit me in the solar plexus was Seth Mattison ’ s call to reimagine the story of our lives , our careers and our industry , to bravely consider the challenges of the past year as a gift , not a curse . The very act of the Stronger Together Summit was just that : a re-imagination of the possible . In some form or another , this act of re-imagination will be the foundation that keeps us and our industry going through the still evolving post-pandemic world . Do you remember one of our Conferences when the theme was Imagine ? Good . Now it ’ s time to imagine something new .
— PATRICK HUEY , CHAIRMAN
ISPA BOARD OF DIRECTORS
ELECTED OFFICERS CHAIRMAN
Patrick Huey Montage International
VICE CHAIRMAN
Michelle Adams Somerville Woodstock Inn & Resort
SECRETARY / TREASURER
Kelleye Martin The Edgewater Spa
DIRECTORS
Natasha Burns Resorts World Las Vegas
Brennan Evans Trilogy Spa Holdings
Lynelle Lynch Bellus Academy
Dawn MacLellan St . Andrews Country Club
Jay Muller Technogym
Frank Pitsikalis Foundation Chairman ResortSuite
Eric Savage Freedom Spa , LLC
Yvonne Smith Seeking new adventure
Jessica Timberlake Éminence Organic Skin Care
ADVISOR TO THE BOARD Garrett Mersberger
IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR Todd Shaw
Lynne McNees President International SPA Association
MEDICAL ADVISOR Brent A . Bauer , MD Mayo Clinic
2 PULSE ■ JULY 2021