Eco Serendib - Villa and Spa

David Benton

Vice President and General Manager, The Rittenhouse Hotel and Condominium Residences

Graduated from Cornell's School of Hotel Administration in 1971 -Bachelor of Science

Work History:

Lex Hotels, London England 1971-1973
Chateau Louise Resort, Dundee, Illinois 1973-1975
Americana Hotels 1975- 1985
Americana Hotel - New York City -- Food and Beverage Manager
Fiesta Americana Hotels - Mexico -- Corporate Food and Beverage Manager
Americana Hotel - Lake Geneva, Wisconsin -- Resident Manager
Americana Host Farm and Corral Resort - Lancaster, Pennsylvania
General Manager
Amerimar Enterprises, Inc. 1985 - Present
Denver Place - [Mixed-use Complex]
General Manager
The Rittenhouse Hotel and Condominium Residences
Vice President and General Manager
Board Member - PCVB; member of International Marketing Committee
Board Member - Cradle of Liberty Council, Boy Scouts
Board Member - Restaurant School at Walnut College
Board of Visitors - Temple University, School of Tourism and Hospitality, Executive-in-Residence
Board Member - Delaware Chapter, Chaine de Rotisseuers
Leadership Council - Elizabethtown College, Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania
Board Member - Philadelphia Art Alliance, Vice-President
Board Member - GPHA, Events Chair
Editorial Board - Hotelexecutive.com
Advisory Board - Lifestyles Magazine
Board Member – HERO Scholarship Fund
Advisory Board – Widener University – School of Hotel Management

Born in London, England
Married: Ilyce. Daughters: Melissa and Samantha

Julius "Dr. J" Erving

Legendary NBA Hall of Famer

Known the world over as simply “Dr. J”, Erving spent 16 years dazzling basketball fans with prolific scoring and all around hoop heroics. A superstar with the Virginia Squires and New York Nets of the American Basketball Association, Erving also spent 11 remarkable seasons as captain and all-star representative of the Philadelphia 76ers.

In five ABA seasons, Erving was named most valuable player in 1974 and 1976, was co-MVP in 1975 and captured three ABA scoring titles.

With the 76ers, Erving earned most valuable player honors in 1981, was named to the NBA 35th Anniversary All Time Team in 1980, was an All Star in each of his 11 NBA seasons, was All-Star MVP twice and was All NBA five times.

In 16 professional seasons, Erving finished with a 24.0 scoring average and 30,026 points, fourth highest total of all time behind Kareem Abdul jabber, Wilt Chamberlain and Karl Malone.

Erving retired from professional basketball in 1987and since divided his time between entrepreneurial projects and community service efforts.

Erving was one of only seven players to average more than 20 points and 20 rebounds per game during his NCAA career at the University of Massachusetts. He left UMASS early to sign with the ABA and continued to take classes. He received his degree in 1986 and also received his honorary Doctorates from Temple University and the University of Massachusetts. Erving was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993.

Erving has frequently been recognized for his devotion to civic issues. Some of his past awards are the Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award, the Whitney M. Young Award from the Urban League and the Father Flanagan Award from Boys Town, the American Express Man of the Year Award, the Big Brothers New York City Sports Award, the David Zinkoff Memorial Sportsman of the Year Award and the National Consortium for Academics and Sports.

Affiliations:
President: The Erving Group, Inc.
Ambassador: National Basketball Association
Spokesperson: Converse
Director: Fusion Telecommunications
Trustee: Basketball Hall of Fame
Member: National Basketball Retired Players Association

Manfred Esser

President, Esser Vineyard, Former President, Cuvaison Winery

In 1974, Manfred Esser came to the United States from Germany and in a short period of time, acting as both President and CEO, built from zero the multi-million dollar wine import and marketing business Pieroth WIV-USA based in Chicago, Illinois. When he left, the organization had 30 sales offices with 500 employees selling a broad international wine portfolio.

Esser became president and part owner of Cuvaison winery in the Napa Valley in 1986. At that time, the winery's sales were down considerably with a high-accumulated loss. Two years later, the winery broke even and shortly thereafter, sales were at an all time high.

Following the sale of his share in Cuvaison Winery in 2000, Manfred Esser founded Esser Vineyards with his family, fulfilling his long-held dream of taking California wines to an even greater level of excellence and distinction.

Throughout his thirty plus years in the wine industry working and traveling both nationally and abroad, Manfred has earned the reputation from many as a marketing guru. He coined the phrase “Guilt Marketing” and has presented training sessions on this topic worldwide for distributors, leading hotels and cruise lines. Esser wines are distributed in over 40 countries internationally from China to Dubai.

Manfred attended Harvard Business School AMP and is fluent in both English and German.

Georges Perrier

World renowned Chef & restaurateur, Le Bec-Fin, recipient of Mobile five-star rating for twenty four consecutive years.

