Why we started AVANTI
Our Story
After nearly twenty-eight years in hospitality, one truth has become clear to me: this industry gives a great deal, and it asks for a great deal in return.
Hospitality has given me friendships, experiences, and opportunities I could never have imagined. It has also asked for sacrifice. This is not an easy profession. It takes resilience, character, and a genuine commitment to serving other people — day after day, year after year.
And yet, after decades of giving so much, too many hospitality professionals reach the later stages of their careers without enough savings, without health coverage, without retirement preparation, and without a realistic way to slow down.
For nearly ten years, I wanted to find a meaningful way to give back to the people who have given so much to this industry. The moment it clicked was a simple one: so many worthy causes have dedicated champions — yet almost no one was standing, exclusively and without apology, for the people who power hospitality.
That realization is now becoming the AVANTI Hospitality Foundation.
Avanti means "forward" in Italian. That is exactly our purpose — to move hospitality forward by supporting the people who make it possible.
We are proud to build this foundation alongside a founding team who bring deep hospitality experience, complementary expertise, and a shared belief that the people of our industry deserve stronger support.
We are beginning in Tucson, Arizona, with a clear goal - to build a model that can one day serve hospitality professionals far beyond it.
Our work stands on three pillars.
Financial Foundation — helping hospitality professionals strengthen their financial habits, build savings, and prepare for what comes next.
Career Longevity & Transition — creating pathways from physically demanding roles into more sustainable ones, so a career in hospitality can continue.
Dignity & Support — providing structured, respectful assistance to hospitality professionals facing hardship.
It is humbling to work among such an incredible group of dedicated and committed people. I am grateful to be part of something that gives me the opportunity to give back to those who give so much of themselves.
Hospitality has given so many of us a great deal. Now it is time to give something back.