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Meet the VocationVacations® Team


Brian Kurth, Founder and President of VocationVacations®
Brian was born and raised in Madison, Wisconsin, and graduated with degrees in Political Science, History and International Relations from the University of Wisconsin before moving to Chicago to earn his Masters Degree in Political Science from Loyola University. Before launching VocationVacations®, Brian spent more than a decade in the corporate world. Early in his career, he lived and worked in Tallinn, Estonia, helping set up an office automation company in the immediate post-Soviet period. After returning to Chicago, he worked his way up in the telecommunications industry with AT&T and Ameritech (now AT&T) taking an assignment in Budapest, Hungary, as a product marketing director for Matav, a joint venture between Ameritech and Deutsche Telekom. Once again returning to Chicago, he went on to become the director of business development for a dot.com startup.

The VocationVacations concept was born on Chicago's Kennedy Expressway during one of Brian’s long, daily commutes. Numb from his lack of passion for what he did for a living and staring at brake lights, he wondered what it would be like to be a wine maker, a tour guide or a dog trainer. Brian wanted to explore his dream jobs through a company offering working adults short-term “internships” while on vacation. But with research, Brian realized such a company did not exist. A business idea was born. He went on to work at the dot.com -- only to get a pink slip in late 2001. After the lay-off, Brian took a six-month road trip across the United States and parts of Canada. During his travels, he realized the time was right to dust off his unique business idea. At the end of his trip, Brian moved from Chicago to Portland, Oregon. After first test-driving a dream job in the wine industry, he created his ultimate dream job by launching VocationVacations® in January, 2004.

Brian is a “Vocationer” himself and is a sought-after expert on how to pursue and attain one’s dream-job lifestyle (what he calls the “Vocationing Process”). Since launching VocationVacations, Brian has made guest appearances on NBC’s Weekend Today Show, MSNBC’s Your Business, CNN, BBC, CBS Marketwatch Weekend, Bloomberg Television, FOX News, ABC News, NPR, PBS and numerous other television and radio programs across the US, Canada, the UK, Australia and Japan. Brian loves the balance of living in a cosmopolitan city such as Portland yet close to the ocean, mountains and Pinot Noir vineyards. The VocationVacations’ downtown Portland office is humble but “hip” with views of the city and Mt. Hood.

Brian is living his dream-job lifestyle now - helping other people pursue their true passions in work…and in life!


Melissa Townsend, Mentor Relations Director
Melissa “Missy” Townsend is a lifelong Portlander (Oregon, that is). As a child, Missy dreamt of being a chef. She created restaurants in her family’s basement where she pretended to cook for and serve guests. As soon as she graduated from high school, she started working in restaurants to save money for culinary school. Missy graduated from Western Culinary Institute in 1987 and went on to become a chef for seventeen years! But after all that time in the kitchen, Missy began to dream of something else.

Missy met Brian Kurth at a charity golf tournament in 2002. With time Brian disclosed his business idea to Missy – she was completely intrigued. By May of 2004, Missy was ready to move on to her next career. She wanted to help others live out their dreams, as she had lived out hers! Missy’s second career is turning out to be her own VocationVacations® holiday. She gets to meet wonderful people who are incredibly passionate about their work from all walks of life all over the country!
melissa@vocationvacations.com

Lisa Morgan, Business Development
Lisa Morgan hit the eject button on her corporate career in 1997, when she left one of the world’s largest computer software companies in pursuit of a new goal – to no longer get 500 emails a day! Lisa then took a crack at starting a golf clothing business. A year later, a dear friend and mentor was diagnosed with breast cancer and died only six months later. Lisa started questioning everything and eventually closed her business. In 2000, Lisa used a year-long bicycle journey around the world (trekking across 6 continents and 45 countries with 250 other cyclists) to raise thousands of dollars for breast cancer research.

In December, 2004, Lisa stumbled upon an article about VocationVacations® in Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Magazine. She was immediately intrigued. A few months later, while visiting Portland, Oregon, she had a serendipitous meeting with VocationVacations® founder, Brian Kurth. It wasn’t long before Lisa joined Team V-V to head up Business Development.

