Ex-Youngstown resident to head tourism bureau

The tourism bureau voted April 20 to offer the job.
By ED RUNYAN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- The Trumbull County Tourism Bureau has selected a 16-year veteran of the Washington, D.C., tourism industry to fill its executive director position.
Stephanie L. Sferra of Waldorf, Md., a graduate of Youngstown's Wilson High School, accepted the job and terms this week and is set to start in mid-June, said Mary Ann Porinchak, tourism board president.
Porinchak said the board voted at its April 20 meeting to make the job offer to Sferra.
Since 2002, Sferra has been marketing specialist for the Charles County Office of Tourism in southern Maryland, near Washington. For about 13 years before that, she worked as marketing manager for two transportation services in northern Virginia and as sales and marketing manager for a sightseeing tour operator in Washington.
"I am glad to be coming back home. I've been gone 20 years," said Sferra, who explained that she does not think she is related to former Warren mayor and state Rep. Dan Sferra.
Looking forward to challenge
"I feel there is so much to promote. This will be a challenge, but it will also be fun," she said of the new job.
"I love taking something that is nonexistent and making it into something good," she said. "My goal is to bring visitors to the area. Everybody benefits from it."
In all, Sferra has more than 30 years of experience in marketing communications, including two years at the Robert A. Sherman and Associates advertising agency in Warren, 1983-85. She graduated from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh.
Porinchak said Sferra has accepted the position at a salary of $50,000 per year and a $300 per month stipend for not needing health insurance.
"Her background speaks for itself," Porinchak said, adding that Sferra was by far the best candidate for the job based on interviews and background.
The tourism bureau, which moved to the former Land Office Building on Mahoning Avenue downtown from the former tourism office on Youngstown Road early this year, has been in operation since county commissioners formed the body late last year.
Sferra said the area has a lot to offer. She plans to make it her goal for visitors to discover the unexpected, such as the Amish community and general store in Mesopotamia, covered bridge in Newton Falls, and Packard Music Hall and Warren amphitheater.
"It's just a matter of pulling it all together," she said.
runyan@vindy.com