Sarah Churchill of Benjamin West Receives the ISHC Lori Raleigh Award
Photo from left to right: Alan Benjamin, President, Benjamin West; Sarah Churchill, Director of Business Development, Benjamin West; Andrea Belfanti, CEO ISHC
The International Society of Hospitality Consultants (ISHC) has named Sarah Churchill of Benjamin West as the recipient of the annual Lori Raleigh Award for Emerging Excellence in Hospitality Consulting. Churchill was honored at the ISHC annual conference held October 5-7 at the Park Hyatt in Washington, D.C. As the winner, Churchill received a one-year associate membership to the ISHC to further professional relationships and experience all that the Society has to offer through planned events and networking with top hospitality industry consultants from around the globe.
Churchill holds a bachelor’s degree in interior design with honors from East Carolina University. She started in the industry as a Project Coordinator at a hospitality purchasing firm in 2014. From 2014 to 2020, at two different firms, she was promoted to the positions of Project Manager and Senior Project Manager. In March of 2020, she joined Benjamin West as Sr. Manager of Business Development, reporting directly to Alan Benjamin. Sarah is currently serving as Benjamin West’s Director of Business Development, traveling throughout the USA, providing direct advice to owners, project managers, asset managers, and other stakeholders in establishing key budget and schedule metrics for millions of dollars of CapEx investments.
Sarah serves on the Board of NEWH Rocky Mountain Chapter as Past President and NEWH Delegate. During her time on the NEWH board, Sarah has assisted in mentoring and awarding numerous scholarships to local students studying in a hospitality or design-related field.
“It is an honor to receive the prestigious Lori Raleigh Award for Emerging Excellence in Hospitality Consulting from ISHC. As an organization that fosters growth and development opportunities for the hospitality industry’s most respected consultants, I truly appreciate the opportunities that the members of the Society have offered me and other young professionals in the industry. As ISHC celebrates its 35th anniversary this year, I look forward to being a part of the next generation of rising industry leaders within ISHC and leaving a lasting impact on our industry,” said Churchill.
Alan Benjamin, ISHC, President at Benjamin West, and Churchill’s Lori Raleigh Award Sponsor commented, “Sarah has a drive to succeed and a commitment to excellence and hard work that is extraordinary; her drive is anchored by a foundation of integrity. Sarah has a true desire to win. For Sarah, “good enough” is never good enough; she is always striving for the next level. Sarah is literally pushing me to be better at what I do, so she can be better at what she does in order for our company to deliver better service to our clients. Sarah is a person who chooses the positive and lives in what is possible. We can all learn from and be inspired by her.”
For more information on ISHC Awards, please visit www.ishc.com/awards.