Lisa now resides in beautiful Austin, Texas where she enjoys a peaceful practice of yoga and meditation (and still bikes, of course). Her dream job is to be happy and make every day count…AND to be on the pit crew of a car racing team!
lisa@vocationvacations.com

Jennifer Ross, Marketing
In March 2006, Jennifer read a magazine article about VocationVacations and reached out to Brian Kurth, Founder & President. Brian’s need for additional marketing leadership and Jennifer’s expertise in marketing was a great match!

Jennifer brings 14 years of marketing experience to the VocationVacations team, most of which she spent at JPMorgan Chase, where she was a Credit Card Marketing Director focused on strategic partnerships and the design and start-up of new, innovative revenue channels. Jennifer left the corporate world in 2005, purchasing a retail business. After growing the business and gaining valuable experience as an entrepreneur, Jennifer later formed Intuitive Marketing Inc., a Strategic Marketing Company based in Long Island, NY that focuses on co-creating client marketing strategies, partner development and marketing management.

Jennifer also served as a speaker for “Making It Count,” a division of Monster.com, and visited high schools to discuss career and college. Inspired to continue on this path, Jennifer is currently pursuing a Global Career Development Facilitator certification.

Jennifer’s passions include her family, friends, pets, and maintaining an active, fun lifestyle. She is a mother of 3 and is focused on creating a flexible and successful work life and inspiring others to do the same. jen@vocationvacations.com

Dianne Haines, Public Relations
Dianne Haines grew up in St. Louis, but shortly after college she hit the Oregon Trail and has never looked back.  This trail initially took her to eastern Oregon where she became the co-owner and publisher of a weekly newspaper and quickly learned the joys and tribulations of owning your own business.  After a successful 10-year tenure at the award-winning newspaper, Dianne decided it was time to leave the 24/7 newspaper life and set out for new adventures. 

This time the trail led to Washington state where she brought her communication and public relations skills to the non-profit sector as Area Director of United Way on Whidbey Island and then as communications manager for  United Way in Seattle. The corporate world finally caught up with Dianne when she moved back to Oregon, landing in Portland as the public affairs manager for Key Bank of Oregon and then as Vice President of Public Relations for U.S. Bank, Oregon’s largest bank.

Although Dianne was a “bank merger survivor,” she decided it was time to take a step back and reexamine exactly what it was she wanted to do.  She put away her banker suits and left the corporate world for private consulting, working with corporate and non-profit clients to meet their public relations and communications needs.  Then, a good friend said to her, “I just met this guy who started a company with a really unique concept. You should talk to him.”  That guy was Brian Kurth, founder of VocationVacations.  While he was walking down the streets of New York City, Brian returned Dianne’s call, and they set up a meeting back in Portland.  “A few hours and several cups of coffee later, I was hooked,” says Dianne.   

A true Northwest convert, Dianne enjoys snow skiing, the wonderful Oregon wine country, and Oregon’s beautiful beaches.  An avid traveler, she and her husband York have traveled extensively in Europe and take every opportunity to find another trail to travel, another adventure to explore.
press@vocationvacations.com

Will Wiebe, Lead Life Coach
As a professional business & life/career coach, Will Wiebe brings twenty years of professional experience with executive leadership, community relations, program development, organization development and human development to the VocationVacations® holiday team. His consultant services include one on one and group coaching, team building, communication skills and group facilitation. Will lives his dream job each day by applying his creative, nurturing and compassionate life-coaching style to help guide individuals, groups and businesses/organizations to transformation and exploration of their fullest potential.

Will's passions include working with others, his family, outdoor recreation, cycling and living life to its fullest. An adventurous spirit imbues Will's family. He is proud to support his wife, Lisa, and daughter, Andrea, in their outdoor love of hiking, which recently lead them to complete a 300-mile backpacking trip covering the Oregon portion of the Pacific Crest Trail. Will's son, Aaron, shares the adventurous spirit and recently worked with an "AMERICORPS" team to create youth leadership programs in New Hampshire and spent two months helping a Brazilian village build clean water systems and establish dental health care programs.
will@vocationvacations.com
http://www.willcoach.net

Photo of Brian Kurth by Cheryl Juetten