Press Releases
Ted J. Balestreri Inducted Into Montery Bay Business Hall of Fame
Junior Achievement of Silicon Valley and Monterey Bay, Inc. honors Balestreri for business excellence, leadership and community involvement
A business and community leader, Balestreri was honored for his commitment to the Monterey Bay area. He truly represents what it means to be an entrepreneur-innovation with business acumen, and a passion for what he does. Throughout his career he has served on the boards of many school, college and charitable organizations, and has been a major contributor to scholarship funds through local and national educational foundations.
A 1958 graduate of Carmel High, Balestreri formed a partnership in 1968 and opened the Sardine Factory Restaurant in the Cannery Row area of Monterey. The success of the restaurant led to the creation of the Cannery Row Company, and the redevelopment of the cannery district into the premiere destination on California's Central Coast.
Balestreri has served as President and/or Chair on the boards of numerous restaurant and culinary industry organizations, including the National Restaurant Association (NRA), California Restaurant Association, U.S. Culinary Team Foundation, International Gold & Silver Plate Society, Distinguished Restaurants of North America (DiRoNA), and the NRA Educational Foundation. He served on the Board of Directors of the National Chapter of the Confrerie de la Chaine des Rotisseurs as Conseiller des Professionels des Etats-Unis. In 1996 he was appointed to the CRA Educational Foundation Board of Trustees.
Balestreri is a leading figure in California's tourism industry as well. He was appointed by Governor Duekmejian, Governor Wilson and Governor Davis as a California Tourism Commission Member (1985-present), which represents the longest running appointment in the organization's history. He has also held appointments to the California Governor's Task Force on Tourism Funding (1993-present) and the California Delegate to the White House Conference on Travel and Tourism held in Washington, D.C. (1985). Balestreri was also inducted into the California Trade and Commerce Agency's California Tourism Hall of Fame (1997). He has been recognized with the California Travel Industry Association's Entrepreneur of the Year award (1993), and the Hall of Leaders award presented by the Travel Industry Association of America (1993). He is on the Board of the California Chamber of Commerce and the World Travel and Tourism Council.
Monterey Bay Business Hall of Fame recipients are business and community leaders who have been instrumental in shaping Salinas Valley and Monterey Bay area. For the past four years, Laureates have been selected by an independent selection committee made up of community leaders and past Business Hall of Fame Laureates. The selection committee sets criteria to include business excellence, vision and innovations, inspiring leadership, community involvement, and actions as role models for future generations.
For more information about Junior Achievement of Silicon Valley and Monterey Bay, visit www.jasvmb.org, the Sardine Factory visit www.sardinefactory.com, and Cannery Row visit www.canneryrow.com.