Checky Herrington is communications manager for Entergy Mississippi,
where he is responsible for development and implementation of the
company’s overall communications and public relations strategy. His
experience includes nearly three decades of multi-market marketing,
advertising, public relations, brand strategy development, and
competitive positioning. He began his writing career as a summer
intern with his hometown newspaper, the Winston County Journal.
After graduating from Mississippi State University with a degree in
communications, he joined The Clarion-Ledger in 1979 as a sports
writer. Herrington served in the administration of Governor William
Winter where he contributed to the grassroots effort that led to the
passage of Mississippi’s 1982 Education Reform Act. On occasion,
Herrington contributes articles for special publications such as
Proud to Call Mississippi Home.

Claire Pittman is the Public Relations Manager for the Tunica
Convention & Visitors Bureau, which oversees all of the advertising,
marketing, and public relations for destination Tunica. Pittman helped start the newest PRAM chapter in the state in 2006, the Northwest Chapter, and she is currently the Past President and Chapter Representative. Pittman holds a B.A. Degree in Journalism with an emphasis in broadcast and public relations from the University of Mississippi. As a former TV news reporter, she has won three Associated Press Awards and one Telly Award. She is currently pursuing her APR.

Rick Taylor is the Executive Director of the Hattiesburg Tourism
Commission, whose role is to grow the local tourism industry and
operate the Hattiesburg Visitors Center, and the Hattiesburg
Convention Commission, which operates the Lake Terrace Convention
Center, Historic Saenger Theater, the East 6th Street USO Club and
the historic Eureka School. Since his arrival in 1993, Rick has instituted a variety of programs to increase the visibility of the Hattiesburg area and grow the local
tourism industry. The development, construction and highly
successful operation of the Lake Terrace Convention Center has made
Hattiesburg a leader in the meetings industry in Mississippi and the
Southeast. Three times, the Lake Terrace Convention Center has been
awarded ConventionSouth Magazine’s Reader’s Choice Award for
Exceptional Convention Facility. In addition to facility management, Rick is responsible for the operation and management of VISITHATTIESBURG, which has been recognized by their peers in the state as Mississippi’s CVB of the
Year in 1999, 2001 and 2004. In 2004, the results of an 18-month
research and branding project received a Gold, Silver and Bronze
Award for outstanding tourism marketing by the Hospitality Sales and
Marketing Association, International. Hattiesburg joined Las Vegas,
Barbados and Malaysia to be recognized as the best marketing programs
of 2004. In 1996, the Hattiesburg CVB was awarded the nation’s top
tourism public relations honor, the Edward L. Bernay’s Award, for
bringing Olympic Teams to Hattiesburg prior to the 1996 Olympic Games
in Atlanta. For his leadership and knowledge of tourism development and his
marketing savvy, Rick was inducted into the Mississippi Tourism Hall
of Fame in 2006. Prior to moving to Hattiesburg, Rick worked five years in tourism development in the British, French and Dutch islands of the
Caribbean. He received his BA from Ambassador University in Los
Angeles and his MS in Economic Development from the University of
Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg. Rick and his wife, Vicki, are
the completely exhausted parents of two very active boys, Skye and
Archer. They often reminisce of relaxing weekends with a good cup of
coffee and a newspaper.