OHI has recognized Ashley Cary, operations manager at Hidden Acres Campground, as the latest member featured in its ongoing Board of Directors spotlight series, highlighting her commitment to fostering collaboration, supporting the next generation of outdoor hospitality professionals and addressing operational challenges facing campground businesses.
According to OHI, Cary wants members to associate the organization with being “open-minded,” reflecting her belief in collaboration and shared learning across the outdoor hospitality industry.
A third-generation member of her family’s campground business, she has been immersed in campground operations throughout her life, from observing reservation management alongside her mother to working with her father on the property’s equipment.
Hidden Acres Campground recently marked its 50th anniversary, a milestone OHI said Cary is helping build upon through her leadership as operations manager.
Since assuming the role full time, she has expanded her involvement beyond the campground by participating in state, regional and national industry organizations while gaining experience across multiple aspects of the business.
Cary said the industry’s sense of community has been a key reason she has remained in outdoor hospitality. She described her greatest accomplishment not as awards or recognition but as seeing multiple generations of families continue to return to Hidden Acres Campground, with former campers now bringing their own children to the property.
“The sense of community in this industry is exactly what has kept her in it,” OHI said in a LinkedIn post.
The announcement also emphasized the importance of building a strong team, identifying it as the one element she would not operate a campground without.
As an OHI board member, her primary motivation is supporting the next generation of industry professionals by encouraging young people interested in outdoor hospitality to become involved and pursue leadership opportunities.
Featured image by OHI