Kudos

TODD: “Frances started as a volunteer for Discover Life in America in 2012, and has continued to help our organization in various ways over the last few years. She has been a superb performer in each role which she has played for our organization and has far exceeded expectations for productivity. I have worked with countless volunteers during my tenure, and Frances stands out as one of the very, very best. In fact, DLIA staff view her more as a professional colleague than a volunteer and have assigned complex and responsible tasks to her, which would not usually be entrusted to volunteers. I give Frances my highest recommendation as an extremely bright individual with an extraordinarily positive attitude toward work. Her skill level is unmatched when it comes to writing, editing, and people skills. If you are looking for someone to help take your organization to the next level Frances is that person.”

~Todd Witcher, executive director, Discover Life in America, todd@dlia.org
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GED: “Terra Incognita Ecotours worked with Frances Figart to develop a social media marketing strategy that accurately reflected who we are as a company and helped move us forward. Frances listened to our goals and concerns, provided helpful and insightful guidance as we developed our strategy, and importantly turned our hopes, wishes and desires into reality. Frances was easy to work with, responsive, and recognized that our business pulls us a hundred ways and she gently pushed us to embrace new technologies and new marketing arenas. The whole shift into these new arenas was pain free and easy thanks to the efforts of Frances. She has been a pleasure to work with at every stage of the campaign.”

~Ged Caddick, owner, Terra Incognita Ecotours, ged@ecotours.com

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TOM: “Frances brought depth to Business Lexington’s coverage of issues pertaining to the development of a sustainable local and regional economy with a particular focus on tourism. She was willing to accept challenging, complex assignments, reliably producing a balanced, considered article that often found its way to our front page. As a long-time resident of the region, Frances understands the interests and dynamics of our readership. Frances’ career has taken her to Canada and Central America, affording her the ability to bring a global vision and international perspective to local issues. She is a highly reliable professional and we were pleased to publish her byline.”

~Tom Martin, editor in chief, Business Lexington, tom@bizlex.com

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HANS: “Frances worked with Cayuga Sustainable Hospitality as the Social Marketing Director for most of 2010 and part of 2011 and we feel that her contributions had a very positive impact on our web community and potential guest interest in our hotels. As a writer and editor, she showed great sensitivity to the peculiarities of each hotel and contributed many new ideas to engage the online audience. She developed several marketing campaigns for us to use and her creativity helped us to become more visible on the web and increase our followers and fans by one third. The in-depth interviews she has conducted with our hotel owners, members of our staff, industry professionals and myself have been very popular with our online audience and have shown that she understands our business and environments that we operate in. I would highly recommend Frances’ services to anyone in the sustainable travel industry. She takes initiative and brings enthusiasm and professionalism to every task.”

~Hans Pfister, president, Cayuga Sustainable Hospitality, hans@cayugaonline.com

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JACKIE: “I first met Frances more than a decade ago when we were both in the Lexington, Kentucky area working with organizations to improve the status of women. She was the founding executive director of GO Women, an organization she started to empower women, and I held the same title for the Women’s Enterprise Institute, a women’s business center. It was only natural that our professional paths would cross. Serving on the Board of Directors for GO Women, I witnessed her accomplishments: reaching fundraising goals, acquiring grants, recruiting and managing volunteers, and planning programs and events. Seeing Frances mentor GO Women participants prompted me to ask her to work directly with the clients of the Women’s Enterprise Institute. With her own success starting a non-profit organization, she was not only a mentor, but a model. A blend of vision and implementation skills assures she will be involved in innovative projects, such as designing a new magazine like Modern Traveler. My friendship with Frances continues and I always look forward to her next adventure—which I know will be eloquently written about and shared with the world.”

~Jacquelyn Markham, Writer, Educator, and Independent Scholar
cultureconnections@embarqmail.com

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PAUL: “Frances was the creator and Executive Director of GO Women (Greater Opportunities for Women), and she brought me in from time to time as a guest lecturer, as well as drew upon my graphic design and writing skills when needed. Frances was profoundly influential in empowering women to grow internally, as well as to better prepare themselves for personal and professional achievements. To this end, she developed classes, seminars and activities spanning a wide range of skills and interests. Her unique ability to connect people and resources has made profound and lasting changes in the lives of many, and I was honored to be a part of it.”

~Paul Ramey, writer/designer, The Blood Alliance, rameypf@me.com

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CINDI: “Having worked with Frances in the past on her GO Women project and many others, it’s been my experience that Frances brings an abundance of energy, knowledge and commitment to all projects she undertakes. She takes time to learn the perimeters of her clients needs and focuses in on a targeted strategy to best meet those needs. She has an innate sense of connecting people and ideas in just the right way to maximize their potential. She is very community minded; seeing the big picture is second nature to her. A very organized and thorough professional.”

