Rotary Program for March 6, 2005

Donna Damron, guest speaker

Rotarian Kitty White introduced Donna Damron as the guest speaker for the day. Donna is the Executive Director of the East Kentucky Exposition Center, and a Rotarian.

Donna recalled attending an event called "Autumn Jam" years ago at the high school football field. A huge crowd of people came and stayed late in the night in spite of a heavy rainfall. At that event she realized how desperate our area was for a venue to house large groups of people inside and protected from the elements. Now our community will be able to enjoy entertainment that people in others areas have.

Donna announced that the basic construction is expected to be complete in April with a final completion by the end of June. A Grand Opening is being planned for Labor Day weekend.

Recently, the Board of Directors sent out requests for proposal for private management companies. After careful review, the board chose S & G, a large company out of Philadelphia that operates 170 facilities. This kind of company is in the position to negotiate better deals with potential entertainment acts.

S & G recently brought before the board their candidate for general manager, Aaron Rush from El Paso, Texas. The board was very impressed with him, and he is excited about moving to Pikeville. Donna's title will eventually change to "contract administrator," and she will continue to work for the board of directors.

Donna reported that many entertainment acts are very interested in coming to Eastern Kentucky. As soon as S & G got the contract, their phone started ringing. Possible attractions will be Barnum and Bailey Circus, the White Stallions, and the Ice Capades.

Donna emphasized that this venue belongs to the community. The center will try to make their profit on outside acts so that the facility can be available at a reasonable cost to groups such as Rotary, the Chamber of Commerce and Pikeville College. They will also be eager to work with anyone to bring conventions here.

Donna says the real credit for the existence of the East Kentucky Expo center should go to the board of directors Charles Baird (chairman), Roger Recktenwald (vice chairman), Terry Spears (secretary/treasurer), Terry Dotson, Rex Fought, Jean Hale, and Randall Tackett. The original seven board members are still serving. When others said that it couldn't be done, this group did not give up. They are the ones who have made it happen.