Mark Calitri | Leadership, Performance & Destination Marketing

 Owensboro is having a strong fall, and the numbers tell the story. September hotel occupancy reached an all-time September record of 70%. October revenue is running 21.1% ahead of last year, and room tax collections are exceeding projections by more than 15%. For Mark Calitri, President and CEO of Visit Owensboro, those numbers reflect something important: More people are choosing Owensboro, Kentucky, for sporting events, conventions, festivals, business, and weekend getaways. And when those visitors arrive, they spend money in our hotels, restaurants, attractions, and local businesses. Sports Tourism Is Bringing More Visitors to Owensboro One of the biggest contributors to Owensboro's fall tourism performance has been sporting events. During October 4–10, hotel occupancy increased from 57% last year to 75% this year. That's a significant jump for one week, and sports tourism played an important role. The inaugural Hockey on the Ohio tournament brought four American Collegiate...

  Senator Gary Boswell Recognizes Mark Calitri, Visit Owensboro CEO, for Kentucky Tourism's Economic Impact During the 2026 Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce Candidate Forum, Kentucky State Senator Gary Boswell recognized Mark Calitri, President and CEO of Visit Owensboro, while discussing the economic power of tourism and its ability to generate revenue for Kentucky. Boswell pointed to Owensboro's tourism success as an example of how attracting visitors, conventions, sporting events, and festivals brings new spending into communities and generates tax revenue for the state. Under Mark Calitri's direction, Visit Owensboro has worked to grow tourism through events, sports, conventions, and attractions that bring visitors to Owensboro and Daviess County. From the Owensboro Convention Center and Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum to Barbecue & Barrels and major sporting events, Owensboro continues to demonstrate the economic value of tourism. Boswell's comme...

  Owensboro hotels reached 70% occupancy in September, the highest September occupancy on record. The number tells a bigger story about what is happening across our community. September brought a strong mix of conventions, sporting events and community events to Owensboro. The Kentucky Justice Association brought new convention business to the community with the help of local attorney Chris Rhoads. The Kentucky ambulance conference brought attendees to Owensboro and included training at Kentucky HealthForce, putting one of our community’s newest assets to work in a new way. Sports also played a major role. Owensboro hosted the All “A” volleyball tournament, Kentucky 2A volleyball and soccer, and Special Olympics Kentucky State Softball. The Owensboro Air Show and Groovin’ on the Green added to a month that kept hotels, restaurants and businesses busy. But tourism and events are only part of the story. The work of GOEDC and our economic development partners continues to bring new bu...

  NEVER Waste the Opening of Your Next Meeting or Speech By Mark Calitri | Public Speaking & Leadership NEVER, and I mean NEVER, open an important meeting or speech with “Good morning, everyone” or “My name is…” You've just wasted the one moment when you had everyone's attention. Whether you're presenting to a board of directors, delivering a keynote speech or pitching an important idea, your opening sets the tone for everything that follows. You've got seconds to make people want to listen. How to Command the Room From the Start Get straight to the reason you're in that room. Lead with the problem that matters or the question everyone wants answered. Give your audience a reason to listen before you introduce yourself. I've sat through plenty of presentations where the speaker lost the room before getting to the point. A strong opening changes that. It gets people thinking, creates interest and gives you their attention when it matters most. Watch the video ...

Kentucky Native Hannah Durbin: From Richmond to the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds One of the best parts of my work with Visit Owensboro is meeting people whose stories are bigger than the event that brought them here. Capt. Hannah Durbin is one of those people. Hannah is a Richmond, Kentucky native and serves as the Public Affairs Officer for the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds. She returns to Kentucky this week as the Thunderbirds headline the Owensboro Air Show. I recently had the chance to interview Hannah through my work as President of Visit Owensboro. What stood out was how unlikely this path once seemed. Hannah first learned about the U.S. Air Force Academy during her junior year of high school. She had no military background and leaving Kentucky was a big step. “I didn’t have any military members in my life at the time, and I was scared,” Hannah told me. “Luckily, I had some phenomenal mentors who saw before I did that it was a great fit for me.” That decision opened doors she could ...

  Owensboro Hotels Are Full. This Is What Winning Looks Like. Sometimes the best measure of tourism success is simple: Are people coming, and are they spending the night? This weekend in Owensboro, the answer is clear. The Messenger-Inquirer reports that Owensboro hotels are nearly sold out as two major events come together: the Owensboro Air Show , featuring the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, and the Special Olympics Kentucky State Softball Tournament . Downtown hotels have been sold out for months. Hotels across Owensboro are filling up, and some Special Olympics teams are having to look outside the community for rooms. “We are trying to get the Special Olympics a few more rooms,” Mark Calitri, President & CEO of Visit Owensboro , told the Messenger-Inquirer . “We are running out of rooms at the Courtyard at Kentucky 54,” Calitri added. That tells you something. An estimated 55,000 to 60,000 people are expected along Owensboro’s riverfront for the Air Show. At the same time, ...

 Nearly 20 years after Nicky Hayden became MotoGP World Champion, his impact is still being felt in Owensboro. Owensboro Living recently featured Nicky’s championship legacy and included comments from Mark Calitri, President and CEO of Visit Owensboro, about what that legacy still means to the community. Mark Calitri told the magazine, “Everywhere he raced, people knew exactly where he was from, and he proudly carried the name Owensboro with him.” That connection is still real today. Visit Owensboro regularly hears from visitors looking for the Nicky Hayden statue, the Hayden brothers’ Walk of Fame plaque and information about the annual memorial ride. As Mark Calitri explained, some visitors come to Owensboro specifically because of Nicky. Others discover his story while they are here for a tournament, convention, festival or river cruise. One story in the article says a lot about Nicky. The morning after winning the world championship, he got up early and went running. He had rea...