FAIRMONT —
Marion County has a lot to offer the region in terms of tourism, says the Convention and Visitors Bureau of Marion County.
The trick is getting people to see it, and over the past year, with a lot of help from a lot of talented people, they’ve worked to get the word out.
Thursday afternoon, the CVB hosted its annual awards ceremony recognizing the people, businesses and organizations who have contributed to Marion County’s tourism business.
CVB Director Marianne Moran said they’ve enjoyed a strong year, with the highlight being the opening of their new visitor’s center on the Gateway Connector in Fairmont. The building, where the reception Thursday was hosted, was built using stones from the old Marion County Children’s Shelter.
Rita Veasey, whose parents used to run the shelter, said that she was very happy to see the building’s stones helping the people of Marion County once again.
“If these stones could talk, they’d say it’s great being back looking over the Friendly City,” she said. “What was old is new again.”
The new visitor’s center has made a huge difference in terms of reaching people. According to the CVB 2011-2012 Annual Report, the center saw 3,365 guests in the past year, a growth of more than 300 percent over the past year.
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Related Photos
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Marianne Moran (left), director of the Marion County Convention and Visitors Bureau, chats with Rita Veasey, whose parents ran the Marion County Children’s Shelter, which was the former site of the stones that built the new visitor’s center on the Gateway Connector. The CVB hosted its annual awards ceremony at the new center on Thursday, recognizing some of the people, businesses and organizations that fuel the area’s tourism industry. PHOTO BY TAMMY SHRIVER
Spreading the word
Many contribute to Marion County’s tourism business
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