Guest ServicesLEADERSHIP

Nico Foris was appointed to Chief Executive Officer of Guest Services, Inc. on January 1, 2022. Since joining the Company in 2012, he served in several executive positions including as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer. Under his leadership, Foris has cultivated many of the key relationships and growth opportunities throughout the major divisions of the Company, including partnerships with National and State Parks, recreation, hotels and lodging, contract food services, and condominium management. Foris led the acquisition efforts for the Lodge at Breckenridge, Boston Outdoor Recreation and several other strategic projects which have expanded the depth of the overall hospitality portfolio.

Prior to joining Guest Services, Foris started his career within the audit practice at PriceWaterhouseCoopers. While there, he serviced several of the largest and most prominent clients within the banking and capital markets space including Bank of America, PNC, and The Federal Reserve Bank of the United States. He was later promoted to the Organization’s National Office – Securities and Exchange Commission division. Foris was subsequently hired as Chief Financial Officer in 2008 by the Washington Commanders, one of the largest National Football League franchises. Under his tenure there, he was responsible for the financial activities and oversight within the organization.

He is a member of the Economic Club in Washington D.C., Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington, and National Park Hospitality Association. He is involved in several community initiatives including an active role in Guest Services’ Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives and Our Planet sustainability platform, an advisory board member for a youth sport’s start-up company called Soccer Studio, and a member of the AICPA. He created the Guest Services Culinary Forum, a collaborative group of leading chefs exploring improvements within culinary operations. Nico has been on Guest Services’ Board since January 1, 2020. Foris holds a B.S. in Accounting from The Pennsylvania State University and is a Certified Public Accountant. He resides in McLean, Virginia with his wife Heather and three daughters.

Mr. Gabrys joined Guest Services in 1986 as Vice President/Treasurer and served as Chief Executive Officer from 2001 to 2021. Prior to joining Guest Services, Mr. Gabrys served as Senior Vice President of the Washington Commanders and also Treasurer and a member of the Board of Directors of the Baltimore Orioles. He had previously served on the Board of Trustees of Guest Services, as well as Chairman of the Audit Committee while a member of the Board. Prior to that, he was with the public accounting firm of Arthur Andersen and Co. He is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, a Certified Public Accountant, and is fully accredited as a Certified Hotel Administrator. Mr. Gabrys is a fellow of the Culinary Institute of America and a member of the Finance Committee of its Board of Trustees.

Pamela Y. Galloway-Tabb has over 40 years of experience in the food and hospitality industry. She was formerly chief operating officer of conference services for the Freedom Forum AND NEWSEUM. She was formerly the Senior Vice President of Conference and Visitor Services for the Freedom FOrum and Newseum and formerly Vice President of General Services for the Freedom Forum. Prior to joining the Freedom Forum, Ms. Galloway-Tabb was manager of office and meeting services at Gannett Outdoor Co. in New York, and manager of executive services at Gannett Corp. in New York. Prior to joining Gannett Corporate in New York, Ms. Galloway-Tabb was catering sales manager for the Vista International Hotel in Washington, DC. Ms. Galloway-Tabb served as President of the Penn Quarter Neighborhood Association Board of Directors. She served on the board of directors of the Arlington Community Foundation. She also served on the board of directors of the National Cherry Blossom Festival. Ms. Galloway-Tabb was a member of the International Special Events Society and the National Association of Catering Executives. She is also a branded ambassador for Amtrak Acela. Ms. Galloway-Tabb is a 76’ graduate of Marshall University, Huntington, WV.

Garth Graham is a cardiologist, researcher, and public health expert. He joined Google as Director and Global Head of Healthcare and Public Health and previously served in two US administrations as US Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health. He was also the Assistant Dean for Health Policy and Chief of Health Services Research in the department of medicine at the University of Florida School of Medicine. Most recently, he served as President of the Aetna Foundation as well as Vice President & Chief Community Health Officer at CVS Health.

An elected member of the National Academy of Medicine, Garth obtained his MD at Yale University School of Medicine, MPH at Yale School of Public Health, Internal Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, and Cardiology fellowship at Johns Hopkins. He holds three board certifications including internal medicine, cardiology, and interventional cardiology. He also holds an honorary doctorate of laws from Regis College.

