Lake Charles still has a long road ahead in its recovery from Hurricanes Laura and Delta. However, Kathryn Shea Duncan is optimistic about the city’s future, saying the landscape will be radically different in the next two to three years.

As the public relations manager for Visit Lake Charles, Duncan pitches stories to travel writers and finds the hidden gems that attract travelers to the area. She was recently named one of nine emerging tourism stars for this year’s upcoming eTourism Summit in Orlando.

Most of Duncan’s life was spent in her hometown of Crowley. She attended the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and earned her bachelor’s degree in business and marketing in 2018. She returned to Crowley after graduation to work for a local chamber of commerce in Acadia Parish.

Duncan is the only person to have held the titles of International Rice Festival Queen, Miss Crowley and Miss Acadia Parish. Her reign as the 81st International Rice Festival queen from 2017-2018 took her to dozens of festivals throughout Louisiana, as well as Washington D.C. for the Mystic Krewe of Louisianians Ball. Traveling made her realize that she wanted to work in tourism.

“I feel like tourism is the fun part of economic development where you get to highlight restaurants, attractions and things that glitter and shine and bring livelihood to a city,” she said.

After working for over a year at the chamber of commerce, Duncan was recruited by Kyle Edmiston, president and CEO of Visit Lake Charles.

“He could have offered me anything, and I would have jumped at the opportunity,” she said.

Duncan moved to Lake Charles in September 2019 and spent the next six months getting to know the city and Southwest Louisiana. That all changed in March 2020 as Gov. John Bel Edwards issued a stay-at-home order to stop the spread of COVID-19. The tourism bureau also had to alter its marketing strategy.

“We exist to bring tourists and travel writers to Lake Charles and Calcasieu Parish, but at that point in time, it wasn’t safe,” she said. “We switched our message to encouraging locals to visit area restaurants and businesses instead.”

While the tourism industry was navigating COVID-19 challenges, along came the Category 4 Hurricane Laura in August 2020, followed by Hurricane Delta that October. The level of destruction both storms left behind initially had Duncan considering a move elsewhere. However, the connections she made over the past year kept her rooted in Southwest Louisiana.

“I thought about the community I had built and how much these relationships meant to me,” she said. “I wanted to be part of the recovery and I could tell travel writers and food journalists about how great this place is.”

The New York Times featured Duncan in a November 2020 article. She spoke about witnessing the community endure the aftermath of both hurricanes and her choosing to stay and help the region in its long-term recovery. Nearly two years after Hurricane Laura, Duncan said she is grateful to have been a voice for the community when it was at its most vulnerable.

“At first, I felt a sense of maybe it should have been someone who has lived in Lake Charles all their life,” she said. “But coming from a voice that doesn’t have ties to here and could have just left at any point, telling my story that this place is worth investing and staying in was worth volumes.”

Looking ahead, Duncan said she is eagerly awaiting construction on lakefront development projects like Port Wonder and the second Crying Eagle Brewing location.

“Once locals and developers start seeing the structures being built, I think you’re going to feel a new sense of community,” she said. “When locals can see the vision of a multi-functional lakefront, it’s going to bring joy and happiness to the community that we’ve truly been missing.”

Duncan said she plans to spend this week kayaking, something she hasn’t done in Lake Charles or Calcasieu Parish. She’s still getting her fill of local eateries, having experienced the recently-reopened Pronia’s Deli and Bakery for the first time.

“There’s so many places to explore, and I’m thrilled to be able to do that,” she said.

To keep up with local events and attractions, go to visitlakecharles.com, or find Visit Lake Charles on social media.