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Our Team
President
Nick Patel is a graduate from the University of Tennessee with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. Responsible for the companies growth and profitability with a strong commitment to Turkey Creek Hospitality’s vision and mission statement. He is responsible for the company’s long-term growth strategy and positioning in the hotel industry. Nick is also responsible for coordination of all accounting, budgeting, financial and administrative functions for the company. He is also responsible for negotiating management contracts, refinancing, acquisition and sales of the hotels. He serves the company in every aspect of hotel operations.
Director of Operations
Chris Drew joined Turkey Creek Hospitality in June 2012, bringing a diverse background in hospitality. She is an accomplished manager with extensive experience in front of house and back of house operations. Chris specializes in revenue management with a proven ability to cut costs and decrease staff turnover. Her innovative spirit & great work ethic has granted her numerous leadership positions in the business community.
Chris’ unwavering dedication & loyalty to her employees and guests awarded her Hampton hotel the prestigious Hilton Circle of Excellence award.
Director of Sales
Carol Warford has been in the hospitality industry since 1994.
With a BS in Psychology, an AA in Business & Interdisciplinary Studies, and Certifications in Accounting, Revenue Management and
Front & Back of the House Operations,
Carol is an aggressively enterprising Sales Director.
She began her career as a Guest Service Agent, moving up to managing Operations, and discovered a love of Sales in 2009.
When we met Carol in 2017, we knew she would be a great fit for TCH.
Carol is able to build relationships with clients, with our teams, and the community simply by being her genuine self. She spends a significant amount of time in her office overseeing high profile bookings, researching potential clients, processing paperwork and making calls. You will also see her moving around the hotel meeting and greeting guests and assisting the front desk team.
Carol is well known and respected by everyone in the hospitality industry and received the 2018 Sevier County Hospitality Alliance Lodging Employee of the Year award.
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General Manager @ Holiday Inn Express & Suites Pigeon Forge-Sevierville
Erek Burkhart has been a part of the TCH family since 2010. He started as a Guest Service Agent at the Hampton Inn & Suites Sevierville and became FOM in 2013. Erek immersed himself in the study of all things Hospitality and Hotel Management. Along with his on the job training, he studied Business & Hospitality for 2 years at the University of Tennessee. It has been our pleasure to mentor him and watch him grow professionally. With his support, the Hampton Inn & Suites was awarded Hilton’s Circle of Excellence award.
As AGM, Erek directed and watched over the 2015 renovation of the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Sevierville and was promoted to the GM position in 2016. Continuing on his path of success, in 2016 he earned the IHG Renovation of the Year award, in 2017 he earned the IHG Quality Excellence award and in 2018 he received the Sevierville Hospitality Alliance GM of the Year award.
He has exceeded all our expectations; he is a kind, fair leader who excels in hotel operations and cares for our guests as if they were his own family.
General Manager @ Comfort Suites East Knoxville
Cassidy Drew has been a part of Turkey Creek Hospitality since 2012. She started right out of high school as a breakfast attendant at the Comfort Suites East and quickly moved into a Guest Service Agent position. Cassidy worked full time while attending Walter State Community College. She studied Business & Hospitality Management for 2 years. She dedicated herself at the Comfort Suites for 3 years before accepting a Front Office Manager position at our Hampton Inn & Suites Sevierville.
As FOM, she gained experience in both front of the house and back of the house operations.
In 2020 we were pleased to offer and have her accept the GM position at the Comfort Suites East Knoxville.
She worked hard and learned alot at the Hampton Inn & Suites Sevierville and it was like coming home to be back at the
Comfort Suites East.
Cassidy leads by example and has developed a great team. She has a loyal guest following and a great sales mentality.
