Black Travel Advisory Board

Belvin Baldwin II

Owner, Showtime Travel

Belvin Baldwin II is the owner of the award-winning travel agency, Showtime Travel, which designs luxury vacations for busy professionals, so all they have to do is show up and enjoy. He served as the executive council member for the Affluent Traveler Collection and has been featured in different mediums including Travel Noire's Top 10 Luxury Travel Advisors list. Belvin has always had a love for travel, and that's why he tries to inspire others through his YouTube channel, Showtime Travel, and his podcast You Deserve A Luxury Vacation.

Belvin was born and raised in Dayton, OH and now resides in Atlanta, GA. During his high school years, he attended the prestigious Culver Military Academy (CMA) in Culver, IN, where he learned strong leadership skills that have stuck with him today.  After graduating from CMA, he attended the University of Dayton where he received B.S. in Electrical Engineering Technology.

One of his favorite quotes comes from Albert Einstein. “, “Do not try to become a person of success but try to become a person of value.”

Debra Hines Brown

CEO/PRESIDENT & FOUNDER SMARTBIRD WORLD TRAVEL | SB WORLD LUXE TRAVEL

Debra entered the travel industry in 2014 after a successful, executive-level B2B career in commercial risk management and insurance, specializing in alternative risk financing and transfer, complex property & casualty insurance placements, and as an international underwriter and aviation insurance broker. In 1994, she earned the designation of Chartered Property & Casualty Underwriter (CPCU). Debbie is also a former US Army Reserves Commissioned Officer and Desert Storm Era veteran.

Debra owns a boutique retail storefront agency in Atlanta, Georgia and enjoys her role as a luxury travel designer and a mentor to new travel advisors. She specializes in curating bespoke, authentic, culturally immersive travel for individual, groups and corporate/organization meeting and incentives in the luxury space across the globe with an emphasis on Africa, Asia, Europe, Middle East, Oceania and the Polar Regions. 

She has appeared in a number of travel industry articles as a contributor, is a member of Connections Luxury Leaders and formerly held Advisory Board Member positions with Global Travel Market (GTM) and the Antigua & Barbuda Tourism Authority. 

Personally, she is the mother of five adult daughters, a graduate of Hampton University, Hampton Virginia and a strong supporter of HBCUs. She considers herself a global history and geography “nerd” and enjoys genealogy, having traced her family’s history to the 1600s. 

Her favorite quote is “The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten.”

Shawn Cole

Vice President, Global Sales, Delta Air Lines

Shawn Cole is Vice President - Global Sales for Delta Air Lines. In this role, he is responsible for leading a global sales team focused on maximizing premium revenue and share performance with Delta's commercial account base.

Shawn is a solutions-driven Delta executive, well known for his dedication to servant leadership and support for community partners such as the Atlanta Children's Shelter and Atlanta Public Schools. Shawn is a board member of Delta's Flight Museum and Delta's Benefit Funds Investment Committee. In addition, he has been an active member of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's Transportaion & Logistics council since 2018 and a graduate of Leadership Atlanta in 2020.

Since joining Delta in 2008, Shawn has held various positions of increasing responsibility in numerous divisions. Most recently, Shawn served as Vice President of Delta Cargo, overseeing the $900 million top-line revenue global organization with a team of 2,000 colleagues. In addition, Shawn worked in the finance division as the Vice President - Finance and Corporate Planning, where he was responsible for annual planning, rolling financial forecast, capital expenditure reporting and analysis, long-term plan development and maintaining a world-class financial system.

Prior to joining Delta, Shawn had various leadership roles in The Coca-Cola System and an auditor for Arthur Andersen LLP.

Shawn holds a B.S. in accounting from North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University and earned an M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Prem Devadas

President, Salamander Hotels & Resorts

In 2005, Prem Devadas joined noted business leader Sheila Johnson to form Salamander Hotels& Resorts. As its President, Devadas oversees the company’s development and management of iconic luxury properties including the Forbes Five Star Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg,
VA; Hotel Bennett in Charleston, SC; Half Moon in Montego Bay, Jamaica; and two Florida resorts – Henderson Beach Resort in Destin and Innisbrook Resort in Tampa Bay.
 
