What We Do
Mission
Visit Fort Wayne promotes the city and county as an exceptional destination, and leads the growth and development of the visitor industry
Vision
Fort Wayne is recognized nationally as a welcoming visitor destination, offering unique experiences in an inclusive and hospitable community
Strategic Goals
• Elevate Destination Marketing Sales and Services
• Lead Destination Development
• Advocate Tourism/Visit Fort Wayne Value Contributions
• Gain Destination Resources and Returns
Sell Fort Wayne
• Our destination branding positions Fort Wayne as a world-class, family-friendly leisure destination
• Our group sales efforts attract conventions, meetings, and sporting events to Fort Wayne
• Our integrated marketing campaigns drive visitors to Fort Wayne through advertising, PR, and social media
Welcome and Connect Visitors
• We assist with the execution of more than 85 meetings and events each year
• Our staff runs a friendly, helpful Visitors Center
• We produce maps, guides, and visitor resources to help visitors discover Fort Wayne and Allen County communities
Destination Development
• We use industry expertise and leadership, along with community collaboration, to improve the quality of place for visitors and residents, so that Fort Wayne and Allen County can benefit from a vibrant and growing tourism economy
Management & Finance
Jill Boggs, President and CEO
Kendall Smith, Finance and Administration Manager
Kendall Likes, Special Projects Assistant
Visitor and Partner Services
Emily Stuck, Director of Visitor and Partner Services
Nancy Niemann, Senior Visitor Services Specialist
Kaitie Jones, Visitor Services Specialist
Marketing & Communications
Kristen Guthrie, Vice President of Marketing and Communications
Jessa Campbell, Director of Destination Development and Communications
Tom Boyer, Digital Marketing Manager
Erin Okeson, Digital Content Manager
Emily Hill, Marketing Manager
Board Members
Susan Baier, Allen County Public Library
Tim Beere, DeBrand Fine Chocolates
Therese Brown, Allen County Commissioner
Melanie Carney, Allen County War Memorial Coliseum
Danette Fitzgerald, Parkview Health
Tim Hall, Fort Wayne Outfitters
Kelley Hartley Hutton, Purdue University Fort Wayne
Colleen Huddleson, Fort Wayne Museum of Art
Russ Jehl, Fort Wayne City Council
Paris McFarthing, Hop River Brewing Company
Mike Mushett, Turnstone
Mike Nutter, Fort Wayne TinCaps
Jason Patel, Blue Flame Hospitality
Johnny Perez, Te Gustó Hospitality
John Perlich, City of Fort Wayne
Rick Schuiteman, Fort Wayne Zoo
Lisa Starks, Barnes & Thornburg
Julie Wall, The HEDGE
Irene Walters, Civic Leader
Don Wyss, Allen County Council
Our Staff
Front Row (L to R): Jazmin Zavala, Kendall Likes, Kaitie Jones, Jill Boggs, Bethany Sutherland, Emily Stuck, Jessa Campbell
Back Row (L to R): Emily Hill, Lydia Harris, Nancy Niemann, Kendall Smith, Josie O’Donnell, Kristen Guthrie, Alyssa Ault, Nicolle Campbell, Erin Okeson, Tom Boyer
Group Sales & Services
Nicolle Campbell, Director of Sales
Josie O’Donnell, Senior Sales Manager
Jazmin Zavala, Sports Sales Manager
Bethany Sutherland, Group Services Manager
Alyssa Ault, Group Sales Coordinator
Our Board
Front Row (L to R): Kelly Updike, Danette Fitzgerald, Julie Wall, Melissa Schenkel, Irene Walters, Kelley Hartley Hutton, Susan Baier, Russ Jehl
Back Row (L to R): Don Wyss, Paris McFarthing, Melanie Carney, Bart Shaw, John Perlich, Mark Luttik, Mike Nutter, Therese Brown, Rick Schuiteman
NOT PICTURED: Tim Beere, Tim Hall, Colleen Huddleson, Mike Mushett, Jason Patel, Johnny Perez, Lisa Starks
Incoming 2026 Officers
Melissa Schenkel, SYM Financial Advisors
Board Chairperson
Mark Luttik, Hilton Fort Wayne at the Grand Wayne Convention Center
Vice Chairperson
Kelly Updike, Embassy Theatre
Treasurer
Bart Shaw, Grand Wayne Convention Center
Secretary
Visitors spend their money throughout our communities in the following ways:
9.2 MILLION
Visitors to Fort Wayne and Allen County Annually
14 MORE THAN THOUSAND
Total Jobs in the Hospitality Industry – Generating
Wages/Salaries
$1.1 BILLION
$121 MILLION Annual Visitor Expenditures
Generated in State and Local Tax Revenues
Visitors
Tourism Tidbits
14%
By The Numbers
If tourism did not exist in Allen County…
If tourism didn’t exist, each of the 154,183 households in Allen County would have to pay an additional $783 in taxes each year to maintain current levels of public services.
