USA: IAAPA Announces This Year’s “Hall of Fame” Inductees and “Service Award” Winners

Shortly before the start of this year’s IAAPA Expo in Orlando (FL), which will take place at the Orange County Convention Center from 15 to 18 November, the International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions (IAAPA) has announced its new “Hall of Fame” inductees as well as the winners of the association’s annual “Service Awards”.

Four industry professionals will be inducted this year into the Hall of Fame, which was established in 1990 in order to honor individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the development of the international leisure industry. Joan Ganz Cooney is considered a pioneer in the field of edutainment, and her career includes projects for family leisure destinations such as Sesame Place, KidZania and LEGOLAND. With her educational concepts, Cooney has influenced numerous interactive exhibits in museums and zoos, among others, and the “Children’s Television Workshop” (today: “Sesame Workshop”) is also based on her idea and passion. Xavier López Ancona created KidZania, an indoor leisure center concept for kids that focuses on learning through role-play and is successful in already over 15 countries worldwide. In KidZania, children are animated to explore the world of adults and take on the role e.g. of a builder or policeman in a recreated city – it is a popular edutainment offer especially in shopping centers. Darrell Metzger is an experienced leader in the leisure and tourism industry with a more than four decades-spanning professional career, including management positions in the development, operation and revival of resorts and attractions. His stations include Disneyland Resort in California, Tokyo Disney Resort in Japan and Ocean Park Resort in Hong Kong. Currently, Metzger is an Advisory Board Member for ANIMA Holdings Panama, being involved in the expansion of an existing hotel resort in Playa Hermosa (Costa Rica). Over six decades ago, at the young age of just 13, Dennis Speigel began his career in the international amusement industry as a ticket taker at Coney Island Amusement Park in Cincinnati. Since then, Speigel has travelled the world, sharing the extensive expertise he has built up through a wide variety of professional positions with investors, developers, students, suppliers and buyers. He is the founder and owner of the consulting agency International Theme Park Services and will also be inducted as a new member into the Hall of Fame this year.

Phil Wilson (o.l.), Franceen Gonzales (o.r.) und Ryan Stana (u.r.) werden mit einem IAAPA Service Award geehrt. Der Young Professional Award geht an Josh Liebman (u.l.) In the category of the “IAAPA Service Awards”, three awards will be officially presented during the IAAPA Expo this year: the “Lifetime Service Award” will be conferred to Franceen Gonzales, Chief Experience Officer at WhiteWater West, who has been an active IAAPA member for almost 40 years. From 2011 to 2013 and again from 2019 to 2022, Gonzales served as an IAAPA Board Member. Furthermore, she has also chaired the Global Manufacturers & Suppliers Committee for the past three years. She is considered an expert for regulatory and safety standards for amusement attractions and in 2020 became the first woman to be appointed at the Chairperson of ASTM’s F24 Committee (Amusement Rides & Devices). The “Meritorious Service Award” goes to Phil Wilson, Chief Development Officer at Extreme Engineering, who has served on numerous IAAPA committees, including the Space Allocation Committee, assisting over 1,100 exhibitors with their strategical booth space selection for IAAPA Expo in Orlando. This year’s “Outstanding Service Award” will be presented to Ryan Stana, CEO of RWS Entertainment Group. Stana joined IAAPA’s Entertainment Committee in 2007 in which he was involved for more than ten years, also launching the “IAAPA Brass Ring Spirit Award” in 2006, which is given to leisure professionals for outstanding work “behind the scenes” – RWS continues to fund this award, which is also presented annually.

The winner of this year’s “Young Professional of the Year” award has also already been announced by IAAPA: Josh Liebman, who has been working for the software company Roller since February 2021, will be honored for his commitment to the international industry association: 15 years ago, he started as a Show Ambassador and has since also led numerous Education Sessions worldwide. All awards will be officially presented to the recipients during the IAAPA Expo in Orlando. (eap)