Prior to joining Salamander, Devadas served for 15 years as Managing Director of an exclusive portfolio of family owned Five Star properties, overseeing the restorations of the historic Jefferson Hotel in Richmond and the Hermitage Hotel in Nashville, and the repositioning of
Kiawah Island Resort, including the development and opening of the Sanctuary at Kiawah Island, a grand beachfront hotel which is hailed as one of the world’s best.
 
A highly respected industry professional, Devadas also serves on the board for the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) and is a member of the Advisory Board Temple University’s Sports & Tourism Management Program.

Valerie Dorsey

Co-Chair, Franchise Owner, Cruise Planners

Valerie Dorsey has been in the travel industry as an advisor since July 2011, but has traveled extensively throughout her life, first family vacations and then on her own as an adult. She has personally visited many countries and has a great enthusiasm for travel that she likes to share with her clients. She has a long and varied career history that started with her as an RN and working in the ICU, and then with drug and alcohol outpatients. During those years she joined the Air Force Reserve as a Flight Nurse and brought sick or injured patients back from overseas for seven years. That was the real beginning of her love for the world and all the places she visited during those weekends. She decided to transition to sales because she was raising her son alone. She started with Xerox and later transitioned to GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals and spent the next 24 years there marrying her love for sales with her love for medicine. There wasn’t an annual vacation that didn’t include travel at that time. While there, she was head of the Pennsylvania region’s Diversity Team, where it was her role to create better relationships for the reps by educating their sales teams and their managers about cultures around the world, especially focusing on inherent prejudices and lack of understanding that could roadblock success. She bought her franchise with Cruise Planners/American Express Travel Services in 2011 and has worked to be sure her clients had wonderful opportunities to create memories and have stress-free travel.

Jazzmine Douse

DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ACCOUNTS, AMAWATERWAYS

Jazzmine Douse is an enthusiastic and tenacious young professional born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. She attended California State University of Fresno, where she built her skillset around sales, communication, incentives and planning. Jazzmine’s travel career was birthed at AmaWaterways in 2013 as she joined the Ama-family as a river cruise Reservation Specialist. It was here that she found her home, holding various roles over the years including Sales Communications Coordinator, Business Development Manager and National Account Manager. In early 2022 she was appointed to her current role of Director, National Accounts further complementing her pursuit of a longevous travel career. Jazzmine is proud to be a founding member of Northstar Travel Group’s Black Travel Advisory Board, focusing on creating a more diverse and inclusive industry for all. Her ambition, positive energy and faith in God has opened many doors throughout her career and speaks volumes to her favorite scripture “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me” Philippians 4:13.

Shirnett Fleet

Chief Marketing Officer, Uniworld Boutique River Cruises

As the Chief Marketing Officer for Uniworld Boutique River Cruises, the most luxurious river cruise line in the world, Shirnett Fleet leads a global marketing, public relations and website team. A veteran marketer with over two decades’ experience in brand development, customer acquisition and demand generation, Fleet was tapped to join Uniworld in 2016. Since then, she has worked alongside Uniworld president and CEO Ellen Bettridge to successfully launch seven new and transformed ships, a collection of innovative new guest experiences including Cruise & Rail and Mystery Cruises, and numerous marketing campaigns. During her time with Uniworld, Fleet has completely reimagined the brand’s marketing strategy and creative approach and in the process, has achieved unprecedented occupancies for the brand.  

A fierce marketer who believes that not taking any risks is the biggest risk, Fleet’s experience spans hospitality and consumer goods, from technology to luxury travel.  Prior to joining Uniworld, Fleet was head of channel marketing for Samsung’s line of SmartThings, IOT technology as well as director of marketing for FiLIP Technologies, leading consumer marketing for their wearable phone for kids. However, Fleet’s heart has always been with travel, which is why she chose to move from technology back to hospitality.

She began her career in the travel and hospitality space managing advertising and creative services for Universal Studios Hollywood; followed by a role managing advertising and partnership marketing for Crystal Cruises, before becoming senior director, marketing for the Virgin Group’s private jet booking engine – Virgin Charter. 