Originally from Lyon, France, Perrier began his accomplished culinary career at age fourteen. He trained with the great chefs at some of the finest restaurants of France including Michel Lorrain of Casino de Charbonnières near Lyon, Jacques Picard of L'Oustau de Baumanière in Provence, and Guy Thivard at La Pyramide in Vienne, owned by the legendary Ferdinand Point.

Chef Perrier arrived in Philadelphia in 1967 as Head Chef for Peter von Starck's La Panetière. Three years later, Perrier opened his own restaurant at 1312 Spruce Street. He named the restaurant "Le Bec-Fin," a French idiom for "the good taste." The small restaurant quickly became a Philadelphia institution. Visitors to the city considered Le Bec-Fin an essential stop, and regular patrons traveled from New York and Washington D.C. for a single meal.

In 1976, Chef Perrier was inducted into the Maîtres Cuisiniers de France, the premier international society of French chefs. In 1989, those members of Maîtres Cuisiniers voted Perrier "Chef of the Year" and awarded him with the Silver Toque, the most coveted trophy in the world of haute cuisine.

The restaurateur refused invitations to relocate to Manhattan, Los Angeles and Chicago, opting instead to pave the way for Philadelphia's restaurant renaissance.

In 1983, Chef Perrier acquired an historic art deco building at 1523 Walnut Street out of which he created one of the country's most elegant restaurants. The new location enabled Le Bec-Fin to add a private banquet room, a separate smoking dining room and an intimate downstairs bar and bistro, Le Bar Lyonnais. With the opening of Le Bar Lyonnais in November 1990, Perrier created the complete restaurant, thereby fulfilling his lifelong dream.

In the 35 years since its inception, Chef Perrier and Le Bec-Fin have received the highest accolades in the hospitality industry. Le Bec-Fin is the only dining establishment in Pennsylvania to receive the five-star rating from the Mobil Travel Guide and has been for twenty-four years standing. In 1994, readers of Condé Nast Traveler magazine chose Le Bec-Fin as the #1 restaurant in the country. The restaurant continues to garner top honors in prestigious publications such as Gourmet, Food & Wine, Esquire and Wine Spectator magazines.

Randy Thurman

Chairman, President & CEO, CardioNet, Former Chairman, CEO & President, VIASYS Healthcare

Chairman, President & CEO, CardioNet, Former Chairman, CEO & President, VIASYS Healthcare

Randy Thurman is the current Chairman, and former President & CEO of CardioNet. Randy most recently was Chairman & CEO of VIASYS Healthcare Inc. (NYSE:VAS), a global leader in respiratory, neurological and medical/surgical technologies. Randy founded VIASYS in 2001 and led the consolidation of 15 independent companies and the subsequent public offering on the New York Stock Exchange. In mid 2007 VIASYS was acquired by Cardinal Health Inc. in a transaction which represented a fourfold increase in enterprise value over the five years the company was public. Randy was named an Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year in healthcare technology in 2007. VIASYS was named by Smart Money magazine as one of the ten best investments for the decade.

Prior to joining VIASYS Healthcare Inc., Randy was CEO of Strategic Reserves LLC and participated in various entrepreneurial ventures including the start-up of two medical device companies, two genomics companies and, as Chairman of the Board of Enzon Inc., guided their growth from a $70 million market capitalization to over $2.5 billion. Previously, Randy was Chairman & CEO of Corning Life Sciences Inc. which grew from $700 million to over $2 billion in revenue and subsequently was spun off as two NYSE companies. Earlier in his career, Randy was with Rorer Pharmaceuticals Inc. and led its successful acquisition of Revlon Healthcare and subsequent merger with Rhône-Poulenc. Randy served as President of Rorer Pharmaceuticals Inc. and President, Rhône-Poulenc Rorer Pharmaceuticals Inc. Randy holds an undergraduate degree in Economics from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and an M.A. in Economics from Webster University. He also graduated from the United States Air Force Air Command & Staff College.

Ron Wilson

Former President, Chief Operating Officer, Philadelphia Coca-Cola Bottling Company

While serving as Chief Corporate Officer at Philly Coke, Ron Wilson led company in one of the largest growth periods in its history with sales increasing from 12MM to over 30MM cases / year; market share growing from 22 to 38%; dollar sales reaching over $500MM; and growing in size from the twelfth largest bottler in 1985 to the fourth largest bottler in 2006.

He is a successful, results-oriented Executive whose career shows rapid progression into increasingly responsible positions based on a high level of competence, business savvy, and drive. Ron is a passionate and focused individual who is committed to excellence and contributing to the community served. He leads by building partnerships and strong alliances to get things done. Ron is a dynamic speaker and mentor who has been recruited to inspire and educate.

Most recently, Ron has been involved with Skinny Water as an investor and advisor and Hybrid Heating Systems as a partner. He was inducted into the Beverage World Soft Drink Hall of Fame in Las Vegas in October, 2008.