Past Inductees
Honorees – 2023
Tracy Gates
Busy Bee Cafe
David Marvin
Legacy Ventures
Frank Poe
Georgia World Congress Center
Honorees – 2022
Mike Allen
Atlanta Marriott Marquis
Anna Hsu
Hsu’s Restaurant
Bill Bolling
Atlanta Community Food Bank
McKinley “Mack” Wilbourn, Jr.
MACK II
Honorees – 2021
Carl Adkins
Georgia World Congress Center Authority
Jeffrey L. Portman Sr.
AMC, Inc.
Nancy Gordy Simms
The Varsity
Steve Smith
Pendleton Consulting Group
Honorees – 2019
Leona Barr-Davenport
Atlanta Business League
Ed Bastian
Delta Air Lines
Renee Perdue
Atlanta Downtown
Ambassador Force
Gary P. Stokan
Peach Bowl, Inc.
Honorees – 2018
Nathan Deal
Governor of Georgia
Kathleen J. Bertrand
BronzeLens Film Festival
Claudia Lalinde
Mashburn
Atlanta Marriott Marquis
Benedict (Ben) Shanley
The Coca-Cola Company
Honorees – 2017
The Honorable Kasim Reed
Former Mayor, City of Atlanta
Tony Conway
Legendary Events
Ed Baker
Georgia State University
J. Mack Robinson College of Business
Honorees – 2016
Vincent Anthony
Center for Puppetry Arts
Phil Noyes
Proof of the Pudding, Inc.
Erica Qualls-Battey
Atlanta Marriott Marquis
Honorees – 2015
Bob Hope
Hope-Beckham, Inc.
Karen Bremer, CAE
Georgia Restaurant Association
John Grant Jr.
100 Black Men of Atlanta, Inc.
Honorees – 2014
Jim Barto
Hilton Atlanta
Ken Jefferson
Georgia Dome
Bill Marriott Jr.
Marriott International
Alexis Scott
Atlanta Daily World
Honorees – 2013
Ken Bernhardt
Marketing Consultant
& Regents
Professor of Marketing Emeritus, GSU
Debra Cannon, Ph.D.
Director, Cecil B. Day School of Hospitality Administration, GSU
Herman J. Russell
Founder, H.J. Russell & Company
Honorees – 2012
Patti Young
Peach Bowl, Inc.
Dante Stephensen
Dante’s Down the Hatch
Mary Rose Taylor
Margaret Mitchell House and Museum
Honorees – 2011
Arthur Blank
Atlanta Falcons
Khalil Johnson
Georgia World Congress Center Authority
Nancy Oswald
Ruth’s Chris Restaurants
Honorees – 2010
Judy Claxton
Atlanta Convention &
Visitors Bureau
Thomas W. Dortch Jr.
TWD, Inc.
Dan Graveline
Georgia World Congress Center Authority
Honorees – 2009
Clisby Clarke
McCann-Erickson and Chairman, Fitzgerald + Company
The Honorable
Shirley Franklin
Former Mayor,
City of Atlanta
Ed Paradine
Marriott International
Walton Wade
Hyatt Regency Atlanta
Honorees – 2008
Stephanie Hughley
National Black Arts Festival
George McKerrow Jr.
Ted’s Montana Grill
Abner Nelms
The Ritz-Carlton, Buckhead
Spurgeon Richardson
Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau
Honorees – 2007
Cindy Fowler
Presenting Atlanta
Tim Lindgren
Hyatt Hotels
Robert “Sarge”
Lunsford
Omni Hotel at CNN Center
Steve Nygren
Serenbe Development
Honorees – 2006
Mari Jo Ford
Stone Mountain Park
David B. Kenney
Kenney Hotel Group
Robert R. King
Georgia Hospitality & Travel Association
Richard M. Stormont
The Stormont Companies
Honorees – 2005
Julia Emmons
Atlanta Track Club
Bernie Marcus
Marcus Foundation
Robert Paschal
Paschal’s Restaurant
James Paschal
Paschal’s Restaurant
Honorees – 2004
Henry Louis “Hank” Aaron
Atlanta Braves
S. Truett Cathy
Chick-fil-A
Margaret Lupo
Mary Mac’s Tea Room
Sam Massell
Buckhead Coalition
Honorees – 2003
The Honorable Maynard Jackson
Former Mayor,
City of Atlanta
Marge McDonald
Tour Gals, Founder & President
Erby Walker
The Varsity
Honorees – 2002
John Aderhold
Aderhold Properties, Inc.
The Honorable
Ivan Allen Jr.
Former Mayor,
City of Atlanta
Walter Banks
Atlanta Braves
Bill T. Hardman
Southeastern Tourism Society
Honorees – 2001
Ruth and Ruby Crawford
Hospitality Community Activists
Billy Payne
Gleacher Partners, LLC
Horst Schulze
West Paces Hotel Group
Honorees – 2000
James Jones
Sheraton Atlanta
Pano Karatassos
Buckhead Life
Restaurant Group
The Honorable Thomas B. Murphy
Georgia House of Representatives, Speaker
Honorees – 1999
The Honorable William B. Hartsfield
Former Mayor,
City of Atlanta
John C. Portman Jr.
John Portman & Associates
Robert “Ted” Turner III
Turner Enterprises
Albert “Smitty” Smith
Atlanta Marriott Marquis
The Honorable Andrew J. Young
Good Works International
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