FROM YOUR CHAIRMAN
“Far from tearing us apart, this pandemic has galvanized us.
We are singularly focused. We are engaged in saving
our industry. We are charting a new way forward.”
2 PULSE ■ SEPTEMBER 2020
WRITING THIS LETTER FOR
PULSE will be the first official duty I
perform as ISPA Board Chairman, a role
that has been so ably filled by so many
great names in our industry—Kolb,
Tompkins, Kent, Waldvogel, Root,
Segerberg, Shaw and Mersberger, to name
a few. I’ll be honest: it’s daunting, facing
the blank page as the blinking cursor asks,
“Well, what do you have to say?”
Today, our industry is at a crossroads,
and it often feels as though our very
survival is on the table. I am here to tell
you, ISPA family, that we will survive this
time, and we will come out of this stronger and more resilient than we previously thought possible.
But I don’t want to talk about face masks, cleaning solutions or that pressing question, “To glove, or
not to glove?” Instead, I want to talk about the silver lining surrounding the cloud that is COVID-19:
the collaborative spirit our industry has demonstrated during the pandemic and the incredible level
of engagement our industry has had with ISPA these past few months.
ISPA’s Reopening Toolkit and our recent virtual events reveal the impact of that engagement
and collaboration. The toolkit has had over 180,000 views and downloads since launching in April,
while our ISPA Town Hall Series and our Chats with Product Pros have reached more than 18,000
participants on various platforms.
Both of these successful initiatives are the results of spa professionals worldwide coming
together on a volunteer basis to share their hearts, their knowledge and their real world
experiences to help the brilliant ISPA staff create and deliver a roadmap to reopening during a
difficult time.
Far from tearing us apart, this pandemic has galvanized us. We are singularly focused. We are
engaged in saving our industry. We are charting a new way forward.
It’s anyone’s guess what the future holds, but our ability to weather this storm is reflected in our
willingness to stay engaged with one another and safely engaged in providing treatments and
services, manufacturing products, educating new service providers and mentoring tomorrow’s
leaders. By doing that, each of us breathes life into our industry and creates the human experiences
that are our real work.
—PATRICK HUEY, CHAIRMAN
ISPA BOARD
OF DIRECTORS
ELECTED OFFICERS
CHAIRMAN
Patrick Huey
Montage International
VICE CHAIRMAN
Michelle Adams Somerville
Woodstock Inn & Resort
SECRETARY/TREASURER
Kelleye Martin
The Edgewater Spa
DIRECTORS
Natasha Burns
Seeking new adventure
Jill Carlen
Seeking new adventure
Brennan Evans
Trilogy Spa Holdings
Kristine Huffman
Hutchinson Consulting
Lynelle Lynch
Bellus Academy
Dawn MacLellan
St. Andrews Country Club
Jay Muller
Technogym
Frank Pitsikalis
Foundation Chairman
ResortSuite
Eric Savage
Freedom Spa, LLC
Yvonne Smith
La Rive Spa at Northern Quest
Resort & Casino
Eric Stephenson
Elements Massage
Jessica Timberlake
Éminence Organic Skin Care
ADVISOR TO THE BOARD
Garrett Mersberger
IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR
Todd Shaw
Lynne McNees
President
International SPA Association
MEDICAL ADVISOR
Brent A. Bauer, MD
Mayo Clinic