General Manager @ Hampton Inn & Suites Sevierville @ Stadium Drive, Kodak, TN
Katie Ard joined Turkey Creek Hospitality in 2012, bringing years of experience in the hospitality industry. She has served in all areas of hotel operations. Katie’s tenacity & participative leadership style quickly advanced her within the company. Her “hands on” approach has won the respect of her peers, employees & guests alike. Katie has a true heart for hospitality. She serves our guests with love and kindness. She welcomes our guests into the hotel as if she were welcoming them into her home. Katie realizes with a great team behind you, you can achieve so much. She brings out the best in her employees and cares for each and every one of them. We are so proud of Katie for receiving the 2019 Sevier County Hospitality Alliance Lodging Manager of the Year award.
General Manager @ Hampton Inn Sevierville
Marise Greear, is a graduate of the University of Mississippi and began her career in hotel management in 2007. She quickly realized she was tailor-made for hospitality. It was the perfect fit.
Marise joined the TCH team in 2016 as General Manager of the Hampton Inn Sevierville and
specializes in implementing purchasing and inventory control systems that lower operating costs.
Marise believes that our team members really are the heart and soul of our business and the key is finding the right role for our each employee.
We are proud to announce that Marise received the 2022 Sevier County Hospitality Alliance Lodging Manager of the Year award.
General Manager @ Holiday Inn Express & Suites Knoxville West-Papermill Drive
LaTonya Rudolph joined the Turkey Creek Hospitality team in 2012 as the opening General Manager of the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Knoxville West @ Papermill. She is a graduate from the University of Kentucky, holding a BBA in Marketing. She came to TCH with 16+ years of Sales & Managerial experience with a proven track record of success. Her primary responsibilities include developing rate strategies & driving key performance indicators (Occupancy, ADR & Rev PAR). LaTonya has been instrumental in the development of many of the sales & revenue management tools that TCH uses today.
Under her leadership, the Holiday Inn Express Knoxville West has earned Newcomer of the Year, IHG Design, and the Torchbearer awards. In 2018, LaTonya was named
Knoxville Tourism Alliance General Manager of the Year.
Her servant leadership style & passion for sales will help to sustain our position as a market leader.
General Manager @ Holiday Inn Express & Suites Pigeon Forge-Near Dollywood
Jennifer Wagner has worked in the hospitality industry since she moved to the Smoky Mountains in 2010.
Jennifer started working for TCH as a Guest Service Agent in 2017 & her goal from the beginning was to become a GM. With hard work and dedication, she advanced within the company and in May 2021 we were happy to offer her a GM position. She enjoys working in the hotel industry, meeting new people and the challenge of a new experience. Jennifer is detailed oriented & tends to be a perfectionist which is a considerable benefit for our guests. It is Jennifer's mission to exceed our guest's expectations & she does that by being very hands on with housekeeping, maintenance and guest service.
Chief Engineer
Jamie Meza, began working for TCH in October 2016. He keeps our hotels looking their best with naturally high standards and approach's every task with dedication and pride. Jamie manages the maintenance operations of the exterior and interior facilities to guarantee high level of guest service and guest satisfaction as related to maintenance.
Jamie is an integral part in the success of our organization.
Chief Engineer
Dana Damron began working with TCH when we purchased the
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Pigeon Forge in the Fall of 2017.
He had been at the hotel for over 7 years.
He is responsible for implementing and directing all Emergency Programs for the hotel. He oversees all building maintenance, engineering and upkeep of the hotel.
Dana ensures departmental policies and procedures are adhered to as established by our company, and/or brand standards as well as compliance with local, state, and federal laws and regulations. During renovation, Dana monitored the performance of the contractors to ensure their level of performance was maintained at a level that was expected within our company guidelines to achieve our goals of safety and quality assurance .
Accounting
Michelle Woods has been with TCH almost since it’s inception approximately 20 years ago. She is not just the person who records the accounts & transactions of our business. She is someone we trust to be privy to everything. Michelle is extremely aware of the business operations, goals and issues within our company and has the ability to enhance relationships with Managers, Customers, Suppliers and Staff. She stays up to date on what is happening in the bookkeeping, accounting and technology sector to ensure our processes are as simple and efficient as possible. Michelle has an excellent eye for detail to ensure our accounts are up to date and error free. She has the trust and confidence of everyone in our company.