Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association Welcomes New Press Secretary
Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association Welcomes New Press Secretary
(February 6, 2013) – The Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association (FRLA) today announced that former Jacksonville television reporter Elizabeth Cate joins as the organization’s new press secretary. Cate begins the post this week in the Tallahassee headquarters. FRLA’s current press secretary, Lauren Searcy-Clark, has relocated to Pensacola upon her recent marriage. Her last day is February 28, 2013.
“On behalf of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, I would like to welcome Elizabeth Cate to our team,” said FRLA President/CEO Carol Dover. “Her extensive experience as a reporter covering tourism and business issues enables her to immediately impact our communication efforts, particularly as we begin the 2013 Legislative Session.”
Prior to her move to Tallahassee, Elizabeth Cate worked as a TV news reporter at WJXT-TV in Jacksonville, Florida where she covered Presidential visits, tropical storm Beryl, and the city’s effort to revitalize downtown. Her move to Florida’s First Coast in 2011 was preceded by a two year reporting assignment on the Emerald Coast at WMBB-TV in Panama City where Elizabeth covered one of the largest environmental disasters in U.S. history, the BP oil spill.
Elizabeth began her pursuit of journalism at the University of Florida. She started in radio as a reporter and made her way to the anchor desk on the evening news at WUFT-TV. She graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in telecommunication-news, as well as a degree in political science.
Born in East Tennessee, but raised in Tampa, Elizabeth is proud to call the Sunshine State her home. She’s thrilled to become a resident of Tallahassee where she’s engaged to be married later this year.
About the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association
FRLA’s mission is to ‘Protect, Educate and Promote’ Florida’s hospitality industry – which represents a $67.2 billion industry, 23% of Florida’s economy, $3.4 billion in sales tax revenue, and over one million employees, making it Florida’s largest employer. It is Florida’s premier non-profit, hospitality industry trade association. FRLA safeguards the needs of the hospitality industry, improves the business climate, promotes the highest levels of quality and safety for our patrons, provides legislative advocacy, and eases navigation of government regulation. The Association represents and serves more than 10,000 independent and household name members, including theme parks. For more information, go to www.FRLA.org.