~Cynthia Cusick, artist, teahorsestudio@yahoo.com

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CANDACE: “As owner of Winchester Therapeutic Massage, l was fortunate to have Frances build my web site. In the beginning, l wasn’t sure that l even wanted a web site but what a fantastic job she did of making a project l was apprehensive about actually enjoyable. She listened to my ideas, carried out my vision. She was so easy to work with, reliable, professional and knowledgeable. Her ideas complimented my own. l also had the privilege of working with her as the clothing coordinator in the GO Women program she created. She is an effective leader who is community as well as globally minded. She will be an asset in any business.”

~Candace Toole, former owner of Winchester Therapeutic Massage, cfoxtoole@yahoo.com

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MARK: “When Frances was editor in chief at Courier, the National Tour Association’s monthly magazine, we worked together on a monthly basis on assigned stories. In addition to great attention to detail, she was a gracious editor. She also opened my eyes to the quality you could achieve with a digital camera – I still remember her cover shot from a trip she took to Switzerland. It inspired me to take my own photos to accompany my travel articles.”

~Mark Rogers, travel writer, Go Destination Marketing, markrogers222777@hotmail.com

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HANS PETER: “I worked with Frances when I was a National Tour Association member trying to build business for agricultural tours in Iowa. Right from the start I could tell that Frances, the association’s magazine editor, was a team player, always looking for that angle that was going to help fellow NTA members succeed. She is highly organized and enthusiastic in everything she does. And her diverse, creative background gives her a wide view of any business environment. We have remained good friends in the intervening years and I am very pleased that Frances has chosen to promote my sculpture through her online presence.”

~Hans Peter Jorgensen, sculptor,  hpj42@msn.com

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VAL: “My husband’s and my planned trip to Costa Rica was falling apart – my e-mails were going unanswered and my phone calls failed to get through to a live person. It wasn’t long before I discovered that the company with whom I had been trying to confirm my reservation with was going out of business. Fortunately, a third party recommended Seascape Kayak Tours. Before I had even had a chance to send Seascape an e-mail, I received a friendly e-mail from Frances Figart, Seascape’s director of marketing and communications at the time. Frances was aware of our situation and was quick to set my mind at ease. Throughout the booking process I found Frances to be exceptionally pleasant and efficient to deal with. E-mails were always promptly and informatively answered. What really impressed me most about Frances was her frequent e-mail updates, from the time of booking through to the day before our flights to Costa Rica. After having experienced the fear of almost losing a substantial booking deposit on the first trip, this little extra touch was very much appreciated. Once we met in person, Frances’ warmth and genuine concern and appreciation for all living things connected us on a level that goes far beyond flawless customer service. I am privileged to now count Frances as a friend and I highly recommend her to any organization that is looking for an efficient, well organized, warm and friendly tourism professional.”

~Valerie Sheppard, Associate Faculty Royal Roads University/Faculty Justice Institute of BC,  vsheppard7@gmail.com

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BRIAN: “Frances has been a long-time ambassador of Sustainable Travel International and has steered many new contacts and clients our way over the years. In her travel editing roles she has worked with us to feature educational articles that promote our programs, allowing us to reach a broader audience of the mainstream travel market, as well as sustainable tourism professionals and responsible travel consumers. Frances recently edited our publication Tour Operators’ Guide to Sustainable Tourism and has provided invaluable expertise and guidance over the course of the last five years. We recommend her warmly and hope to work with her on future initiatives in sustainable travel.”

~Brian T. Mullis, CEO, Sustainable Travel International, brianm@sustainabletravel.com

Frances Figart bio on STI site

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DAVE: “Frances is a focused, passionate and vibrant writer and tourism/travel marketing professional whom I’ve known since 2007. While working with her on a major ecotourism conference for The International Ecotourism Society (TIES), I got a first glimpse of her energetic focus on helping businesses and organizations succeed in an effective and dynamic way. Since then, I’ve seen her show that same commitment to her clients, over and over again. I highly recommend Frances if you’re in search of someone to help take you to the next level.”

~Dave Butler, RPF, RPBio, Director of Sustainability, Canadian Mountain Holidays, DaveB@cmhinc.com

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CARYN: “I’d like to share what a fabulous job Frances Figart did in conceptualizing Modern Traveler, an eco-travel publication, and in attracting and directing an excellent team to deliver a beautiful 16 page preview version. Frances was highly professional, full of integrity and fun throughout the process of fully demonstrating her ability to deliver a print publication from start to finish. I look very forward to working with Frances on future projects.”

~Caryn Smith, self employed Business Consultant, caryn@carynsmith.com