The most visited area of Allen County is the Coliseum Boulevard District, making up 14% of visits.
Where visitors come from:
According to VisitFortWayne.com analytics, Visitors Center inquiries, and ad responses, visitors come to Fort Wayne from the following states:
65,000 VISITS
Attribution data shows that our destination marketing is working. Visits to our website influenced more than 65,000 visits to Fort Wayne this summer season. 76% 62%
of Allen County's visitors spend the night in a hotel. of Allen County's visitors are repeat visitors.
Age Groups of Our Visitors
2.4 DAYS
Our average length of stay is increasing! In 2024, visitors spent 2.0 days in our community, and in 2025 they spent 2.4 days, on average.
Group Sales
2025 was a landmark year for Visit Fort Wayne’s Sales Team, achieving the highest room nights and projected economic impact in the organization’s history. With 69 meetings, conventions, and sports tournaments booked, including 26 new to Allen County, these events are anticipated to attract over 70,059 visitors, generate 42,234 hotel room nights (almost double the quantity produced in 2024), and contribute an estimated $34 million in economic impact throughout the community.
33
36
26
Total Conventions and Meetings Booked in 2025
Total Sports Tournaments and Events Booked in 2025
New Events/Business to Allen County
42,234
70,059
102
Total Room Nights of these Events
Total Attendees from these Bookings
Total Number of Leads Sent Out
Top Group Markets by Room Nights
$34,163,361
Total Estimated Economic Impact of these events, booked through Visit Fort Wayne efforts
Major Events Booked
• National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) — 2026 NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Quarterfinals and Semifinals, 2027 & 2028 Division II Men's and Women's Basketball Elite Eight, 2027 Division I Women's Golf Regional
• Midwest Fish and Wildlife Association — 2026 Annual Conference
• International Plastic Modelers Society — 2026 National Convention
• American Association of Christian Schools — 2028 & 2031 Great Lakes Christian Educators Conference
• World ParaVolley Sitting Volleyball World Cup — 2025
• North American Brass Band Association — 2026 Annual Championship Contest
• National Genealogical Society — 2026 NGS Family History Conference
• International Jugglers' Association — 2026 IJA Festival
2025 World ParaVolley Sitting Volleyball World Cup
2025 Sales Activities
24 Site Visits
36 Bid Books
Trade Shows Attended ISAE ICON (Hosted), TEAMS Conference and Expo, American Society of Association Executives, SportsETA, and others 7 Sales and Partner Services Meetings Hosted 4
271
total meetings and tournaments were held at 43 venues in Allen County in 2025 — 89 of these were serviced by Visit Fort Wayne.
9.5
We asked Meeting Planners and Event Organizers
“How was your overall experience in Fort Wayne, Indiana?” They gave it a 9.5 out of 10.
5,200
Distributed over 5,200 athlete and attendee promotional items across eight sports events and conventions, to promote our community.
The Fort Wayne team is outstanding, and the city is incredible. Fort Wayne has so many unique venues that are versatile and can be used in different ways. While the venues and the city speak for themselves, it is so nice to have a knowledgeable team that is passionate about the city and can showcase it.”
Jessica MacMillan, Senior Meetings and Membership Coordinator for Indiana Society of Association Executives
Visit Fort Wayne staff welcomes ISAE attendees
Jazmin Zavala (L) speaks on a panel at the TEAMS Conference & Expo
Marketing & Communications
The Visit Fort Wayne Marketing Department produces marketing and advertising campaigns to invite leisure visitors to enjoy our destination’s hotels, restaurants, attractions, and entertainment venues throughout Fort Wayne and Allen County.
