Twelve Months, Twenty Chapters, Countless Conversations

A year? How did that happen?

It has been one year since I started as the Executive Director of the United States Bartenders’ Guild, and what a year it has been. 

I joined this organization because it felt like a good combination of my years in non-profit leadership and my previous decade in the service industry working in places from dive bars to Disney. I thought the opportunity to help lead this organization would be a great way for me to give back to a community that, like many, had provided me with a home during a challenging time and then taught me skills that have been invaluable in life. 

I set out to continue that learning by making a commitment to get to as many chapters as I could and have as many conversations as possible with members, non-members, supporters and critics. I want to know what we do right, where we miss and how collectively we can advance USBG and the bartending community.  

So far, I have made it to twenty!

These visits and conversations were amazing and the things I’ve learned, combined with the experience of our staff and the leadership of the board has allowed for some exciting changes in just 12 months. 

We’ve heard the need for more value for the membership. So we found new partners and offers for our members: financial resources through Signature Federal Credit Union; small business resources for owners to pass along to their team from the Independent Restaurant Coalition; and a way to escape it all with Virgin Voyages. 

We’ve heard that the chapters need support to grow. So we realigned some staff to increase our engagement; are about to launch chapter-level merch stores to help chapters fundraise; and we’ve revamped how the 2026 Bar Summit will look and what it will cost to make it a better value for chapters to attend.  

We also took a good look at the programs we engage in.  Some we’re made tweaks, some we’ve revised completely, some we’ve replicated to be involved in new areas of the country and some that weren’t matched to our values we’ve stepped back from.  

USBG has successfully navigated significant change, and I am excited to play a role in writing the next chapter.  We’ll soon be cheering on Tean USBG in Chile and Columbia as they make their best efforts to bring home the PanAm and WCC trophies. Education month and Day of Service are coming up fast while the Helen David Relief Fund bike rides are rolling on!  

We also know these are challenging times and our community is on the front lines in many cases. We’ve taken the first steps as an organization to engage in advocacy and ensure that the voices and perspectives of bartenders are present in the conversation.  This work will expand as our coalitions grow and partners recognize that we will stand for our values. 

Planning and work toward 2026 is already underway as we look to continue to take the messages you share and turn them into positive forward movement.  I hope that I will get a chance to have these conversations with each of you at a chapter visit, a regional competition or Bar Summit in Philadelphia!  

Thank you for the engagement and the support over this last year, let’s make the next one even better!