Ponca City Chamber & Tourism wins Redbud Award

The Ponca City Chamber of Commerce & Tourism Bureau won a coveted Redbud Award Tuesday night at the Redbud Awards Gala for the Ponca City Visitors Guide.

The Oklahoma Travel Industry Association hosted the gala at the Oklahoma History Center as part of the 2016 Oklahoma Conference on Tourism.

Open to all Oklahoma tourism entities, the Redbud Awards represent the highest honor given in the Oklahoma tourism industry.

Emceed by Lt. Governor Todd Lamb and “Discover Oklahoma” host Jennifer Reynolds, 28 awards were given in 16 categories. The awards recognize Oklahoma’s top tourism attractions, events, programs and organizations for outstanding efforts to serve and promote Oklahoma’s tourism industry.

Competition entries must have been produced, published, broadcast or held between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2015. All entries were evaluated by a slate of tourism professionals on specific criteria, including customer service and experience, marketing effectiveness, media relations, variety of audiences reached, value, and overall creativity.



The winners include:



Outstanding Agritourism Attraction

Redbud: P Bar Farms

Merit: Girourd Vines Winery



Best Social Media Campaign

Redbud: Cherokee Nation Cultural Tourism

Redbud: Visit Stillwater

Merit: Sam Noble Museum



Best Brochure or Publication – Tri-fold or single sheet

Redbud: Duncan Convention & Visitors Bureau – Duncan Calendar.com

Merit: Sapulpa Main Street and Tour Sapulpa – Historic Downtown Sapulpa Walking Tour



Best Brochure or Publication – 10 pages or less

Redbud: Ponca City Chamber of Commerce & Tourism Bureau – Ponca City Visitors Guide

Merit: Oklahoma Wondertorium – WONDERPRO



Best Brochure or Publication – 11 pages or more

Redbud: Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum – 20th Anniversary

Merit: Lake Texoma Association – 2015 Guide to Lake Texoma



Best Overall Marketing Campaign

Redbud: Cherokee Nation Cultural Tourism

Merit: Visit Norman



Best Website

Redbud: Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Bureau – visitokc.com

Redbud: Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum – okcnm.org



Best Partnership

Redbud: Chickasaw Nation – Adventure Road

Merit: Greater Muskogee Area Chamber of Commerce & Tourism and Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame



Outstanding Media Coverage – Television & Online

Redbud: RSU Public Television – Living Grand on Grand Lake



Outstanding Media Coverage – Newspaper & Magazine

Redbud: The Artesian Hotel, Casino and Spa

Merit: Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Bureau



Outstanding Attraction

Redbud: Oklahoma WONDERtorium

Merit: Chisholm Trail Heritage Center



Outstanding New Attraction

Redbud: Science Museum of Oklahoma – CurioCity



Outstanding Temporary Exhibit

Redbud: Philbrook Museum – In Living Color: Andy Warhol Exhibit

Merit: Cherokee Heritage Center – The 2015 Miss Cherokee Exhibit



Outstanding Event

Redbud: Commanche County Memorial Hospital – Spirit of Survival

Merit: Pawhuska Chamber of Commerce – National Indian Taco Championship



Outstanding New Event

Redbud: Remington Park "Remington Bark"

Merit: Chishom Trail Heritage Center – Campfire, Cattle & Cowboys Gathering



Outstanding Lodging Property

Redbud: Chickasaw Nation / Artesian Hotel, Casino, and Spa

Merit: POSToak Lodge & Retreat



Tourism Organization of the Year

Redbud: Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Bureau



In addition to the Redbud Awards the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Kin Thompson of Northeastern State University. The award is presented annually by AAA Oklahoma and is designed to recognize a tourism professional who has spent decades working in and improving Oklahoma’s travel industry.



“Kin’s passion to serve and make the community and state better has been evidenced in his leadership and facilitation of professional development,” said Debra Bailey, President & CEO of the Oklahoma Travel Industry Association. “Dozens of organizations and people have been greatly benefited by his years of service, and we are proud to name him as recipient of the 2016 AAA Oklahoma Lifetime Achievement Award."