Plattinum Passport

TRAVEL WELL WITH THE PLATTINUM PASSPORT TRAVEL PANEL

The Plattinum Passport Podcast Travel Team is back again!! They kicked us off last year with travel tips for the Fall and Winter. In this episode, the conversation comes full circle with their ideas for Summer and Fall travel, budget-friendly travel tips, the best times to travel during the Summer and Fall, and a list of things to think about when planning your next travel adventure. Andrae Marable, Cathy Parsons and Scott Warren also share their favorite summer spots, their best travel experiences this year and more!  ABOUT ANDRAE MARABLE  At the age of 21, Andrae J. Marable set a goal to travel across the United States with a focus on exploring the food, wine, and spirits of each state. He believes food, wine, and spirits all reflect things like the history, heritage, traditions, and values of a people and place and what they are passionate about. His travels have taken him to all 50 states and multiple cities in Canada and Europe. To share his passion and experiences with others, he founded The Pack Roadtrip Travel Club in 2014. In 2015, he was named the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce Portsmouth Small Business of The Year Award Winner. Throughout the year, he coordinates winery tours and food excursions in the Virginia and Washington DC area. He enjoys taking people off the beaten path to experience something new and broaden their horizons. Contact Andrae Marable, CTA at thepackroadtriptravelclub@gmail.com [thepackroadtriptravelclub@gmail.com] or  757-805-5759 Find out more at http://www.thepacktravelclub.com [https://www.thepacktravelclub.com] ABOUT CATHY PARSONS Hello, my name is Cathy Parsons. I am a member of the Plattinium Passport Travel team and live in the Northern Maryland/Delaware area. I started in the travel industry in 1998, as a natural fit being raised as an Air Force child and having the opportunity to travel to many destinations and experience several different cultures as a child. I took a few years off to work in the corporate world as the Director of Sales for Hilton and Marriott, but soon realized that my passion was in selling travel and working with customers to curate amazing travel experiences that leave them with a lifetime of memories. At Best Vacations LLC, I focus on Caribbean and International travel, both by land and by sea. This is an exciting and sometimes challenging time in the world of travel. Now, as we all are coming out of the Covid pandemic, we are collectively trying to find our new ground. Asking ourselves, who and what we really are after stopping everything for two years. Finding balance is important as we take control of our destiny, our finances, our health and dare to dream! This is why we are here with the Plattinium Passport Travel Team! It is our hope and our prayer that each episode will help you on your journey to freedom, inner peace, exploration, success, and good health.  Contact Cathy Parsons, ACC at Cathy@BestVacationsllc.com [Cathy@BestVacationsllc.com] or 443-593-4000  Check out her Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/BestVacationsLLC [https://www.facebook.com/BestVacationsLLC]       ABOUT SCOTT WARREN Scott Warren, CMP is the Convention Sales Manager and serves on the Virginia Beach Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) meetings and conventions team where he assists meeting planners to enhance and elevate social, religious and fraternal (SMERF) meetings. Scott’s expertise in the destination marketing industry also extends to events supervisor, convention center sales management, and visitor center management where he oversaw the first LEED certification for existing visitor center facilities. He is a graduate of Oglebay Venue Management School and became a Travel Marketing Professional in 2016 with the Southeast Tourism Society (STS). Scott holds a M.Ed. from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, VA and a BA Business Administration with a concentration in Computer Information Systems from East Carolina University in Greenville, NC. A native and lifelong resident of Virginia Beach, Scott enjoys spending time with his wonderful wife, two boys and their adopted rescue dog, Max. Contact Scott at sawarren@visitvirginiabeach.com [sawarren@visitvirginiabeach.com] or 757.385.6654 Find out more at VBMEETINGS.COM [https://www.visitvirginiabeach.com/meetings/]

ONE FOR THE BOOKS

Gary Anderson walked into his eighth-grade science class ready to teach his students. When he left a few years later, it was his students who had schooled him. Gary’s students changed the trajectory of his career and life. Listen as Gary details how they helped him discover his true passion and inspired him to go back to school. He also shares how his quest to invest in the success of his students led him to launch three nonprofit organizations, what caused him to run his first IRONMAN Race at 52 and more! ABOUT GARY ANDERSON Gary Anderson is a retired educator. He served as a school psychologist in public education for 37 years. He has founded 3 nonprofit organizations involving Read Aloud programs and is passionate about increasing literacy leading to a lasting, positive impact on children, families, and the community. He is married to Debbie, his college sweetheart, and they reside in Portsmouth, Virginia. In addition to his work with All District Reads, one of his other great passions is spending time with his 13 grandchildren. Click below to find out more about All District Reads and the student book clubs. https://alldistrictreads.org/ [https://alldistrictreads.org]

