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Musselman Hotels has once again been named one of the Best Places to Work in Kentucky for 2022!
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The Seelbach Hilton

A luxury hotel. In every way. Enjoy the quintessential grand hotel experience. A luxury hotel. Modern amenities. Wrapped in a storied past that delivers a distinct character.

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Meet Our People

Chester Musselman

President and Chief Executive Officer

35 Years with Musselman

Rebecca Okruhlica

Chief Financial Officer

30 Years with Musselman

Jay Nichols

Vice President of Operations

5 Years with Musselman

Tanya Gresham

Director of Human Resources

6 Years with Musselman

Angie Yellina

Senior Accountant

30 Years with Musselman

Melanie Kelley

Corporate Director of Sales & Revenue Management

14 Years with Musselman

Lori Lastovich

Accounts Payable Supervisor

19 Years with Musselman

Amanda Burba

Staff Accountant

11 Years with Musselman

Megan Okruhlica

Accounting Support

10 Years with Musselman

A native of Louisville, Chester is a graduate of St. Xavier High School and the University of Kentucky. Chester started his business career as a home builder and eventually, that led to building and developing hotels. He developed his first hotel in Ashland, KY in 1989, which launched the career of Musselman Hotels. Since then the company has developed or repositioned more than 40 hotels under franchise agreements with Marriott, Hilton, Starwood and Choice Hotels. Currently, Musselman Hotels owns and/or operates twelve hotels throughout Kentucky and one in Virginia.

Chester is an avid golfer having played throughout high school and, on a golf scholarship, in college. He still plays as often as his schedule allows. He is a supporter of junior golf tours and programs throughout Kentucky.

Chester is blessed to have a great family with his wife of over 30 years, JoAnn, who is also active in the business, their two children and the associates he works with every day. “Once you work for Musselman Hotels, you become family”.

Rebecca grew up in Louisville, Kentucky, and graduated from the University of Louisville. She remains an active alumni and volunteers with the University Libraries. Rebecca held positions in private business and public accounting, including five years with Welenken Himmelfarb, before joining the management team at a private local company in 1989. In 1994, she joined Musselman Hotels as the Corporate Controller.

In her current role with Musselman Hotels, she and her accounting team have responsibility for all aspects of financial services and reporting at the corporate and the property level. She also manages the technology, taxes, human resources and benefits for the company. The creation and success of the company’s Wellness Program continues to be a passion.

Rebecca has been married to her husband Mark for over 25 years and they have three children.

Jay Nichols brings over 20 years experience in the hospitality industry to his role as Director of Operations with Musselman Hotels.  He began his hotel career in Crested Butte, Colorado while finishing his Bachelor’s degree at Western Colorado University.  Upon completion of college, Jay moved to Amelia Island, Florida where he worked in corporate events and operations.  From here he accepted a sales role with Marriot International and relocated to Fort Worth, TX prior to returning to his home state of Kentucky in 2005.  Upon his return to Kentucky he spent the last 14 years working for White Lodging in Louisville winning multiple awards to include General Manager of the Year.  His roles ranged from Sales Manager, Director of Sales and General Manager.  He was most recently the opening General Manager of the Homewood Suites Louisville Downtown before joining Musselman Hotels.

Jay is married to his wife Laura Beth and is the proud father of two boys, John Ross and Benjamin.  In his free time he loves to travel and spend time outdoors.  He enjoys playing golf, fishing, boating and loves watching the Kentucky Wildcats in football and basketball!

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Tanya has been working in hotels since 1993 and have been fortunate to make great connections with people from all over the world and sometimes even form lasting friendships.  She enjoys going to the theater, traveling and the art of dance.  The most enjoyable part about what she does is forming relationships with team members and truly learning about them. Anytime outside of the office is spent with her awesome husband and daughter.  They keep her busy and her heart full.

