The MRLA Honors Bill Wentworth Jr. With 2024 Distinguished Service Award
This winter, the Michigan Restaurant & Lodging Association was proud to award Todd Callewaert, President of the Island House Resort and CEO of the 906 Rewards Club, with the Distinguished Service Award (DSA) – the highest honor awarded by the association at the MRLA’s Annual Chairman’s Dinner at the Book Tower in Detroit. The award recognizes individuals who have provided exceptional and continuing leadership, vision and commitment to the Michigan hospitality industry, as selected by a committee comprised of previous DSA winners.
"As the 2025 DSA recipient, Todd Callewaert has not only upheld a storied family legacy but has continued to make his own mark on the Michigan hospitality community through thoughtful and unwavering leadership,” said MRLA President & CEO Justin Winslow. “His vision of excellence and commitment to tradition has made him an indelible part of Mackinac Island’s history and a valuable example of leadership to the entire Michigan hospitality industry."
"As the 2025 DSA recipient, Todd Callewaert has not only upheld a storied family legacy but has continued to make his own mark on the Michigan hospitality community through thoughtful and unwavering leadership,” said MRLA President & CEO Justin Winslow. “His vision of excellence and commitment to tradition has made him an indelible part of Mackinac Island’s history and a valuable example of leadership to the entire Michigan hospitality industry."
|
|
Todd Callewaert started his hospitality career at the age of three, wiping down seats at the local bike shop run by his family on Mackinac Island. As the CEO of the Ryba-Callewaert family company, which substantially shaped the culture and tourism industry of Mackinac Island through iconic restaurants, hotels, and fudge shops, Callewaert has faithfully stewarded the multi-generational family business as the President of the Island House Hotel, the island’s most historic hotel owned and renovated by the family since 1969.
For Callewaert, hospitality has always been a deeply personal business. With his siblings, Gregg, Mary, Ann and Amy, he was expected from a young age to pitch in and help with the family’s work. He met his wife, Jennifer, 42 years ago when she arrived in Mackinac Island to work as a desk clerk. At the time, Callewaert was managing his first hotel, the Lake View Hotel. Jennifer was only on the island for three months – but it was enough to spark a connection that lasted through college years and careers that have taken them in opposite directions at times, but ultimately back to Mackinac Island. The couple has two sons, Andrew and William, and Callewaert is overjoyed to see them continue the family legacy in their own ways. Andrew and his wife, Emily, operate two family restaurants, the Pancake House and the Seabiscuit Café. William and his wife, Caroline, have thriving careers in New York, but have a real passion for making Lukken cookies – a cherished family recipe passed down through generations.
Throughout his career, Callewaert has been an unmatched leader for Michigan’s hospitality industry and a dedicated board member of the Michigan Restaurant & Lodging Association. He says this network of equally-passionate business owners, operators, staff, and suppliers has been an essential part of his professional journey, providing him with opportunities to exchange ideas, share experiences, and discuss everything from tip credits to H-2B visas to the best whiskey of all time.
Today, Callewaert is often seen attending Zoom meetings with his one-year-old grandson, who could be the fifth generation of the family to take on the hospitality business
Throughout his career, Callewaert has been an unmatched leader for Michigan’s hospitality industry and a dedicated board member of the Michigan Restaurant & Lodging Association. He says this network of equally-passionate business owners, operators, staff, and suppliers has been an essential part of his professional journey, providing him with opportunities to exchange ideas, share experiences, and discuss everything from tip credits to H-2B visas to the best whiskey of all time.
Today, Callewaert is often seen attending Zoom meetings with his one-year-old grandson, who could be the fifth generation of the family to take on the hospitality business