Jim Hall has over 40 years of experience in Parks and Natural Resource Management. Most recently, he was Executive Director of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission for 12 years, providing oversight to all Commission operations in New York and New Jersey. He joined the Palisades Interstate Park Commission as Superintendent of New Jersey operations in 1999 and served as Deputy Executive Director prior to becoming Executive Director.

As Superintendent, he managed New Jersey park operations for the Commission, including Palisades Interstate Parkway in NJ, Police Department and Court operations, as well as, NJ Highlands preservation efforts. Earlier in his career, he served for 21 years at the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection with the last ten of which as Assistant Commissioner for Natural & Historic Resources. As Assistant Commissioner, he provided broad management and policy direction over various state programs including Parks & Forestry, Coastal Engineering, Fish and Wildlife, Green Acres and Natural Resource Damages. He also served as Governor’s designee as the State Liaison Officer with the National Park Service and the Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer and represented the Commissioner on several Committees, Boards, Trusts and affiliated organizations, as well as, serve as NJ Natural Resources Damage Trustee He has a BS in Natural Resource Management from Rutgers University as well as being a certified Public Manager. Has served on various boards including the New Jersey Natural Lands Trust, The New Jersey Historic Trust, New Jersey Environmental Endowment, Friends of New Jersey Heritage and advisory group to Open Space Institute and Dodge Foundation.

Jermaine Johnson is regional president for PNC Bank, Greater Washington and Virginia. Johnson is responsible for overseeing all aspects of PNC’s operations in Greater Washington, including Retail Banking, Corporate & Institutional Banking, Wealth Management and community-based activities.

Prior to being named to his current role in August 2020, Johnson was executive vice president and market leader of PNC’s Corporate Banking business for the Greater Washington and Greater Maryland markets. In this role, he led PNC’s middle market, government contracting and large corporate banking segments.

Johnson started his career in banking as a management trainee with Bank of America. During his nearly 25 years in the industry, he has served in a variety of positions in Corporate Banking. He has a general corporate background with companies across a wide-range of industries in-need of cash flow and asset-based financing. Prior to joining PNC in 2005, Johnson was a vice president and portfolio analyst for GE’s Healthcare Financial Services—a commercial finance unit of GE Capital that provided asset-based lending to healthcare facilities throughout the United States. Previously, Johnson was a vice President at Bank of America within the Commercial Banking Group.

Active in the community, Johnson is an executive committee member and treasurer of the Greater Washington Board of Trade, the region’s premier business organization that has represented all industries for over 130 years. He is currently an audit committee member of the March of Dimes, as well as a member of Leadership Fairfax and The Economic Club of Washington, D.C. He previously served as executive committee member of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Ball, was the treasurer at Catholics for Housing, an executive committee member of Teach for America and the First Tee Program in Greater Washington.

He is a graduate of James Madison University, with a bachelor’s degree in Finance. Johnson is a graduate of the 2011 class of Leadership Fairfax.

Susan Kantor has 40 years of experience leading international finance, tax, treasury, risk, compliance, and technology enablement for global services organizations. Most recently she was a National Advisory Partner at PwC where she was responsible for new business development for PwC advisory services. Prior to PwC, she was the Chief Financial and Administrative Officer and Treasurer and served on the board at PRTM Management Consultants, a global operations strategy management consulting firm. In addition to her global finance and operations leadership experience, Ms. Kantor has served as a corporate officer and director on corporate boards and board committees for over 14 years. Earlier in her career Ms. Kantor worked at EY and PwC where she managed financial audits and advised CFOs and Audit Committees on accounting principles and risk mitigation.

Liz Rhode has over 30 years of entrepreneurial experience.  A former business owner and founder of the Maryland Athletic Club & Wellness Centers, in Baltimore, MD.  Setting a new standard for service, the “MAC” served over 15,000 members, and was responsible for creating professional career paths for employees and changing the way an industry conducted business nationally by pioneering wellness.  Over 20 years, the Company grew to three successful facilities with more than $14 million in annual revenue.

Since selling the business in 2015, Liz has helped businesses in many other industries including home improvement, contracting, employee benefits, and most recently as the director of Finance and Human Resources for a national Baltimore-based I.T. systems integrator.

Her unique brand of energy and excellence along with perspective from years of experience leading high service-level businesses, allow her to quickly improve an organization’s culture and systems resulting in reliable progress.

Having graduated Cum Laude from Marymount University of Virginia, Liz’s Community service contributions include serving as an active member of the University of Maryland Foundation Board for St. Joseph Medical Center since 2016, and previously as a member of the Flag House Board from 2012-2016.