In addition to her current role, Fleet also sits on the DEI taskforce for Uniworld’s parent company, The Travel Corporation (TTC) where she leads the DEI marketing strategy for all TTC’s travel brands.

A proud San Diego State University grad and native Californian, Fleet continues to make Southern California her home where she and her husband have two children, a pug named Henry and an English bulldog named Roxy. 

Stephanie M. Jones

Founder & CEO of the Cultural Heritage Economic Alliance, Inc. (CHEA)

Stephanie M. Jones, Founder & CEO of the Cultural Heritage Economic Alliance, Inc. (CHEA), is a leading cultural heritage tourism thought leader introducing award-winning innovative and sustainable tourism initiatives designed to leverage cultural heritage tourism as an economic driver for fueling local tourism businesses and cultural institutions in underserved communities. She is also the President/CEO of the Cultural Heritage Alliance for Tourism, Inc., a tourism and business development company based in Miami, FL.
 
Jones is the founder of some of the most innovative tourism initiatives designed to create diversity, equity, and inclusion in the travel & tourism industry such as Culture on Shore (www.cultureonshore.com), the world’s first global marketplace for cultural heritage tours + activities. She is also the founder of the National Blacks in Travel & Tourism Collaborative (www.blacksintourism.org), an initiative leveling the playing field for small black and brown travel & tourism businesses, assisting them in accessing equitable opportunities in the industry through the Black Tourism Talent Directory (www.blacktourismtalent.com) and Diversity Tourism Academy (www.diversitytourismacademy.com) both launching in 2021.
 
Jones is the founder for the National Cultural Heritage Tourism Summit. She is a tourism development consultant working with destinations to develop programs that leverage cultural heritage tourism as well as engages and positions local community assets to attract cultural travelers to businesses and attractions in underserved communities within destinations.
 
Jones serves on the United States Travel and Tourism Advisory Board, Destinations International's Global Leadership and Governance and Nomination Committees, and the Future of Tourism Coalition Advisory Board. She is a Reverse Exchange Fellow for the U.S. Department of State's Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative and presented a Cultural Heritage Tourism Summit in Montego Bay, Jamaica in July 2019 supported by the U.S. Embassy. She was tapped by the Belize Tourism Board to serve as keynote speaker for the 2019 Annual Tourism Conference. Currently, she is pursuing a Master’s in Business Administration degree from Florida International University graduating Spring 2021.
 
She is a keynote speaker on diversity & inclusion in the tourism industry, leveraging opportunities in cultural heritage tourism and local stakeholder engagement through community tourism and the Black travel movement.

Margie Jordan

Vice President, CCRA International Inc.

Margie Jordan is Vice President of CCRA International's TRUE Global Network, an organization of 3,000 travel agency members with local chapters and the TRUE Agency Accreditation Program. She oversees the Network's strategic partnerships, business development, marketing, and special events. Jordan has also been a featured speaker at travel industry conferences and events. In her local market, you can find her live on-air sharing travel trends and bringing clarity to consumers on issues that may affect their travels. She is an Advisory Board member with Travel Unity, a nonprofit focused on increasing diversity in the world of travel through individual and community empowerment.

Kier V.B. Matthews

Chief Experience Curator & Owner, Warner Brother’s Travel

With 12+ years as a top producer in sales team leadership and individual account management roles, Kier Matthews is an accomplished sales expert who specializes in driving revenue growth, brand awareness, and market share within the highly competitive luxury travel sector. 

Most recently, Kier joined Hilton Hotels & Resorts as Global Managing Director of Leisure Sales. Leading a team of eight generating over $500m in sales.  Prior to that, as Director of Sales at Classic Vacations, Matthews led an 11-member team in generating $200M+ in annual sales throughout 27 U.S. states—as well as Canada—personally managing the company’s highest-profile accounts at AMEX, Virtuoso, and Signature.  Prior to this role, he led a mix of B2B/B2C travel sales and marketing functions as Vice President of Sales at Europe Express, in addition to holding tenure as Manager of Member Sales & Service at Virtuoso, the industry’s top luxury travel network.  While at Virtuoso, Matthews championed the launch of numerous innovative new products, services, and marketing initiatives to expand the company’s reach and revenue potential—including piloting a new social media training solution that taught travel agents and suppliers on how to leverage social media effectively to grow their business.