PAGING DOCTOR SHONNA JOHNSON

For Dr. Shonna Johnson, there were several twists and turns and aha moments on her way to realizing her childhood dream of becoming a doctor. Today she has a robust practice in her hometown consisting of patients from two months old to 102 years old. In this episode, not only does Dr. Johnson, a breast cancer survivor, give us a peak into her life as she tenaciously pursued her dream, she also offers tips for selecting a primary care doctor and being proactive about personal health and wellness. ABOUT SHONNA JENE JOHNSON, MD Dr. Johnson earned her medical degree from the University of Virginia in 2003. She completed family medicine residency training with Riverside Health System and Virginia Commonwealth University in 2007. Dr. Johnson is board-certified by the American Board of Family Medicine. With more than 20 years of experience, Dr. Johnson views her family medicine practice as more of a personal mission than a job.  Dr. Johnson was a participant in the inaugural class for the Riverside Leadership Institute. Her group’s capstone project was selected as the overall winner and was implemented into the health system as the current E consult and enhanced referral system. As the physician lead for this project, this has become a passion of hers to help patients get the care they need from specialists and to help with the back log of referrals. Dr. Johnson also serves on the Culture and Communication Committee as well as the Primary Care Steering Committee. She was recently selected to serve on the Medication Reconciliation Committee. she is the Physician lead for the Outpatient division.  Dr. Johnson enjoys caring for patients of all ages and has a special interest in diabetes care and women’s health. A Hampton native, Dr. Johnson still lives in the area and appreciates its beautiful water views. In her free time, she enjoys playing and listening to music. Dr. Johnson has been married to her childhood sweetheart for 27 years and they have an adult daughter and son.

A LEADERSHIP JOURNEY: SONIA ALCÁNTARA-ANTOINE

The leadership series continues with Sonia Alcántara-Antoine. Sonia is not only the CEO of Baltimore County Public Library (MD), but she recently became the President of the Public Library Association (PLA) which has almost 9,000 members in communities around the United States and Canada. PLA is the largest association serving public library professionals. In this conversation, Sonia shares her leadership journey and the importance of not being afraid to say yes, building a strong network, overcoming imposter syndrome and becoming confident enough to show up unapologetically as your authentic self. . . even in spaces where there aren’t a lot of folks that look like you. ABOUT SONIA ALCÁNTARA-ANTOINE Sonia Alcántara-Antoine is the CEO of Baltimore County Public Library (MD), overseeing 19 branches, 550 dedicated staff, and a budget of $45 million. She was recently named one of the Top 100 Women in Maryland. Prior to joining Baltimore County Public Library, she was director of Newport News Public Library (VA) and held leadership positions at Virginia Beach Public Library (VA) and Enoch Pratt Free Library (MD).  She is the president of the Public Library Association and is on the board of the Maryland Association of Public Library Administrators. Sonia is proud to be an American Library Association Spectrum Scholar, and holds a Master’s degree in Library and Information Science from Florida State University and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Old Dominion University. Sonia is a renowned speaker and thought leader on the art and science of library leadership, actively shaping the profession for today and tomorrow.  Click below to find out more about Sonia and the Public Library Association. https://www.ala.org/pla/about/people/board/alcantara-antoine [https://www.ala.org/pla/about/people/board/alcantara-antoine]

THE GREAT ESCAPE

Have you ever thought about just up and leaving it all behind? Your work, your belongings, your home . . . EVERYTHING?!!! Would you actually do it? In 2022 LaShon and Steven McKay ACTUALLY did! And so began a brand new life adventure for the couple.  ABOUT LASHON & STEVEN MCKAY Steven and LaShon McKay have been married since 1998. They have two adult children, and two granddaughters with a third on the way. Steven served in the US Army and has worked primarily in security and corrections since leaving the military in 1999. His last position was as the Quality Control Supervisor with Newport News Juvenile Services where he worked for 13 years. LaShon worked with several institutions in the field of finance. Her last position was at Old Dominion University.  After some research in January 2021, Steven and LaShon decided to plan for an early retirement and travel and live abroad. The original plan was to leave after 2-3 years, but after the pandemic and rapidly increasing home values, they accelerated their timeline. At the end of February 2022, they quit their jobs, and sold their home and moved to Ecuador on March 31st. To document their experiences, the McKay’s began a Youtube channel in September 2022. Their audience has grown steadily, and they also have two additional channels focused on their hobbies.   Steven contacted Plattinum Passport to share the couple’s story after he saw a piece about the podcast on the local news on the ABC affiliate, WVEC-13. You may follow Steven & LaShon on their journey at https://youtube.com/@LivingLovingAbroad [https://www.youtube.com/@LivingLovingAbroad]. Click here [https://www.13newsnow.com/video/news/local/making-your-mark/making-a-mark-this-norfolk-woman-launches-a-podcast-with-a-purpose/291-fc33c55b-c34d-48c6-b9dd-3a3c29d4981d] to see Clenise’s interview about the Plattinum Passport podcast with WVEC -13 anchor Ashley Smith.