�AH&MA serves an important role in our industry and I look forward to playing a more prominent part in its leadership,� said Huckestein. �Hilton Hotels is very committed to supporting and growing the association.�  Formed as a result of a bylaw change at the November 2000 board of directors meeting, the Nominating Committee is chaired by the immediate past chairman of AH&MA. Other members are the AH&MA officers and, based on the amount of dues their state

Dieter Huckestein

Huckestein is responsible for operations of all of the company�s full-service owned and managed hotels, which includes some of the most prestigious hotels in the world � The Waldorf=Astoria, the Hilton Hawaiian Village, The Palmer House Hilton, the Chicago Hilton, and the Hilton New York. A 31-year veteran of the hospitality industry with Hilton Hotels Corporation and Hilton International, he currently serves on the board of AH&MA�s Educational Institute and is a member of the American Hotel Foundation (AHF) board of trustees and chairman of the AHF Investment Committee. He is a graduate of the Heidelberg Hotel School in Germany, where he received an academic scholarship to study at Cornell University. 

AH&MA�s current officers are Chairman John Russell, hospitality industry president of THINKologies, Inc; Vice Chairman Kirby Payne, president of American Hospitality Management, LLC; Secretary/Treasurer Michael Handlery, senior vice president of Handlery Hotels, Inc.; and Immediate Past Chairman Bob Slater, president of Southern Hospitality, Inc. 

AH&MA, founded in 1910, is a federation of state lodging associations throughout the United States with some 11,000 members worldwide, representing more than 1.4 million rooms. AH&MA provides operations, technical, educational, marketing, and communications services plus governmental affairs representation to the lodging industry.