Good Things Happen in Threes

Three is not a crowd — especially for Carolyn Lyons, who, when she is not working as a training coordinator for Continental’s Tampa Reservations Support Desk, is actively pursuing her three passions — whales, theater, and emergency medicine.

“I have a love of marine mammals and all things whales,” she says.

Lyons teaches grade-school students about the giant marine mammals and has even organized a Marine Quest day that includes Navy SEALS and other marine groups. “If we can spark a little bit of interest with hands-on exhibits, we can help [students] learn to respect marine life and the environment more,” she says.

Lyons’ second passion, theater, dates back to her youth in New York, and she still hopes to make it on Broadway someday. For now, Lyons takes her talent for fund-raising to the Florida Gulf Coast Ballet Company, where her daughter dances, and helps to raise scholarship money with a yearly silent auction.

Lyons also organized A Night at the Oscars for her daughter’s Catholic school. “We needed to raise money for the new school, so we held a gala black-tie event,” she explains. She even gave dance lessons to the priest and principal, working with them on a daily basis, so they could lead the first dance. The silent auction, which Lyons also organized, raised $120,000 for the school. She was extremely proud to watch her daughter graduate this year in the school’s first commencement ceremony.

When not teaching about whales or participating in dance or theater, Lyons keeps her emergency medicine certifications current. “I was a volunteer paramedic in New York and also taught CPR,” says Lyons, who is certified by the American Heart Association in infant, child, and adult CPR and is also certified to use an automated external defibrillator.

Lyons believes that pursuing passions brings rewards. “I want to give back,” she says. What she gets back is more than she ever expects, as evidenced by the smiles and hugs she received from a group of 130 dancers to whom she was a volunteer house mother for four weeks. “All I did was braid their hair for the big show,” Lyons recalls. All they did was thank her over and over for making them look perfect.

Clubbing in Las Vegas

The newest Presidents Club is now open at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas. The Club boasts approximately 5,000 square feet of space with 144 seats, and large windows that overlook the world-famous Las Vegas strip.

Amenities include complimentary wireless Internet service and complimentary bar service. The bar also sells premium wines.

“We are excited to add Las Vegas to the Presidents Club network,” says Janice Foster-Pietro, Continental’s marketing manager for Presidents Club and Ground Products. “The new club is the first airline club inside security at McCarran that has all the features our members have come to appreciate.”

The club is in Terminal D on Level 3, a short walk from Continental’s gates. It’s open from 5:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. — L.O.

Strategic Thinking

The Houston Strategic Forum (HSF) will host the Houston Strategic Conference Thursday, October 2. The theme for this year’s strategic conference is Houston Growing Globally.

Speakers at the conference include Larry Kellner, chairman and CEO of Continental Airlines; John Mendelson, MD, president of M. D. Anderson Cancer Center; Clarence P. Cazalot Jr., president and CEO of Marathon Oil; and Robert E. Beauchamp, president and CEO of BMC Software.

HSF is a nonprofit, volunteer organization whose mission is to facilitate the sharing of solutions to business problems.

The Houston Strategic Conference is open to the public, and more information is available at houstonstrategicforum.org. Continental is proud to be a partner of the Houston Strategic Forum. — L.O.