Welcome to a new feature that we'll be including in each edition of ROOST News: the Staff Spotlight. Every other week, we'll introduce you to a different, randomly chosen member of the ROOST team. It's a fun, smart, eclectic bunch, so make sure not to miss this feature in each ROOST News! Name: Mary Elizabeth Gallagher Where do you live? Lake Placid Where are you from? Rouses Point How long have you worked at ROOST? Since August 2015 Job at ROOST? Operations and Service Coordinator - Assist with servicing conferences held at the Conference Center at Lake Placid, and maintain and tracks ROOST contracts. What do you like about working at ROOST? I find it enjoyable to work with my coworkers to continually market and assist in bettering our regions. It's easy to go to work everyday when your coworkers seem a little more like family. What are your three favorite things to do outside of work? 1) Spend time adventuring with my husband and dogs. 2) Hang out with family/friends. 3) I love to cook and try new recipes when I have free time. Tell us about your pets and/or children. I have two amazing rescue dogs, Hoagie and Frankie. They are both boxer lab mixes who enjoy the Adirondacks and all of the adventures. Who is your hero and why? My parents. They raised five children (who I think turned out pretty well). They taught us to love, live, and do unto others as you would like done unto you. They are selfless, and I hope to be half the person each of them is. What are you passionate about? I am very passionate about sports. I love watching and or partaking in anything competitive. What's the last movie you went to? What did you think of it? Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. I loved the movie! The movie reminded me of Harry Potter of course which was one of my favorite series during my childhood.

LAKE PLACID — The Lake Placid Village Holiday Decorating Contest Committee has announced details of the 2016 competition. Organizers are hoping local Lake Placid residents will deck the halls with their usual Lake Placid holiday creativity. One winner will be announced this year for each of the following commercial categories: Best of Show, Retail Windows, Civic Properties and Churches, Resorts, Hotel/Motel, B&Bs/Inns, Commercial (other than lodging). Residential winners will be selected from a variety of categories. Residential owners are encouraged to be creative this year. Traditionally the awards have included categories such as Most Elegant, Best Gingerbread Theme, Children’s Delight and others. The judging panel will look at these and create other categories to go along with the creativity they find while out selecting their favorites. A panel of judges annually selects the properties whose decorations, in their collective opinion, represent the best of Lake Placid. Judges are volunteer representatives from the community at large. The committee is supported by staff from the Lake Placid CVB/Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism. Residents and businesses who would like their property to be judged should ensure that decorative lights are on by 5 p.m. during each night between Dec. 9 to 15. Properties located outside the main village area, roughly bounded by Old Military Road, Route 73 to the ski jumps, Saranac Avenue to Price Chopper or past Cobble Hill Road. will need to contact the committee to be judged. Contact Sue Cameron at the Visitors Bureau at 518-621-3665 to be added to the list if you’re off the beaten path or outside the boundaries, or with any questions. Winners will be announced shortly after the final judging on Dec. 15.

Ski slopes, a recreational hub, and ROOST is hiring - read this week's ROOST News! ROOST

Welcome to a new feature that we’ll include in each edition of ROOST News: the Staff Spotlight. Every other week, we’ll introduce you to a different, randomly chosen member of the ROOST team. It’s a fun, smart, eclectic bunch, so make sure not to miss this feature in each ROOST News! Name: Brooke O'Neil Where do you live? I live in Lake Clear (where I just bought my first house - whoop whoop!), but I grew up in Bloomingdale! How long have you worked at ROOST? I have worked at ROOST for just over a year and a half. What do you do at ROOST? Marketing & Media Buyer- I coordinate digital media buying, and then manage those campaigns to make sure our marketing plan is implemented and successful. I also coordinate quarterly promotional contests, as well as organize our photo database. What do you like about working at ROOST? My favorite part of working for ROOST is that we are able to accomplish all of the things we get done, while still having plenty of fun! We're a very energetic and creative group! Tell us about your pets and/or children. I have a 5-year-old chocolate lab that I rescued four years ago, and he is the best dog I could have ever asked for. Some rescue dogs can have a number of issues, but Brody is the most lovable and loyal dog ever. He follows me everywhere, and I mean everywhere, and I think it's because he's a giant marshmallow, but I don't mind giving him extra love! Some might say I am obsessed, but if you saw his face....he just melts your heart and it's hard not to be! Who is your hero and why? Oddly enough my younger brother is my hero. He's four years younger than me, but in some ways he definitely has it more figured out than I do. The thing I admire most about him is that he doesn't care what anyone else thinks about him, and he never compares himself or his life to anyone else's. He's genuine, and he's true to himself, and sometimes I wish I was more like him! What places are on your travel bucket list and why? What's your favorite place that you have traveled to? If I could pick one place in the world to travel to, I would definitely pick Greece simply for the fact that it looks absolutely beautiful! I also really want to go to Hawaii, and my cousin just moved there, so I may be planning a trip in the near future! My favorite place I've ever traveled to is Jamaica, and it was incredible. It was the first time I ever left the country so it was a huge eye opener for me that not everyone is as fortunate as I am, but I had a blast learning about the culture and indulging in Caribbean life! That is one trip I will never forget! What are you passionate about? One thing that I have always had a passion for in life is figure skating. I started skating when I was 7 years old, I fell in love with it right away. I competed in a number of competitions when I was younger, and I continue to coach with the local skating club. My coach was always a huge influence in my life, and I hope that I can give that to some of my students because they are amazing!

ROOST partnered with the Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce this summer to survey participants of the bass fishing tournaments that occur in the Lake Champlain Region. ROOST and the TACC worked together to create a survey for participants, and postcards that helped distribute the survey link. The postcards were shared with tournament directors and circulated among participants at each tournament, which occur between May and October on Lake Champlain. The survey was initially born through ROOST's Destination Planning effort in the Lake Champlain Region and Ticonderoga area. ROOST is currently calculating the economic impact the tournaments have the area. Highlights: - 71.7% of respondents say they heard about the tournament because they have participated before. This indicates that many participants are return visitors. (40.2% from fishing club membership or pre-qualification, and 24.5% from friends or family.) - 45.6% of respondents say that they have participated in 11 or more fishing tournaments in the Ticonderoga Area / Lake Champlain Region. This is more support for repeat visitors. - 62.5% of respondents say that they have traveled to the Ticonderoga Area / Lake Champlain Region for trips other than fishing tournaments. This shows that the fishing tournaments could be driving other visitation, although that's not guaranteed to be the case. - 24% of respondents stayed 2 nights, and 21.3% of respondents stayed for 6 or more nights. - 98.9% of respondents say that they would return to the Ticonderoga Area / Lake Champlain Region. The full survey results can be found on roostadk.com.