Tim, the Director of Sales & Catering at the Hilton Garden Inn Seattle North/Everett, talks to us about the hospitality business, meeting Robert Plant, and going to school with a famous Vice Presidential Candidate.
DM: How did you get started in the hospitality business?
TC: I was going to go to law school after college but got a summer job at Caesars Lake Tahoe and decided I liked dealing with people on a congenial rather than adversarial level. So hotels and hospitality were it. (and I’m probably not smart enough for law school anyway)
DM: Who inspired you to take this path?
TC: A man named Mark Israel gave me a chance. He later became Vice President of one of the largest management companies in the US. He told me, “this isn’t rocket science, but you have to have the personality to be good at this. And you have to follow up. Those two things are the only things that will bring you success.”
DM: What is the most rewarding part of being in this business?
TC: Every day, I get to speak with incredible people. Even today, I met the CEO of a company that is developing Fusion Energy. Working with companies that help save the world, or help humanity (Wounded Warrior and companies like that) provides me with the feeling that I, too, am helping save the world and helping humanity.
DM: Is there an achievement or contribution that you are most proud of and why?
TC: Working with Habitat for Humanity makes me proud.
DM: What is your favorite place to visit in Mukilteo and why?
TC: Like almost everyone else, the waterfront and the Boeing Future of Flight Museum. It always fascinates me on what they are doing.
DM: If you could have dinner with someone (alive or dead, real or fictional), who would it be and why?
TC: Marilyn Monroe….Because it’s Marilyn Monroe.
DM: Do you have a favorite book, website, or podcast, and why?
TC: Oh, way too many to mention. Podcast, Hardcore History, Author, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, (100 Years of Solitude) and Carlos Ruiz Zafón (Shadow of the Wind)
DM: What do you think surprises people about you?
TC: Grew up in the back woods of Alaska. Went to school with Sarah Palin (Heath)
DM: What is the biggest challenge you face in the hotel business?
TC: Right now….Staffing.
DM: Do you have a favorite story about being in the hotel business? Please feel free to tell me.
TC: I was able to meet Robert Plant. He returned to The Edgewater, and at the concert, he said, “they let me back into The Edgewater, but they wouldn’t let me fish out the window this time” Read the Wikki on “the Mudshark Incident.” (Editor: Rolling Stone Fact Checked the rumor here).
DM: Is there anything else you would like to share?
TC: I think I spilled all the beans for now.
DM: Is there any question I should have asked you but did not?
TC: That’s always a good question, but I honestly don’t have an answer. I think you covered it.
Mukilteo Community Orchestra Concert on Sunday, May 22