EMERALD ISLE — Patricia Suggs, director of the Beaufort Historic Association, was presented last week the 2014 Jack Goldstein Award for promoting tourism in Carteret County.
The award is named in honor of the late Jack Goldstein, a longtime proponent of tourism in Carteret County, and was presented Jan. 28 during the Crystal Coast Hospitality Association’s meeting at the Islander Suites.
Founded in 1960 by a group of county citizens, the BHA is a private, nonprofit organization that owns and operates the Beaufort Historic Site. The BHA seeks to preserve and interpret the historic buildings and artifacts from Beaufort’s past 300 years. The association manages the 2-acre Beaufort Historic Site that includes six restored buildings, the Mattie King Davis Art Gallery and the Old Burying Grounds.
Ms. Suggs has been involved with hospitality in the county since 1999, when she became BHA director. She said the award was an honor.
“Jack Goldstein is a legend in the tourism industry. His whole life was dedicated to putting Carteret County on the map as a tourism destination. To even be mentioned in the same sentence as Jack is an honor, but to win an award named after him is extremely rewarding,” said Ms. Suggs. “The best part of my job is meeting people from all over the world and seeing how much they enjoy visiting Beaufort and Carteret County. Preserving the history of Beaufort at the historic site is easy because of our great volunteers who take such special pride in the association.”
The BHA has grown during her tenure, reaching more than 1,700 members. It has been recognized for its efforts, receiving awards from the American Association of State and Local Histories and the Caraway Award from Preservation North Carolina and the Albert Ray Newsome Award from the N.C. Society of Historians for its restoration of the 1796 County Courthouse. The BHA also received national and state awards for its restoration of the John C. Manson House.
The BHA hosts annual events such as the Valentine Membership Drive, the Summer Party, the Christmas Candlelight Tour and the Old Homes Tour and Antiques Show.
Ms. Suggs oversees 14 full- and part-time staff members and coordinates with more than 300 volunteers. The BHA has an annual budget of more than $500,000.
In addition to her work with the BHA, Ms. Suggs has served on numerous other boards and committees, including the Carteret Community Foundation, the Wells Fargo Board, the Carteret Community College Hospitality Committee, the Beaufort Food and Wine Board, the Beaufort Tourism Committee and the Beaufort Pirate Invasion Committee.
Mr. Goldstein, who died in 2013 at 96, worked closely with legislators to craft the state law creating the county occupancy tax on hotel, motel, condo and cottage rentals that funds tourism promotion and beach nourishment here.
He served on the Indian Beach Board of Commissioners, the Carteret County Beach Commission, the County Tourism Development Authority and the Crystal Coast Hospitality Association. He was a former director of the State Travel and Tourism Coalition, chairman of the Carteret County Fire Commission and was a co-founder of N.C. Coast Host, a nonprofit dedicated to the promotion of tourist sites and attractions along the state’s Coastal Plain, and a founding member of the N.C. Shore and Beach Preservation Association.
In 2008, he was presented the Order of the Long Leaf Pine by then-Sen. Jean Preston in recognition for his service to the state.
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