In terms of early-career assignments, Matthews gained an extensive foundation of strengths in sales, customer service, and guest experience during 11 years spent with various Starwood Hotels properties.  During this time, he received multiple rapid promotions, holding progressive sales and service roles with various Starwood entities including Sheraton Raleigh, Palace Hotel, and Westin Seattle.  He further expanded his hospitality industry knowledge via time spent as Guest Relations Manager with the boutique Seattle-based cruise line, Cruise West.

Outside of his professional accomplishments, Matthews is a passionate advocate for diversity, social change, and community improvement, serving on the presidential campaign of former Governor Bill Clinton and subsequently being invited to hold a full-time position in the Scheduling Office at the White House—working directly for the President, Vice-President, and First/Second Ladies. Prior to that, he also served as a personal assistant to Florida Governor Lawton Chiles.

Today, when not attending to his professional career passions, Matthews spends much of his free time participating in civic service activities.  In 2008, he was honored as one of 30 “Outstanding African-American Fathers” of Puget Sound and has also invested tremendous time promoting racial equity as a member of the Inclusion & Diversity Advisory Council at Expedia,  Black Travel Research Steering Committee at MMGY Global, and Black Travel Advisory Board for Travel Weekly.  Additionally, he serves as a committee member of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund Community Awards Reception and was a member of the Governing Board at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound from 2004 to 2010—chairing the organization’s most successful auction to date, the 42nd Annual Dinner and Auction Gala.  More recently, he was also recruited to join the American Cancer Society Advisory Board and Chair their flagship Gala fundraising event.

As for personal interests and passions, when not working and volunteering, Matthews is very fond of cooking (usually accompanied by a nice Santa Barbara County pinot noir) and spends as much time as possible supporting, learning, and laughing with his two daughters,  Isabella (a 16-year-old high school student) and Giovanni (a 27-year-old architect in NYC).

David Van Ness

Vice President, All-Travel

Interestingly, David’s business career began in the fashion industry in New York at luxury retailer Bonwit Teller as an assistant buyer in their couture department. After several years in fashion, he decided to change industries because of his love for travel. Having started as a frontline advisor at an agency in Los Angeles bringing in corporate sales accounts, David made the decision to join a relatively new and fast growing corporate and entertainment agency, All-Travel. Celebrating his 30^th year with All-Travel, he is Vice President and manages all of their digital marketing in addition to working side by side with the President, Eric Maryanov. He developed their first website about 20 years ago and has been instrumental in developing their growth as a luxury travel powerhouse. Over the years, David has sat on various boards and has served on the Marketing, Technology and Hotel Committees of Signature Travel Network. Currently, he is a member of Travel + Leisure’s Travel Advisory Board, TravelAge West’s Travel Advisory Board, and Signature Travel Network’s Luxury Committee.

Laurence Pinckney

CEO, Zenbiz Travel, LLC; East Coast Regional Coordinator for KHM Travel Group

Laurence Pinckney has worked in entertainment, special events, and travel for over 15 years. His companies are credited with producing several international events including: Dominican Island Heat in Santo Domingo, Bahian Heat in Brazil, Nubian Dreams Cruises and the Ultimate Halloween Caribbean Cruises throughout the Caribbean. In addition they have produced and arranged special events and travel for many distinguished clients. Laurence is CEO of Zenbiz Travel & Events. He is a team-oriented seasoned executive known for his ability to motivate people, multi-task, negotiate, sell real estate and travel, coordinate events, and organize fundraising efforts. He has a passion for customer care and working with clients in satisfying both their real estate and travel needs to provide smooth, efficient service that meets their needs and desires. In addition to the Zenbiz Travel events they also arrange travel arrangements for groups of four or more to locations all around the globe.