In 2025, we advertised Fort Wayne getaways in 30 cities between 50-200 miles from Fort Wayne, to encourage family travel. We produced more than 80 million exposures using digital, TV, radio, and print advertising.
Marketing Campaigns
SUMMER LEISURE CAMPAIGN
Our Summer Leisure Campaign promotes Fort Wayne getaways to families between 50-200 miles from Fort Wayne. Our affordable, high-quality experiences attract families and bring them back!
DIGITAL
PASSES
VISITFORTWAYNE.COM
Our website is home to thousands of pages designed to guide visitor decisions, make referrals to our partners, and attract more spending in our community. Our content features a blog with hundreds of pages of trip ideas, a calendar of events (the most visited part of our site), and hundreds of pages that promote Fort Wayne’s visitor businesses. We undergo annual search engine optimization and AI optimization audits, making sure our website is ready for AI, and continues to assist visitors in our competitive digital landscape.
Our Marketing Team produces seven different digital passes that help visitors (and residents!) explore our community. Visitors can access our Savings Pass, Adventure Pass, Apple Trail, Historic Sites Pass, and more. These passes feature more than 50 partner locations and have received more than 4,600 downloads in 2025.
RESEARCH
Our research and analysis software enables us to make data-based decisions to adjust our digital marketing and content strategies. We learn which ads drive visitation, what visitors do when they are in our community, and what types of visitors spend more – and we use that information to guide future advertising.
Public Relations
1.3 Total Users
3.7 Views
Broadcast mentions, totaling a reach to 201,564 viewers VISITFORTWAYNE.COM
204,759,259
Media Impressions from 38 Unique Media Mentions, a total of 157 with syndicated articles.
1.2 Event Views
340,000 Emails Sent Blog Views
1.8 MILLION MILLION MILLION MILLION
176,000 Partner Referrals
Social Media and Digital Advertising
In 2025, we continued to lean into vertical social video content, posting 30 vertical videos on our social channels, and received 1,824,822 organic video views — a 144% increase year over year!
16,850,205
36,209,876
Social Media Impressions
Digital Advertising Impressions
13
Coverage Highlights:
• America’s Most Historic Markets, From St. Louis to Seattle (mentions South Side Farmers Market), Food & Wine
• Accessible Fort Wayne, Indiana: A Wheelchair-Friendly Bucket List , WondersWithinReach.com
• How Genealogy Gave Me Back Pieces of My Family’s History, NextAvenue.org
• 6 Kid-Friendly U.S. Travel Destinations That Will Be Even Better Than Ever in 2025, AFAR
• Destination Dining: Fort Wayne, IN, Indianapolis Monthly
19
Journalists Hosted
Visitors Center &
Industry Partners
In 2025, the Visitors Center team provided one-on-one assistance to more than 12,000 individuals through in-person visits, phone calls, and emails. We distributed more than 50,000 total print pieces from the Visitors Center including Visitors Guides, dining maps, helpful information, and more.
BEST SELLING MERCHANDISE INCLUDES:
1,948 Postcards
1,727 Souvenirs
1,000 Local Flavors
Magnets/Pencils/ Ornaments/Keychains BBQ Sauce, DeBrand, Seasonings
748 Stickers/Decals
New Bi-Annual Guides
Our Visitors Center store sold more than 9,000 items in 2025, and we are currently working with 100 different vendors. In addition, we’ve sold more than 850 items in our online store.
Follow us on social media for sales, promotions, community information, and new items.
In 2025, SAVOR FORT WAYNE
celebrated its 12th year with a record-breaking 104 participating local restaurants, the highest in the event’s history. The event also drew strong digital engagement, with more than 1 million views on SavorFortWayne.com.
BE A TOURIST IN YOUR OWN HOMETOWN
Over 30,000 people and 23 participating attractions joined us for this 26th annual event, celebrating our outstanding museums, attractions, and visitor industry!
Visitors
Our Visitors Center Photo Booth welcomes guests each day, and is used at events throughout the community.
We support over 80 nonprofit organizations annually through donations and partnership efforts.
Calendar of Events
2,642 submitted, approved, and posted in 2025
INVESTING PARTNERS
Our partners represent the hospitality community from industries including:
Center Photo Booth
Destination
Development
Visit Fort Wayne supports community partners with letters of support and visitor data to help show the need to develop and grow the destination. In 2025, we provided:
Letters of Support for Community Projects
Data Requests
Status of Visit Fort Wayne’s Four 3-Year Strategic Priority Recommendations
ACCESSIBILITY
• Created an Accessible Destination Action Plan alongside Whereabout. The action plan will be released in 2026.