She lives on the water in Baltimore County with her husband Tim, two sons, TJ and Jake, and Australian Shepherd, Archie.

Laura Sherman, CAM, Assistant Vice President, Hospitality Division. Laura joined Guest Services in 2009 supporting and leading multiple projects, properties and various efforts within the Hospitality Division. Before joining Guest Services, she spent 22 years in leadership and management roles overseeing several Hilton brands including the Doubletree Hotels as General Manager in Orlando, Boca Raton, Atlanta, and several other cities. She is a graduate of Stockton University with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance. She is credentialed as a Community Association Manager in Florida and has served for 17 years as part of the Executive Committee of Central Florida Hotel and Lodging Association. Laura is a Skal Orlando and Southwest Florida member. She was Rotary International’s past president.

Stoltzfus joins Guest Services with nearly 20 years of experience in the business and technology industries.

Stoltzfus has attained diverse skills across different industries, including technology, financial, and entertainment services. Previously, as Chief Financial Officer of Fundation Group LLC, a technology services and specialty finance company, he led a variety of business operational functions and initiated new partnerships for the company’s growth. Stoltzfus delivered excellent customer service to public and private companies alike at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and led financial and stadium ticket operations during his tenure at the Washington Commanders.

Stoltzfus holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from James Madison University.

Rod Taylor joined Guest Services in 2019 and has over 44 years of hospitality experience including marina, property, recreation, tour, hotel, dining, and retail management. He directs five operations in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Mount Rainier National Park, Big Sur State Park, two operations in the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area, and Stehekin National Park.

Taylor directs full-service marinas, lodging and dining operations in distinctive locations that also include unique recreational opportunities such as houseboat rentals, water, and land tours.

Barry Trice joined Guest Services in 1997 and has over 33 years of hotel, dining, condominium, and recreation management experience. He oversees Guest Services’ lodging operations such as the award-winning DoubleTree Suites by Hilton-Naples, Mount Rainier National Park, Big Sur State Park, Bear Mountain State Park, and several condo hotels.

Trice directs dining operations at unique establishments that include colleges, restaurants, museums and upscale senior living facilities. His experience ranges from limited service to Four-Diamond hotels.

Douglas Verner joined Guest Services in October 2001. He previously served as Sr. Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary for Sunburst Hospitality Corporation, an NYSE-listed company in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Verner has extensive expertise in a broad range of areas relating to hotel ownership and operations, including employment, franchising, corporate transactions, real estate, litigation, securities, and risk management.

He graduated from Haverford College and received his law degree from the University of Oregon School of Law.

Mr. Vogel most recently served as the regional director of the National Park Service’s Interior Region 2 where he oversaw operations for 73 parks and multiple programs in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Before joining the Southeast Region, Mr. Vogel was the regional director in the National Capital Region, where he led more than 70 park locations. Prior to this assignment he served as Superintendent of the National Mall and Memorial Parks where he directed the reconstruction of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, the opening of the Martin Luther King Memorial, the repair and reopening of the earthquake-damaged Washington Monument, and planned and implemented the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington and two presidential inaugurations.

Over his career, Mr. Vogel has served in parks across the country including serving as Deputy Superintendent of Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, as Superintendent at Cape Lookout National Seashore in North Carolina, as Superintendent at Guilford Courthouse National Military Park in North Carolina, as Chief of Visitor Services at Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site and Johnstown Flood National Memorial in Pennsylvania and at Fort Frederica National Monument in Georgia, and as assistant chief of interpretation at Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah.

Mr. Vogel also served as a member of the NPS National Leadership Council, NPS Development Advisory Board, and the Eastern National Advisory Board. He is a native of Cape Girardeau, Mo., and is a graduate of the University of Tennessee with a bachelor of science in natural resource management. Mr. Vogel and his wife, Janice, reside in Fernandina Beach Florida.

Rick Wayland joined Guest Services in 2008, as Director, D.C. Metro Recreation and Dining Services; he was promoted to Assistant Vice President in 2010 and Vice President in 2011.
Wayland brings 28 years of management experience in the hospitality industry throughout the Metropolitan Washington, D.C., area, spanning the business dining, government and military dining, school dining, retail operations, and vending industry segments. He is a graduate of Virginia Tech with a B.S. in Psychology.