Denella Ri’chard

Executive TV Producer, Traveling With Denella

Denella Ri’chard was selected as one of The Network Journal’s "25 Influential Women in Business" and Legacy Miami's "50 Most Powerful & Influential Business Leaders" of 2018. In 2019, Black Meetings & Tourism Magazine honored her with the APEX Distinguished Service Award.  Luxury Travel Advisor magazine honored Ri’chard as one of their “2019 Road Warriors”, industry trendsetters.  She is an accomplished global sales and marketing business leader with multi-billion dollar publicly traded travel companies: Hilton Worldwide, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings and Carnival Corporation. She is a seasoned hospitality and tourism professional with more than twenty years of work experience in the United States and Europe leading diverse, multi-national teams. Ri'chard is also the host of the new television series "Traveling with Denella Ri'chard" debuting this summer.  

Stephen Scott

Co-Chair, CEO and Founder, Travel Hub 365

As a cruise and airline industry veteran, Scott is a regular contributor on CGTN America and a member of Protravel International as a Corporate and Luxury Travel Advisor under his boutique brand Travel Hub 365, of which he is the CEO and Founder. His team supports travel for an NHL team, a DC law firm, multiple recording artists, corporations, and luxury leisure travelers across multiple continents. Currently they are developing a new consumer website and mobile application that will both compete with major OTA giants and infuse expert travel advisor support into the planning experience. A native of Chicago, Stephen grew up in the travel industry as his parents owned and operated a travel agency for seven years. After studying sales and marketing at DeVry University, Scott began his career in Corporate Sales at United Airlines in 2004. His accomplishments working with United’s high profile corporate and TMC accounts led him to the cruise industry in 2009 with an opportunity in Miami and New York City for Royal Caribbean International that spanned five years, wherein 2015, he earned the Chairman’s Award for top sales performance.

Tyronne Stoudemire

Global Vice President of Diversity Equity & Inclusion for Hyatt Hotels Corporation

Tyronne is the Global Vice President of Diversity Equity & Inclusion for Hyatt Hotels Corporation, a global hospitality company with widely recognized, industry leading brands and a tradition of innovation developed over its more than 60-year history.

At Hyatt Corporation, Stoudemire collaborates with the senior leadership team to implement culture, talent, and marketplace strategies that leverage diversity and inclusion, globally growing the enterprise across brand portfolios. As such, his team and internal corporate stakeholders implement diversity initiatives that include Resource Groups, mentoring programs for high potential women and people of color, a communications and public relations strategy to drive internal engagement and external brand recognition, and enhanced brand marketing efforts to further focus on multicultural and LGBT audiences. He is the Co-Chair, of Hyatt’s GlobalDiversity Equity and Inclusion Counsel (GDEIC).
 
Tyronne identifies and leverages the opportunities and challenges presented by the expanding multicultural mosaic of worldviews and attitudes regarding Diversity Equity & Inclusion and performance given the increasing diversity in the workplace and global marketplace. A globally recognized executive and highly sought-after speaker, Tyronne has consulted with numerous Fortune 100 clients on diversity strategy, with insight around how organizational leaders can understand and harness the shifts evident in national and global demographic trends. Tyronne employs a unique talent that results in extraordinary benefits for individuals and organizations and has a proven ability to advance socially responsible corporate initiatives by fostering strategic relationships to catalyze international grassroots movements.

Tyronne, has received several accommodations and awards. He was named one of the Top Executives in Diversity by Black Enterprise Magazine; and honored as one of the 50 Diversity Champions by Diversity Woman Magazine. He is also the recipient of the Top Executive’s in Diversity Black Enterprise Magazine, Who’s Who in Black Chicago: The Inaugural Edition, Thurgood Marshall College Fund of Excellence Award, Most Influence African American People Voice, Push for Excellence Award (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration and Scholarship Breakfast), National African American History Month by President of the United States of America, President Obama. 