Angie graduated from Indiana University in 1993 with a BS in Business and a minor in Computer Science. Angie started working for Musselman Hotels corporate office in 1994 as a staff accountant. She helped develop a procedure to streamline their financial process, set up accounts for new hotels, and helped oversee the migration of the IT department. Angie is responsible for financial statements, sales tax, payroll and credit card processing. She has supervisory responsibility of accounting staff members and assists with IT. In 1995 she married her high school sweetheart, Tom, who is a Purdue Alumnus (but she doesn’t hold that against him). They are the proud parents of boy/girl twins. Angie has a brother and is a proud aunt to her nephew. Angie is a huge Chicago fan. She loves shopping trips to the Magnificent Mile and rooting for Da Bears!

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Melanie grew up in the Louisville area and is a graduate of Eastern Kentucky University. She has been a part of the hospitality industry for the past 30 years, including a total of 9 years with Musselman Hotels. Melanie has held a variety of positions in both sales and revenue management during her career. In her current role, she is responsible for the strategic planning and implementation of initiatives to generate top-line revenue for the company as a whole. Melanie has been married to her husband, Rob, for 24 years and they have three daughters. Outside of work you will find her chauffeuring her teenagers around, crafting and enjoying time with family.

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Lori has been with Musselman Hotels since 2004 and is currently in the Accounts Payable Supervisor position. When she’s not at the office taking care of business, she could be many places. She could be out hanging with friends. She could be at the gym, sweating and complaining. She could be at home taking care of her kitty. Regardless of where she is, you can bet she’s listening to music since she likes just about every type out there. She loves movies, pop culture, glitter, makeup, shoes, shopping, animals, hanging out with her friends, coloring, reading, and jewelry. She’s convinced she can have fun anywhere with the right people. She has no idea what her natural hair color is at this point and would be the happiest person alive if she could pet a tiger.

Amanda started with Musselman Hotels in March of 2013 as a temporary and in September 2013 was hired on full time. Amanda was born and raised in Oldham County and graduated from Sullivan University. She is the oldest of three siblings and a proud aunt of four nephews and two nieces. She enjoys traveling, camping, riding four wheelers, off-roading in the Jeep, and spending time with family and friends.

Megan graduated from the University of Louisville with a major in Communications and a minor in Spanish in May 2014. She worked part time at the corporate office while in school and started full time at her current position in May 2014. When she is not working she enjoys spending time with friends, family, her boyfriend Nick and their 3 dogs. Her hobbies include baking, shopping and binge watching bad TV on Netflix.

The Seelbach is a gem. When we arrived we were met with the most lovely front desk staff. Very knowledgeable about the area and the history of the hotel. The hotel sits in a lively downtown district with lots to do. The people are friendly and personable. If you stay here take the tour of the property. It’s worth it. Also, the Concierge is a hoot. He wrote a book on the property and has been there for 40 years. He has many great stories. We will return again and again.
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Recognizing Excellence

Associate of the Year
Larry Johnson
2018
Associate of the Year
Desire Garretson
2019
Associate of the Quarter
1st Quarter 2018
Darryl Anderson & Haris Derlic
2nd Quarter 2018
Jackie Shepard & Desire Garretson
3rd Quarter 2018
Lee Wallace & William Matthews
4th Quarter 2018
Ramon Hector & Bruns Warner
Associate of the Quarter
1st Quarter 2019
Lyndsie Murphy & Natia Harris
2nd Quarter 2019
Desire Garretson & Zahra Hassanzadeh
3rd Quarter 2019
Frank Lardner & Yolanda Sanchez
4th Quarter 2019
Ramon Hector & Harold Warren
Associates of the Quarter
2nd Quarter 2020
Alina Roasa & Richard Robinson
3rd Quarter 2020
Desire Garretson & Haris Derlic
Hotel Awards
Best Places to Work in Kentucky 2019
Best Places to Work in Kentucky 2018
Musselman Hotels Property of the 2nd Quarter 2022
Musselman Hotels Property of the 1st Quarter 2022
#1 Top Rated Hotel in Louisville 2016