Submitted by Thurston Economic Development Council
After the holiday weekend, the Thurston EDC welcomed two new faces to their team.
Aslan Meade who previously worked for the EDC as their Community and Rural Development Manager now joins the team as their new Business & Investor Relations Manager. Aslan’s past experience with SideWalk, Sustainable South Sound, Buy Local Program and campaign management for two of our local elected officials has built up his impressive network of business connections. In this position, Aslan will ensure that the Thurston EDC continues a strong relationship with our local community and keeping true to the organization’s mission of building a strong and vibrant regional economy. Aslan will develop and implement an investor relationship program that ensures all investors to the EDC understand their value and importance. Creating a consistent message about the value of the Thurston EDC is a subject of great focus for Aslan. He will be working with our new Marketing and Events Manager to bring this message to fruition.
Karissa Benjamin is brand new to the Thurston EDC as the Marketing and Events Manager. She is a graduate of Washington State University’s Sport Management program which puts a heavy focus on the marketing and event planning practices in today’s organizations. She comes to us from Tacoma Community College working as the Athletics Department Assistant. Previous to that, Karissa worked as the Events Coordinator for the Lacey South Sound Chamber. Through her education and experience, Karissa has built up the skillset she brings today to the Marketing and Events Manager position. She will be working closely with all team members to create marketing materials and promotional efforts that support the many facets of the Thurston EDC. She will also be the lead in planning and executing the EDC’s major annual events. In addition, she will also be planning all of the EDC’s smaller events throughout the year. Karissa is bringing her energy, team-oriented spirit and expertise to this position and has already gotten planning for the EDC’s fall events underway.
