AAHOA Organizes Upper Midwest Regional Conference in Chicago

Chicago IL: The Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA), one of the leading forces in the hospitality industry organized Upper Midwest Regional Conference on Friday, March 16, 2012 at India House 1521 W. Schaumburg Road, Schaumburg, IL from 12-00 Noon. Midwest Regional Conference was a complete success, over 250 plus people attended this trade show.

There were many Dignitaries present including Raja Krishnamurti congressional candidate for election on March 20th, Bharat Patel, Girish Patel, Ramesh Patel, Mahendra Patel, Dilip Patel, Narendra Patel, Meena Patel, Ken Patel, Satish(Sunny) Gabhawala, Dinesh Gandhi, Naresh Patel, Jayendra Patel, Ashok B. Shah, Charlie Zimmerman Mike Patel, Sunil Shah, Pritesh Gandhi, John Trivedi,Niranjan Patel, Babu Patel, C.K.Patel,Ceirel Joseph, James Johnso, Vimesh Patel, Sam Lakhani, Jim Fogra, Hasan Merchant, Kishore Purohit, Babu Patel- Marsha, Nik Trivedi, Edward, Jyotindra Patel, Fredrick, Amin, Dinesh Gandhi, Devkaran Patel, Kiran C. Pandya, Vinod Patel, Subhash Bhatt, J.N.Bhatt Retd.Chief Justice of Bihar, Vipulbhai Shah, Manubhai Patel and many more.

Educational Seminars were conducted between 1-00 pm to 3-00 pm that provided attendees with important information about operating hotels and protecting investments. All Seminars were very informative and people attended in large numbers.

Three Seminars were based on these Subjects:

• ADA guidelines for 2012 and New Pool Lift Laws.
• How to save more money on Energy Bills by Avion Engineering Group.
• Debt restructuring for troubled mortgages by Delta Capital Group LLC

Trade Show where members and all visitors could find various product profiles and about amenities available at participating hotels services available in the industry at great prices. Exhibitors included PMC Commercial Trust, Wyndham Hotel Group, Onity-Parts and Materials, D&M Laundry Equipment Dexter Laundry, Century Laundry, Hilton, Lodging Pool lift Supply, Hospitality International, Avion Energy Group, VingCard, Carlson, Best Western, American Hotel Register Company, Sunset Telecom, Chase Paymentech, The Motel 6 phoenix Prototype, OSP Hospitality Space Seating, Hampton, Phone Suite, Dixie Smart Stock Cutlery Dispenser, Star Textile Inc and many more.

AAHOA Business meeting was held between 6-30 to 8-30 pm when activities of AAHOA were presented. Outgoing President C.K.Patel, Project Chairman Satish (Sunny) Gabhawala and Raj Bhatia and Chandresh Brahmbhatt were the key speakers. Chandresh Brahmbhatt gave glimpses of activities of AAHOA. Leadership of C.K.Patel was given praise and recognition for his dedicated service.

C.K.Patel recalled the history of AAHOA and the attempt of Manubhai Patel to foster the organization. “There were very few members in 1990 and because of their sincere efforts, AAAOA has reached this height and we still have lot of things to accomplish” he said. He emphasized the importance of member’s support to move this organization forward. He also narrated certain facts about the organization and what advantages could be achieved with proper persuasion and with proper follow up with the concerned authorities. Sunny Gabhawala described their efforts in solving and pursuing problems experienced by Franchisees in his spirited speech. He emphasized the need to strengthen the organization and stressed the united support of all their members.

Activities of AAHOA were shown by power point presentation, describing it as the largest organization and a leading force in the Hospitality Industry, providing answers to the distinct challenges facing Hoteliers today. AAHOA’s Advocacy initiatives and Educational Opportunities has helped Asian Americans succeed. AAHOA is doing significant work, but significant progress requires significant support. AAHOA can only continue to answer the chllenges with the continued support of its members and partners. An appeal was made to upgrade membership or become a member.

Asian Americans have a rich tradition of entrepreneurship, self-improvement and family values. Hospitality industry is a popular career choice because it offers immediate housing and cash flow. At first, many hoteliers met with resistance especially from Bankers and Insurance companies that discriminated against Asian Americans. To counter this problem, Indo-American Hospitality Association was formed by one group and another group formed AAHOA. By the end of 1994, these two groups merged so they could work together more efficiently on behalf of Asian American Hoteliers throughout the United States, since then, AAHOA has increased significantly and it is recognized as well as respected by entrepreneurs and community leaders. Today its membership has crossed 11000 mark and marching towards 13 to 14000 mark in the near future. AAHOA has outstanding programs and is making progress, but there is much work to be done. Their main components are Advocacy, Product and Services, Community Services, Conferences, and Legal Assistance.

Dinner and Entertainment was provided. Members had the opportunity to network with fellow hoteliers from their region who deal with the same issues/challenges/opportunities every day.

Entertainment was Sponsored by LaQuinta Inns & Suites. Dinner was Sponsored by Wyndham Hotel Group. It was a traditional dinner and there was entertainment provided by Malhar Group comprising of

Male singer: Rohit Parekh,
Female singer: Gayatri Patel and Neerali Shah
Sound Engineer: Arun Modi

Even though they had a long business meeting all day, many members stayed for a long time and enjoyed the singing program. As soon as the business meeting was over, the entertainment program started. Songs performed included Pukarta chala hu me, Diwanose ye mat puchho, Nakhrewali, Hai apna dil to awara, and followed by few new numbers like Chand sipharish jo karta hamari and Takte rahete tujko. Gayatri Patel sang Me to kabse khadi is par, Sasural genda phool and Ha hai koi to wajah. They also sang many duets such as Dilki nazarse, Ye rate ye mausam and Tere liye ham hai jiye. Many requests came from the audience for old and new songs, pleasing all types of listeners.

AAHOA board members
Chairman Hemant Patel,
Vice Chairman Alkesh Patel,
Treasurer Mehul Patel,
Secretary Pratik Patel
President Fred Schwartz,
Upper Midwest regional director Chandresh Brahmbhatt
Director at large Satish “sunny” Gabhawala,

CHO and the Upper Midwest Regional Ambassadors at this Regional Conference are Babu Patel, Veenod Patel, Kanti Patel, Kiran Shah, Kalpesh Joshi and Jon Trivedi

AAHOA Vendor Relations Coordinator: Janee Brown
AAHOA Director of Business Development: James Jenkins

About AAHOA
The Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA) is THE voice of owners in the hospitality industry. Founded in 1989, AAHOA is now one of the fastest-growing organizations in the industry, with more than 10,000 members owning more than 20,000 hotels that total $128 billion in property value. AAHOA members employ 578,600 full- and part-time workers with a $9.4 billion payroll. AAHOA officers include Chairman Hemant D. “Henry” Patel; Vice Chairman Alkesh R. “Al” Patel, CHO; Treasurer Mehul B. “Mike” Patel, CHA; Secretary Pratik R. “Prat” Patel, MBA, MSIS, CHA, CHO; and President Fred Schwartz, who work closely with a 34-member Board of Directors to provide direction for the association. AAHOA is dedicated to promoting and protecting the interests of its members by inspiring excellence through programs and initiatives in advocacy, industry leadership, professional development, member benefits, and community involvement.

Photographs and Press release by: Asian Media USA

Suresh Bodiwala
Chairman
Asian Media USA
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