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Explore Minnesota Tourism Council Members

Council members are appointed by the Governor.
Lauren Bennett McGinty
Council Chair
Explore Minnesota
(651) 757-1844
Robert Farnsworth
Senator (2026)
MN State Senate
(651) 296-8436
Grant Hauschild
Senator (2026)
MN State Senate
(651) 296-1789
Joe McDonald
House Representative (2027)
MN House of Representatives
(651) 296-4336
Liish Kozlowski
House Representative (2027)
MN House of Representatives
(651) 296-2228
Xinyi Qian
UMN Tourism Center Representative, ex-officio (2028)
University of Minnesota Tourism Center
(612) 625-5668
Rachel Thompson
Central Region (2027)
Visit Greater St. Cloud
(320) 202-6728
Courtney Ries
Metro Region (2027)
Meet Minneapolis
(971) 221-2686
Beth Pierce
Northeast Region (2027)
Iron Range Tourism Bureau
(218) 749-8161
Ed Hoffman
Southern Region (2028)
Lake City Chamber of Commerce
(651) 345-4123
Daniel Hartman
At Large Representative (2027)
Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center
(218) 623-1201
Heidi Swank
Arts and Culture Representative (2027)
Rethos
(702) 371-6217
Shannon McKeeth
Bed & Breakfast Representative (2028)
Bingham Hall Bed and Breakfast
(507) 276-5070
David McArthur
Campground Representative (2027)
In The Woods Campground
(218) 204-0647
Laurie Staiger
Chamber of Commerce Representative (2028)
Woodbury Chamber of Commerce
(651) 578-0722
Kate Setley
Convention Facility Representative (2027)
River Centre
(651) 755-5164
Nicholas Leonard Ph.D.
County Representative (2028)
Otter Tail County
(218) 998-8057
Danyl Vavreck
Festivals & Events Representative (2027)
Minnesota State Fair
(651) 288-4328
Ashlee Ciora
Golf Representative (2028)
Women on Fairways
(602) 750-7070
Marianna Khauv
Lodging Representative (2028)
Best Western Plus Chelsea Hotel
(612) 770-3748
Erika Rivers
Outdoor Recreation Representative (2028)
Wilderness Inquiry
(651) 342-3373
Frank Soukup III
Resorts Representative (2027)
Whitebox Marketing
(320) 200-7443
Mike Schwieters
Resorts Representative (2028)
Boyd Lodge
(612) 269-1105
Stephanie Shimp
Restaurant Representative (2027)
Blue Plate Restaurant Company
(612) 916-0166
Molly Luther
Retail Sales Representative (2027)
Molly Poppin's Gourmet Snacks
(978) 979-3871
Sara Soli
Sports Representative (2028)
NSC Sports
(612) 817-1909
Paul Larsen
Tour Operator Representative (2028)
Ed-Ventures
(507) 289-3332
Colleen Smith
Tourism Business Representative (2028)
Vista Fleet
(763) 742-3714
Jana Webster
Transportation Representative (2027)
Minneapolis/Saint Paul International Airport/Foundation
(612) 726-5235
Justin Graddy
Travel Media Representative (2028)
Buffalo Media Group
(952) 649-0529
Cheyanne St. John
Tribal Nations Representative (2028)
Lower Sioux Indian Community
(507) 697-6321
Beth Helle
Staff
Explore Minnesota
(651) 757-1872
Marya Barsanti
Staff
Explore Minnesota
(651) 757-1885