BRANSON, Missouri — More than 200 delegates, sponsors, hosts and speakers gathered August 6–8 in Branson, Missouri, for the 2024 Going On Faith Conference operated by the Group Travel Family. The meeting of faith-based travel planners and destinations has been held annually since 2006 and returned to Branson, where it held its inaugural event 18 years ago.
Among the highlights of this year’s conference were an evening at Sight and Sound Theatres for its current production, “Queen Esther;” a fascinating account of the Green Book Experience with speaker David Jackson; and two days of marketplace appointments between travel planners, tour operators and destinations. Conference host Explore Branson arranged an opening ice cream social, and sightseeing tours of notable landmarks like Aquarium at the Boardwalk, Lake Taneycomo with Branson Duck Tours, the Titanic Museum and the area’s heralded outdoors with Branson’s Pink Jeep Tours.
“Queen Esther” tells the Old Testament story of Esther, a Jewish woman drawn into the Persian Empire. Her faith never wavers as she rises to become the king’s wife despite their cultural differences. The opulent production takes place in the massive Sight and Sound Theatres complex built high above the Branson skyline.
“Explore Branson’s team was amazing,” said Jennifer Ferguson, general manager of the Going On Faith Conference. “Yvonne Long has been instrumental in managing our delegates’ experience here, and we cannot thank her enough. I want to recognize Mike Pitman as well for his gracious hospitality to host all our delegates at ‘Queen Esther.’ Sight and Sound Theatres was a remarkable visitor experience for all of us.”
“The fact that Branson started with ‘The Shepherd of the Hills’ many years ago set the tone for our destination as family-oriented, faithful to our Midwestern values,” said Yvonne Long of Explore Branson. “It’s our basis, our foundation. Now that we have attractions like Sight and Sound Theatres and are devoting an entire month to honoring our veterans, we’ve established ourselves as a faith-based destination. The addition of the new Truth Traveler attraction next year gives us a great new faith-based reason for people to come.”
Delegates were housed at the Hilton Branson Convention Center in downtown Branson, and on-site events and meals took place at the adjacent Branson Convention Center. Major meal or event sponsors for the event included The Ark Encounter and Creation Museum, Cincy Region, Chateau on the Lake Branson, Explore Branson, Keeter Center at College of the Ozarks, Great Passion Play, and Sight and Sound Theatres.
At the closing luncheon, Nancy Willhoite of BB Riverboats appeared on behalf of the Cincy Region to invite all delegates to attend next year’s Going On Faith Conference in that area, August 6–8, 2025.
To register, visit gofconference.com.
