PHILADELPHIA CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU ANNOUNCES PROMOTION & NEW ADDITION

PHILADELPHIA...February 8, 2008...The Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau announces the promotion of Sarah Hines to director of communications, tourism; the addition of Liz Sullivan as senior communications manager.

Sarah Hines

Formerly, a senior communications manager at the PCVB, Hines, in this newly created position, has among her responsibilities developing and implementing a public relations strategy to promote Philadelphia as a leisure destination of choice for international consumers and domestic group tour travelers. "Sarah's proven expertise in public relations and marketing communications, along with her experience in the tourism and hospitality industry, will be an asset to the department as we take our strategic marketing and communications initiatives into emerging markets such as China and Japan," said Fritz Smith, vice president of tourism, PCVB.

Since 2004, Hines served as senior manager of marketing and communications for the PCVB and was responsible for promoting Philadelphia as a meetings and convention destination, working with major international conventions to maximize their exposure in Philadelphia, and promoting the Pennsylvania Convention Center. She also worked with the Philadelphia Sports Congress, a division of the PCVB, including handling public relations for the Army/Navy games, the attendance-breaking NCAA Lacrosse Championships and more.

Hines holds a B.S. in Mass Communications with a minor in English from Towson University in Maryland, and a Masters of Journalism, with a concentration in public relations, from Temple University. She resides in Center City.

Liz Sullivan

Sullivan will take over Hines' responsibilities including working with all major conventions and sporting events booked by the PCVB and held at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, area facilities and hotels.

Prior to joining the PCVB, Sullivan worked as a verdicts and settlements editor at LexisNexis after spending 17 years as a sportswriter/photographer at Journal Register Company newspapers in the western suburbs of Philadelphia. Sullivan's journalistic foray featured stops in Royersford and Lansdale before capping her newspaper career as the college athletics writer at the Daily Local News newspaper in West Chester. Among her duties at the Daily Local was coverage of all of the local colleges in Chester County and Sullivan also handled layout duties on a weekly basis. "In this exciting year of Olympic Trials events in Philadelphia, Liz brings a lot of expertise to the table that also transcend into the convention arena," said Danielle Cohn, vice president of marketing & communications, Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Sullivan holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communications, with a minor in English from King's College in Wilkes-Barre, PA, where she was sports editor of the school newspaper and captain of the women's tennis team. Sullivan is also a member of the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association, where she served on the Board of Governors for three years and is a member of the Association of Women in Sports Media. Sullivan resides in East Norriton Township, PA.



Editors Note: Headshots available. Call 215/636-3471.

Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau (PCVB), www.PhiladelphiaUSA.travel, a private non-profit membership corporation, is the official Tourism Promotion Agency for the City of Philadelphia, and the primary sales and marketing agency for the Pennsylvania Convention Center. The PCVB competes with its counterparts worldwide for convention and tourism business. The organization has departments dedicated to the multicultural, sports, and life sciences markets.