Park News
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New appointments at IAAPA Brian Kirkland
The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) has welcomed three new staff members to its team, both at its headquarters in the USA and also its European office in Brussels. Brian Kirkland is the association’s new director of education programmes and services, assisting also with the management of IAAPA’s awards programme. He was previously assistant director of education at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO), as well as senior manager of learning with the American Society of
Association Executives (ASAE). Both Kirkland and Leslie Hutchinson, IAAPA’s new manager for family entertainment centre (FEC) initiatives, will work out of the home office in beautiful Old Town Alexandria, Virginia (near Washington DC). Hutchinson joins the association with extensive marketing and communications experience in the FEC sector, having spent 24 years working with facilities such as Sportsworld, Funfuzion at New Roc City and Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament. She has also volunteered on various IAAPA committees and on the board of K-W Oktoberfest, Attractions Ontario and Tourism Toronto.
Leslie Hutchinson In Brussels, Nico Reynders joins IAAPA Europe as
junior program manager, replacing Jakob Wahl. He will be responsible for recruiting new members, providing customer service and handling all online marketing for the office. He previously spent six years as the assistant front office manager at Hotel Mercure Leuven Center in Belgium. An amusement park aficionado, Nico holds a master’s degree in applied economics and a minor in marketing from the University of Hasselt. He speaks English, French and Dutch.
Nico Reynders Drayton Manor founders Vera
and George Bryan pass away Vera Bryan, wife of Drayton Manor Theme Park founder George HH Bryan OBE, passed away on 16 October – less than a month after her husband died. Vera and George were 96 and 92 respectively. Mr Bryan was a trained engineer with a passion for the entertainment
industry. He manufactured mechanical arcade machines with his father, William, who was known as the “King of the Penny Arcade.” During the Second World War he met Vera Cartilidge, in May 1942.
Vera’s family owned the “California in England” pleasure park in Berkshire, which provided the inspiration behind Drayton Manor. The couple married in December of that year. Following the outbreak of the war, George served in several military capacities but California-in-England was shut and the restaurant was converted into a factory manufacturing aircraft parts. George and Vera Bryan arrived at Drayton Manor, near Tamworth, Staffordshire, in 1949 with the intention of building a family amusement park. They paid £12,000 for 80 acres of land, covered with brambles, mounds of rubbish and old army huts. Along with a small, dedicated team they spent six months transforming the site. In April 1950, Drayton Manor Park opened with one restaurant, a tea room, three hand-operated rides, rowing boats, pedal cars and a set of second-hand dodgem cars. Today the park continues to be run and owned by the Bryan family, with the late couple’s son Colin (one of three children) serving as its managing director.
George, who passed away peacefully at home on 20 September, received the honour of OBE (Order of the British Empire) in 2004 in recognition for his dedication to hospital services and contribution to tourism. Both George and Vera were known philanthropists, supporting a number of charities. The couple leaves an enduring legacy in the shape one of the UK's most popular family attractions.
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12 George & Vera Bryan (Image courtesy Birmingham Mail) OCTOBER 2013
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