Changing of the guard at Milawa Gourmet Region
The Milawa Gourmet Region has elected a brand-new committee. Rod Ambrose (Owner/Operator of Milawa Motel) won the Presidency by 3 votes at the recent AGM, which saw record turn out after a bid by the now Vice President Ceridwen Brown to stand a new committee at the election. An overwhelming need for a new direction saw Jill Smith edge out Robyn Chambers, the original secretary and MGRA stalwart of 24 years. Meghan Gehrig was unanimously voted in as Treasurer.
Working together
The new committee has had a chance to catch up and are all very excited about the future of the Milawa Gourmet Region, an association of wonderful and diverse producers and service providers that by working together will drive tourism to the region. By working collaboratively with local council, other local tourism groups and government initiatives they hope to reinstate the Milawa Gourmet Region as a shining light of regional tourism.
That legacy will be a hall mark of the new committee
Rod Ambrose has praised the hard work of the previous committee and particularly the long tenure of Robyn Chambers that has sustained the organization for so many years. Without the great work of those trailblazers who started the association, there wouldn’t be the great base of brand recognition that we now have and paying respect to that legacy will be a hallmark of the new committee. Rod comes to the position of President with a vast background in marketing and sales along with long time exposure to the service industry through his many years in hospitality. “I look forward to leading the new committee and the MGR members through a re-vitalized and successful period ensuring that the MGR remains relevant and true to the spirit of the organization” Rod Ambrose President (Owner Milawa Motel).
The new committee is united in its commitment to engage all members and promote the regions visitation to a wider audience. “We are really looking forward to working with all of our members and we hope that the current momentum and engagement by our association as attested at the AGM, continues, because we have a great wealth of business, marketing, and tourism experience within the group. As the previous chairman in his outgoing speech remarked, ‘our strength is in us working together’” Ceridwen Brown, Vice President (CEO Milawa Cheese).
Meghan Gehrig, Treasurer, knows firsthand how important working collaboratively can be, with her experience as a winemakers wife/ owner of 2 cellar doors in 2 key North East tourism regions Rutherglen and King Valley. Meghan says “with an association working as a strong collaborative and innovative team with all members having a positive outlook they can achieve and create great things and momentum for a region, we are all here to grow our business in the tourism space but to do that we also need the support of local council and Tourism North East”.