Twenty questions with Jeanine Rhea
Editor's note: This is the first in a series of articles highlighting leaders in Yuma's hospitality industry, provided by the Yuma Visitors Bureau.
Yuma's Hampton Inn and Suites was recently recognized as an outstanding hotel in the chain. It was the recipient of a prestigious Lighthouse Award, designating it as one of the top performing Hampton hotels.
The Yuma hotel, which opened in October 2005 at 1600 E. 16th St., placed No. 8 out of the more than 1,400 hotels in the Hampton chain. The award recognizes the hotel for its high rankings in quality, guest satisfaction and business performance, based on guest surveys and corporate inspections.
General manager is Jeanine Rhea, 36. Since relocating to Yuma from Cleveland to open the hotel, she has become active in the community. Rhea serves as president of the Yuma Innkeepers Association and is an executive committee member of the Yuma Visitors Bureau. She also is a member of Yuma Rotary.
In an interview conducted by Yuma Visitors Bureau, she shares some personal information about herself.
Q: Where did you grow up?
A: I was born in Los Angeles. My family moved to northern California when I was a baby, and we also lived in England for two years. When I was 12, we moved to Kwajalein, a tiny island (1.5 square miles) Army base in the Marshall Islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, where I lived until I graduated from high school.
Q: How long have you been in Yuma?
A: I moved to Yuma in May 2005, several months prior to our hotel opening in October.
Q: How long have you been with Hampton/Hilton?
A: I started with Hampton in 2002. This is my third Hampton and the second one that I have opened. Before that, I worked with Hilton Corporate at an Embassy Suites in Massachusetts.
Q: How did you get into the hospitality business?
A: I owned and operated a driving school in Yuba City, Calif., for 4-1/2 years before deciding that I needed a career change. Since I did not know what I wanted to do, I took a career assessment test at the local community college. The second-place result was hotel manager. It sounded interesting so I met with the general manager of the largest hotel in town, started working at the front desk and was promoted to management within six months.
Q: What’s your favorite part of your job?
A: Truly, the challenge of having to be a jack of all trades.
Q: What part of your job would you be happiest to delegate?
A: I am the queen of delegating! Not only does it take a load off my desk, but I’m developing my other managers so that one day they can achieve their own dreams
.
Q: What’s the one quality a successful hotel manager absolutely needs?
A: Knowing how to put your strengths to work for you - and what your weaknesses are so that you can put together a well-rounded team.
Q: What keeps you sane when everything goes wrong at once?
A: I always keep a positive attitude, remain calm and work through the challenges. As a manager, I realize that our staff takes their cues from me.
Q: What about Yuma most surprised you when you arrived?
A: The people here are so welcoming. I came to Yuma not knowing a single soul and found within weeks I had a whole network of new friends.
Q: What’s Yuma’s best-kept secret?
A: Yuma is actually much larger than it feels. It has retained a welcoming, small-town atmosphere.
Q: What would you miss the most if you left Yuma?
A: I would really miss that sense of belonging that I feel and believe that I have a "voice" here
.
Q: What’s your own favorite getaway?
A: Since I grew up on an island, the ocean calls to me. My "heaven" is the central coast of California where my dad lives.
Q: Nonnegotiable necessity in a hotel room?
A: A comfortable bed! This is something that had been overlooked in our industry. Now after years and years, it dawned on them the reason why people stay at hotels in the first place: to sleep.
Q: Proudest professional achievement?
A: Winning the Lighthouse Award for the Yuma Hampton in 2006, the first year we were eligible. And my staff is even prouder of it than I am.
Q: Favorite meal?
A: Mexican food.
Q: Guilty pleasure?
A: An expensive bottle of Central Coast wine.
Q: Married?
A: No.
Q: Children?
A: Yes. I have a grown daughter, Rachel, who is married and has two children.
Q: Pets?
A: Two fish.
Q: Thing about you people are most surprised to learn?
A: People are always very surprised that I have a grown daughter and two beautiful grandchildren. I had my daughter at a very young age, stayed in school and worked hard to get where I am today. I like to share my story with young single mothers because it shows that if you believe in yourself and work hard, there is no limit to what you can achieve.
