FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MEET MINNEAPOLIS MELVIN TENNANT NAMED CHAIR,
RELIGIOUS CONFERENCE MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS

(MINNEAPOLIS)FEB. 21, 2014The Religious Conference Management Association (RCMA) Board of Directors has elected Melvin Tennant, CAE, president and CEO of Meet Minneapolis, Convention & Visitors Association, as their new board chair as of Feb. 3. Tennant replaces Dr. Melvin L. Worthington, CMP, who served as RMCAs board chair since 2011. Tennants elected chairmanship marks the first time a supplier (in this case, a destination marketing organization) has served in this role during RCMAs 42-year history, a role that is typically filled by a meeting or event planner.

Tennant most recently served on the RCMA board as vice chair, and previously received the RCMAs President Award. In January 2013, due to Tennants leadership in the organization, RCMA held its annual EMERGE conference in Minneapolis, bringing more than 700 attendees, many meeting planners, to the destination. Since then, Meet Minneapolis has booked 26 religious association meetings for future years in Minneapolis, , including the 2015 Church of God in Christ meeting with 8,000 attendees and the United Methodist Churchs 2020 meeting with 7,000 attendees. Religious associations make up the sixth largest market segment to hold meetings in Minneapolis.

The Meet Minneapolis Destination Sales team is looking at the sales process from all angles and focusing more on vertical markets, like the religious market," said Rob Moor, chair of the board of directors of Meet Minneapolis. Melvins position in this significant industry organization will continue to be beneficial as we pursue this segment and encourage the meeting planners to consider Minneapolis for their own meetings."

RCMA is a professional, nonprofit multifaith organization, representing more than 800 diverse religious organizations and is responsible for planning 14,000 conventions, meetings, assemblies, retreats and cruises. The organization works to create an atmosphere where planners and suppliers join together to learn.

Previously, Tennant has served on the boards of the U.S. Travel Association, American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), Center for Association Leadership, Meeting Professionals International (MPI), the MPI Foundation, and is a past chairman of the Destination Marketing Association International (DMAI). Tennant serves locally on the boards of the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce, Minneapolis Downtown Council and YouthLink.

Tennant received his bachelors degree from Rice University, masters degree in Christian Leadership Studies from Liberty University and holds an Association Executive Certification from ASAE.

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_PHOTO ATTACHED/CUT-LINE___

Melvin Tennant, CAE, president and CEO, Meet Minneapolis, is the newly elected chair of the board for the Religious Conference Management Association.

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_ABOUT MEET MINNEAPOLIS_

Meet Minneapolis is a private, not-for-profit, member-based association. It actively promotes and sells the Minneapolis area as a destination for conventions and meetings, works to maximize the visitor experience and markets the city as a desirable tourist destination to maximize the economic benefit of the greater Minneapolis area.

Meet Minneapolis is accredited by the Destination Marketing Accreditation Program (DMAP) of the Destination Marketing Association International.

Find out more:

Online: www.minneapolis.org [http://www.minneapolis.org] and http://go.minneapolis.org [http://go.minneapolis.org]

On Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/meetminneapolis?ref=ts [http://www.facebook.com/meetminneapolis?ref=ts]

On Twitter: http://twitter.com/meetminneapolis [http://twitter.com/meetminneapolis]

On Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/meetminneapolis/ [http://pinterest.com/meetminneapolis/]

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_MEDIA CONTACT_

Kristen Montag, media communication manager, 612.767.8038, kristenm@minneapolis.org [kristenm@minneapolis.org], Minneapolis_PR [http://goo.gl/M48J8] on Twitter.