OPAL KEY RESORT’S DIANE SCHMIDT EARNS HOSPITALITY HALL OF FAME HONORS 

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From left, Lifetime Achievement Award winner Don Fox; Provider of the Yr Topher Jensen of Gasoline South; Restaurateur of the Yr Horace Dawson; Hotelier of the Yr Diane Schmidt of Key West. CONTRIBUTED

On Jan. 11, the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Affiliation (FRLA) honored its 2024 Hospitality Stars of the Business Corridor of Fame winners throughout a night gala on the Sunseeker Resort in Charlotte Harbor. The 2025 FRLA government committee and new chairman of the board, Nick Sarra of Destin, had been additionally sworn in on the occasion.

The statewide group named longtime Key West resort government Diane Schmidt as hotelier of the yr, and inducted her into its corridor of fame.

“Recognizing the distinctive achievements of our Hospitality Stars of the Business is a real honor,” mentioned Carol Dover, president and CEO of the affiliation. “The FRLA Corridor of Fame celebrates distinguished leaders whose legacies have left a permanent mark on Florida’s vibrant hospitality panorama, and we’re pleased with the 2024 inductees. With greater than 140 mixed years of service, their unwavering dedication to excellence and innovation has not solely elevated our business however has set the usual that can proceed to form our business for generations.”

Schmidt has over 50 years of expertise within the hospitality business, with almost 35 years in Key West. She started her profession on the Miami Worldwide Airport Marriott and rapidly rose to director of catering on the Omni Worldwide Resort. In 1982, Schmidt moved to Key West and labored on the Casa Marina Resort, in the end serving as normal supervisor of The Attain. 

After a profitable tenure with Interstate Motels Company, Diane turned senior vp of gross sales and income administration for Boykin Administration Firm, overseeing 16 properties throughout a number of states. In 2006, she returned to Key West as normal supervisor of the Opal Key West Resort & Marina, a task she held for 17 years earlier than semi-retiring alongside together with her husband Mark. 

Lively in her group, Schmidt serves on a number of boards, together with the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Affiliation and the Key West Chamber of Commerce. She has obtained quite a few awards for her contributions to hospitality and group service.

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