Wants insight from all communities in the county

The Chamber & Development Council (CDC) of Crawford County announced last week that Drew Perrien is the new Crawford County tourism coordinator.

He previously worked at the CDC as an administrative assistant in 2021.

Perrien is a 2000 graduate of Denison High School, and served 12 years in the United States Navy as an information systems technician; he attained the rank of E-6, petty officer first class.

“When I got out, I did some contractor work for the Missile Defense Agency with my IT experience,” he said.

Perrien returned to Denison in 2019 when his mother, the late Coleen Barngrover, became ill.

He attended Western Iowa Tech Community College (WITCC) in Denison where he received an associate’s degree in business administration and a coaching certification.

Perrien was a work-study student at the CDC and then Crossroads of Crawford County while attending WITCC.

He stepped up this summer to help with the Tri City BBQ Fest when the previous tourism coordinator, Shani Bonner, left her position the month before the event.

“While I was here, I realized it wouldn’t be too bad to just stick around here,” Perrien said.

He applied for the open position and is now settling in to his new job.

Perrien said his vision for tourism involves working with other agencies that focus on tourism.

“We’ve talked to Travel Iowa; we need to build that network on more than just the local area,” he said.

Tourism involves bringing people from neighboring counties, and beyond, to Crawford County, he said.

Perrien also plans to reach out to all the communities in the county to get their insights on how the tourism office can serve them.

“At the end of the day, the CDC is for the benefit of the entire county,” he said.

The Tri City BBQ Fest will be a major area of his efforts.

“It’s the biggest event held annually in Crawford County, and it gets bigger every year,” Perrien said. “We’ll look for better ways to promote and make it even larger.”

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He said other community events, such as Hot Summer Nights organized by Taylor Borkowsi, and Movies in the Park organized by Jennifer Zupp-Smith, are successful models that can be built on by Denison and other towns in the county.

“We’re on the right path when we have people like that taking the reins and volunteering their time,” Perrien said.

He said the recent staff turnover at the CDC is an opportunity for the new leadership to take a fresh look at all of the organization’s activities.

Other new employees include CDC Executive Director Paul Plumb, who took over in September, and CDC Office Manager Mariah Nutt, who took her position in June 2022.

“We’re looking at what we’ve been doing with a different set of eyes, and looking to change things up a little bit,” he said.

Perrien said he would like to eventually start his own business; that interest and the knowledge he gained while studying for his business degree will help inform how he promotes tourism and how he coordinates his duties with the larger goals of the CDC.

“The CDC is about building members’ businesses … bringing in more businesses and bringing in more housing for businesses’ employees,” he said.

“Tourism is to help bring more visitors into the county from outside.”

He said the CDC is expected to wisely use the funds the organization receives from the City of Denison and Crawford County to promote those efforts.

“Our goal is to get those funds back to the community in one shape or another,” he said.

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