Decatur Morgan County Tourism President and CEO Danielle Gibson is stepping down after 8½ years with the organization.
Gibson announced her departure Monday, closing a tenure that saw a major rebranding, the opening of a riverfront Visitors Center and growth in sports and river tourism across Morgan County.
“Serving Decatur Morgan County Tourism for the past eight and a half years has truly been one of the greatest honors of my professional career,” Gibson said. “I want to sincerely thank our Board of Directors and my incredible team for allowing me the opportunity to serve this amazing organization and the community that I love.”
During Gibson’s tenure, the organization introduced the MoCo brand and a new tourism website, opened its riverfront Visitors Center and launched the MoCo Mural Trail, Treat Trail, Art Trail and Unknown Trail.
The tourism organization also established MoCo Mural Trail grants supporting projects across Morgan County, joined the Tennessee RiverLine RiverTown program and expanded its focus on outdoor and river tourism.
That period included a partnership with American Cruise Lines that brought cruise traffic to Decatur, as well as continued efforts to attract national championships and other sporting events to the area.
“None of what we accomplished happened because of one person,” Gibson said. “It happened because people believed in a vision, trusted one another and were willing to work together to make big things happen.”
Gibson received several industry and community honors during her tenure, including the Alabama Tourism Department’s Tourism Executive of the Year in 2022, the Alabama Mountain Lakes Tourist Association’s Tourism Professional of the Year in 2023 and the Decatur-Morgan County Chamber of Commerce’s Lynn C. Fowler Non-Profit Professional of the Year in 2022.
She said the relationships built during her time with the organization stand out most.
“I am incredibly proud of what we have accomplished, but what I will treasure most are the relationships, partnerships and friendships built along the way,” Gibson said. “We dreamed big, tried new things, celebrated our community and worked hard to help others see what makes Decatur and Morgan County so special.”
Gibson did not announce her next professional move.
“I leave this chapter with a full heart, tremendous gratitude and an unwavering belief in the future of tourism in Decatur and Morgan County,” Gibson said. “I will always be proud of what we built together and incredibly thankful that I was given the opportunity to be a part of it.”
