Marston officially named to tourism director post
Information center to be ready by Summer 2007
By Lee Raynor
Editor
Posted: 6:05 PM EST Wednesday January 25, 2006
A cold wind whipping around the intersection of U.S. 70 and U.S. 258 failed to daunt the small crowd of well-wishers who gathered Wednesday morning to hear the formal appointment of Lenoir County’s first tourism director.
Lenoir County Board of Commissioners Chairman George Graham announced Lucy Marston’s selection as tourism director to about 50 people gathered at the former state weight station, future site of the Blue-Gray Visitors Center. Marston will begin her job in two weeks, leaving open her current position of special events coordinator for the Kinston-Lenoir County Chamber of Commerce.
The crowd included John Marston, Lucy Marston’s husband, Kinston Mayor O.A. Ritch, representatives of several historic tourism groups, and various city and county officials.
Marston said she is excited about the new job, and looking forward to helping develop tourism in the area.
One of the information center’s most important missions is to promote historic tourism in Lenoir County. Marston admits she doesn’t have a broad knowledge of the subject, but is interested in area history.
A native of Lenoir County, Marston lived outside the state for about 25 years. She worked with the governor’s board on Louisiana historical projects while living there, but said she has little background in Lenoir County history.
“I’ve worked with the convention and visitors bureau in this county for about three years,” Marston said. “I know that doesn’t have anything to do with North Carolina tourism, but I did get my feet wet a little bit with the convention and visitors bureau. And I’ve always been interested in this thing.”
“We’ve never had somebody to devote 40 hours a week to going out and finding and bringing events to Lenoir County,” said Bill Ellis, parks and recreation director.
Listing the area’s volunteer historical preservation groups, Ellis told the crowd, “We’re going to pull everybody together, get everybody working off one page and we’re going to make good things happen in Kinston and Lenoir County.”
Marston will work with the Kinston Convention and Visitors Bureau, the city and the county to encourage local tourism, Ellis said.
“She’s going to be the legs for the (convention and visitors bureau),” Ellis said. “That board’s going to make a decision about what’s funded and what we bring in and what we don’t bring in, but she’s going to be the person going out and getting that. We’ve never had that before.”
Marston was the choice from among a number of applicants from North Carolina and other states, Ellis said. The job was advertised in the local print newspaper, and in tourism and parks-and-recreation publications, he said.
Her salary, about $35,000 annually, will be paid by the county. The city will be asked to help with the operating costs of the information center, Ellis said. Her temporary office will be at the Neuseway Nature Center planetarium.
Groundbreaking for the information center will begin in about three weeks, Ellis said. The center, which will be the first phase of a three-phase project, should be completed by Summer 2007. Next will come an auditorium, a monument and additional displays.
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