MANAHAWKIN — Lori A. Pepenella of the Southern Ocean County Chamber of Commerce and Southern Ocean Chamber Association has been named the 2026 recipient of the Senator Jim Whelan Memorial Tourism Award, one of New Jersey’s highest honors in tourism.
The New Jersey Tourism Industry Association presents the award each year to recognize individuals whose work has had a lasting impact on the state’s tourism economy.
Pepenella will be honored May 7 during NJTIA Advocacy Day at the War Memorial in Trenton.
Her career has spanned more than two decades in tourism, culture and economic development. She has held leadership roles with the New Jersey Tourism Industry Association, the Ocean County Culture and Heritage Commission, the Ocean County Tourism Advisory Board and the Community Foundation of South Jersey.
Her work helped expand initiatives including the LBI Wedding Road Show, Lighthouse International Film Festival, LBI Ferry Service and the LBI Region Report radio and podcast platform. She also played a major role in promoting LBI Chowderfest for 15 years.
During Superstorm Sandy and the COVID-19 shutdown, Pepenella helped lead tourism communications and recovery efforts. She was also the first woman in New Jersey to earn the Certified Destination Management Executive designation through Purdue University and helped the LBI Region achieve Destination Marketing Accreditation Program recognition.
Her past honors include Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore Women of Achievement, Rotary International’s Paul Harris Fellow and the Ocean County Commissioner Tourism Achievement Award.
More information about the May 7 event is available at njtia.org.