Tyronne is a member of the Executive Leadership Council, an adjunct professor at Kellogg School of Management, serves on the Metropolitan Planning Council Broad (MPC), PUSH Excel Broad, Senior Advisor for the Music Institute, Senior Advisor to the People’s Music School, Treasurer for the Arthur M. Brazier Foundation, and Chairman of the Board for The Black Ensemble Theater. Gov. Pat Quinn appointed Tyronne to the board of Illinois mapping commission; Gov. JB Picketer appointed Tyronne to Chicago State University Working Group to Create an Equity Agenda for Black College Students in Illinois.

Most recently, he was appointed by President Robert Isom (AA) to serve on American Airlines’ founding Diversity and Equity Community Council focusing on Black travelers. 

Cory Wallace

National Account Manager, Celebrity Cruises

Cory Wallace was born and raised in New Orleans, La. In 2000, he obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing from Loyola University. Cory has been in the travel industry since 2001 when he began his career with Royal Caribbean. In 2007, he joined the Celebrity Cruises sales team where he was in incentive and charter sales for two years, followed by inside sales for three years. He was twice named Inside Sales Rep of the Year. His next role was DSM in Texas for five years where he was twice named Central Region DSM of the year. Since 2015, Cory has been a National Account Manager (NAM) and is a two time NAM of the year and three time President’s Challenge winner. He is fully committed to doing whatever it takes to help increase the Celebrity brand awareness and market share with his partners. He is passionate about the brand and the industry as a whole and a huge advocate of giving back to the community. His hobbies include reading, singing, basketball and mentorship.

Sanya Weston

CEO, Your Premier Travel Service Group

Sanya L. Weston, an award-winning travel expert, has more than 30 years of experience in the tourism industry, including State-wide curriculum development and training new travel agencies, in addition to planning and organizing travel for clients. A third-generation business owner who was recently recognized as one of the Top Businesswomen in Michigan and an Extraordinary Woman in Business in Detroit by Forbes magazine, Weston is the CEO of Your Premier Travel Service Group, the oldest African-American-owned travel agency in Michigan. Sanya has been an entrepreneur and community leader in her beloved Detroit for most of her life. A recognized international authority in her industry, Weston has appeared as a travel expert on local news stations and in leading publications like the Michigan Chronicle, Crain Detroit, American Black Journal, BLAC Magazine, Detroit Free Press, ABC's Detroit WXYZ News, FOX 2 News, WDIV Live in the D and 910AM. 


As a Goldman Sachs 10K Small Business alumna, Weston is dedicated to educating other entrepreneurs on international business development and continues to participate as a Capitol Hill Day leader. Her mission to mentor young professionals has led her to have a seat at the table with Governor Whitmer, Senator Debbie Stabenow, Repersntivie Haley Stevens, and many others to be a voice of entrepreneurs. Recently, Sanya has expanded her passion for educating others on international experiences and founded the nonprofit, Young People Travel Global Edge, an international mentoring program that partners with local organizations like Detroit PAL, and Detroit Lacrosse with a strategic partnership with Global Ties Detroit. She is focusing on creating the next generation of global citizens by exposing African-American youth to international travel, leadership development, entrepreneurship, education, careers, cultural immersion, and sports. This initiative has led her to be recognized as a Distinguish Woman by Northwood University and as one of the 2022 winners of the Magellan Awards by Travel Weekly magazine. 


Weston comes from a family legacy of professionals and leaders in the travel industry. Her mother, Shirley Hogue, founded Caribbean Travel in the mid-1970s. Later in 1990, the travel agency changed its name to Your Premier Travel Service Group. In 2004, Sanya Weston acquired and expanded the family business, now with two locations in Detroit and Novi, Michigan, and travel advisors across the US.  Weston is a native Detroiter and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in business communication and a minor in Mathematics from Siena Heights University. In addition to the tourism industry, her work experience includes the aerospace industry and strategic digital marketing. Sanya volunteered as a Girl Scout Leader with the Girl Scouts of U.S.A for 12 years and currently serves as a board member of the City of Novi's Educational Fund. She has been acknowledged as a Female Leader in Travel and currently holds positions on the Delta Vacation Advisory Board, Travel Market Report Advisory Board, Association of Black Travel Professionals Advisory, Antigua Tourism Board Advisor board, and the Travel ALLIES advisory board.