• Joine d the Fort Wayne/Allen County Disability Advisory Council.
• Partnered with Easterseals Pre-Employment Transitions Services program.
• Produced 10 accessibility maps of Fort Wayne attractions.
SPORTS ENTITY
• Began to build a strategic plan and business plan for the Fort Wayne Area Sports Alliance, alongside Gamechangers Consulting.
• Partnered with the Fort Wayne Sports Foundation to combine efforts.
MUSIC ECONOMY
• C ompleted a Music Economy Study and Strategy alongside Sound Diplomacy. The strategy will be released in early 2026.
• Supported Sweetwater collaboration with We Make Noise, and the NEI Creative Economy Study.
• Hosted the 2nd Annual Power of Tourism & Hospitality Awards. Our 2025 theme focused on the power of a strong music economy.
HOSPITALITY LABOR SHORTAGE
• R ecommendation completed with a workforce study that found the industry has stabilized and there’s no sense of crisis, but there is room for growth and improvement. A follow-up study will be completed in five years.
Power of Tourism and Hospitality Awards Luncheon
The 2025 Power of Tourism & Hospitality Awards Luncheon was a resounding success, bringing together industry professionals, community partners, and civic leaders to celebrate the strength and impact of the local visitor economy.
This year’s event showed how visitor spending continues to fuel economic growth, sustain small businesses, and support thousands of jobs. Centered around the theme “Building a Music Economy,” the program emphasized the city’s expanding identity as a musicdriven destination for growth, community pride, and enhanced market visibility.
The highlight of the event was the recognition of 30 outstanding hospitality professionals whose commitment, talent, and passion exemplify the very best of the industry. These individuals— representing hotels, restaurants, attractions, and visitor support roles— were honored for their extraordinary service and the positive impact they make every day.
The 2025 Power of Tourism & Hospitality Awards Luncheon celebrated the importance of visitor spending and its impact on Fort Wayne/Allen County’s quality of life and place.
2025 Award Recipients
RISING STAR AWARD
Adam Heller, Chef/Culinary Director, Dana's on the Landing
Recognizes individuals who have been in the hospitality and tourism industry for fewer than five years and are consistently achieving excellence in their current role.
HOSPITALITY
LEADERSHIP AWARD
Nathan Dennison, Vice President of Sales, Allen County War Memorial Coliseum
Recognizes management-level employees for leadership in the local hospitality and tourism industry. Recipient is evaluated on management, leadership skills, and their vision for the growth of the hospitality and tourism industry.
HOST THEM HERE AWARD
David Jones, North American Brass Band Association
Recognizes an individual whose passion and dedication has been instrumental in bringing an annual conference, convention, or sporting event to the Fort Wayne and Allen County community.
POWER OF TOURISM AWARD
Jake & Jes Farris, Event
Organizers, Tattoo Fest/Big Fort Fest
Recognizes individuals who have distinguished themselves in the Fort Wayne/Allen County tourism industry by exemplifying the highest level of leadership and service, as well as taking steps to improve and invest in the future.
DIVERSITY CHAMPION AWARD
Luke Labas, Director of Inclusion Institute, The League
Recognizes individuals or businesses who, by advocating, educating, developing programs, and raising awareness of inclusion and/or accessibility, have strengthened and affected meaningful change to improve our hospitality and tourism industry.
SERVICE EXCELLENCE AWARD
Susie Bruick, Sales Manager/ Event Manager, Grand Wayne Convention Center
Recognizes employees who provide exceptional service and are leaders in attitude, workplace knowledge and familiarity with the community, communication skills, and ability to exceed visitor expectations.
ORGANIZATION OR BUSINESS SERVICE EXCELLENCE AWARD
Fort Wayne Zoo
Recognizes best practices and achievements of an organization or business within our local hospitality and tourism industry.
THOMAS C. HENRY DESTINATION DEVELOPMENT AWARD
Fort Wayne TinCaps
Recognizes the efforts of an individual, organization, or company that invests in and/or advocates for destination development to improve the resident’s quality of place while growing the visitor economy.
