We lost an industry icon

Bill Kirk was one of our best and brightest. 

Bill had an impressive and very impactful career within the Texas lodging and tourism industry, having held senior leadership positions within the lodging industry as well as in the destination marketing and country club realms. 

Within the lodging industry, Bill was a Certified Hotel Administrator (CHA) and served for 14 years as General Manager of Scott & White Hospital Properties, Inc., in Temple, Texas, where he managed their 129-room full-service hotel. Bill also served as General Manager of a number of other Texas lodging properties including the Ramada Galleria West Hotel in Houston, the Fort Worth Hilton, and the Quality Inn South and the Sheraton Crest Hotel, both in Austin, Texas.  In all of these capacities,

Bill was renowned for his ability to impact not only the results of each hotel, but also his acumen for taking incredible care of the hotel employees and guests. 

Hospitality in his blood

Bill also served for five years as the General Manager of the Rockport Country Club, and as Director of Destination Sales for the Corpus Christi Convention & Visitor’s Bureau.

Many of us within the lodging industry knew Bill from his volunteer activities on behalf of the Texas Hotel & Lodging Association (THLA). Bill’s impact on the Texas Hotel & Lodging Association was immense. Bill served as Chairman of THLA, as President of THLA’s Legal Defense Fund, as well as President of the Association’s Hotel Review Company.

His leadership facilitated the ability of the Association to recover during a very difficult economic period and to evolve to become the largest and most successful state hotel association in the country.

Even after Bill ended his term as Chairman of the THLA Board, he continued his service every year to the association, providing key advice every budget cycle and through his singlehanded management of the association’s entire investment portfolio.

A servant’s heart

Bill’s volunteer services also included stints as President of the Austin and Fort Worth Hotel & Lodging Associations, President of the Georgetown Country Club, and Chairman of the Temple Convention and Tourism Advisory Board. Bill’s educational background included a Master of Human Services Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in English & Government, both from St. Edward’s University in Austin.

His background and on point instincts in the area of Human Services were instrumental to both the organizations that employed him and within his many volunteer leadership capacities.

Bill was a transformative and thoughtful leader who will be missed beyond words. Bill is survived by his beautiful and beloved wife of 42 years, Marsha Kirk.

Memorial contributions can be made to the American Cancer Society. For those who would like to contact his wife Marsha, she can be reached at marsha.kirk @aol.com.