Our Leaders

Candice Brewster boasts a rich 30-year tenure in the hospitality industry, hailing from Mississippi with roots in Madison before settling in Flowood post-college. Her educational journey took her through Culinary Arts at Valencia College and Business Management studies at the University of Central Florida, equipping her with a diverse skill set.

Recognized for her adept problem-solving skills, Candice has consistently elevated customer satisfaction, streamlined operations, and crafted unique food experiences, menus, and proposals. Her entrepreneurial spirit blossomed early with the establishment of “Lit’l Gourmet” in downtown Jackson, where she cultivated a loyal clientele and specialized in corporate catering. This success propelled her to launch “Candy’s Confections,” a hub for gourmet desserts and confectionery delights, drawing patrons from far and wide.

Embracing her passion for culinary craftsmanship and community, Candice founded Taste Bistro and Desserts, curating delightful meals and sweets from scratch with the finest ingredients. Transitioning into the corporate realm, she held pivotal roles as Business Development Manager for Eat Here Brands and District Executive Chef with Compass Group’s Chartwell’s Division.

Candice’s mission has always been to unite people through the joys of food and camaraderie. Now serving as District Manager at MMI Dining, she harmonizes her love for food and operational finesse within the educational landscape. Overseeing foodservice operations in higher education and K-12 accounts, Candice mentors unit managers to cultivate exceptional teams, ensuring unparalleled customer satisfaction and setting a standard of excellence across all MMI Clients.

In 1993, Bill began his career in the hospitality industry as Director of Food and Nutrition Services at Montrose Memorial Hospital in Montrose, CO. After planning, organizing, and directing the Dietary Department operations for eight years, Bill joined the MMI family in 2001.

With keen business insight, a detail-oriented approach, and a passion for serving others, Bill has proven himself indispensable to MMI’s mission. His responsibilities have included performing financial and conceptual business plan projections, managing operating budgets totaling in the millions, and providing company leadership, training, and accountability. Over the course of his career, he has been the recipient of numerous awards and accolades, including the coveted MMI Dining Systems Service Edge Award in 2003.

Bill graduated from Colorado Mesa University with a degree in Business Administration.

Ronnie is a graduate of Mississippi State University with a BBA degree in banking and finance.  Prior to joining MMI Dining Systems, he held a variety of management positions in the food service industry.

Ronnie joined MMI Dining Systems in 1994 as a Resource Manager and later served as District Manager for the company’s Mississippi and Louisiana regions to supervise, coordinate, merchandise and control costs of the food and beverage operations and to ensure MMI’s corporate standards of quality in product and service.

MMI Dining Systems was founded by Ron’s father, Ron Cockayne, Sr., who served as its President for twelve years of dramatic growth and success. After Mr. Cockayne Sr. passed away, Ronnie’s proven capabilities and work ethic merited his promotion to President of, and a partnership interest in, MMI Dining Systems.

Ronnie has continued his father’s legacy as he leads MMI Dining Systems in serving the food service needs of country clubs, retirement homes, free standing restaurants, hotels, schools, colleges and corporate entities.

Olivia joined the MMI family in 2009. As District Manager, she is responsible for schools across North Mississippi and Tennessee as well as overseeing Zest Culinary Services’ safety training program, marketing and promotions, and instructing and proctoring ServSafe classes.
 
Making the most of her degree in Hospitality Management from the University of Mississippi, Olivia’s past responsibilities at MMI are wide and varied.  She is a true example of “promote from within” starting out her MMI career as Director of two K-12 properties then successfully stepping into a Resource Manager role.  Her over 20-year career in the hospitality industry ranges from restaurant service, catering, and marketing development.
 
In 2010 Olivia was the recipient of the Ronald J. Cockayne Sr. Gold Award for Contract Property of the Year.

Bob Gilstrap, who majored in Management and Marketing at East Texas State University, joined MMI in 1984 and is an example of MMI’s “promote from within” strategy. Bob had successfully held several positions within the company, from Assistant Manager and Food & Beverage Director, to General Manager and Club Manager. He currently serves as District Manager.

Bob leads a group of professionals dedicated to providing upscale services to the demanding club member market. Attitude and hard work are the foundations OF his service-minded philosophy that continues to help his team achieve superior results. Additionally, he is involved with the marketing, budgeting, staff training and quality assurance at all MMI club properties.

After graduating from Mississippi State University in 1966 with a degree in Accounting, Mike Hart joined the national CPA firm of Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co., working in the firm’s Jackson, Mississippi, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana offices. While there, Mike was appointed a Computer Audit Specialist in addition to his other audit and tax responsibilities.

In 1975, Mike established his own successful accounting practice in Jackson, Mississippi where he served as principal auditor for three hotel management organizations – including MMI Hotel Group. Recognizing Mike’s substantial financial management skills, MMI hired him as its Chief Financial Officer in 1987.

Cynde Houston is District Manager, responsible for College/School, Business/Industry and Healthcare clients of the Mississippi/Alabama Division of MMI Dining Systems.

She majored in Hotel & Restaurant Administration at the University of Southern Mississippi before joining MMI Dining Systems in 1994 as Assistant Food Services Director for Belhaven College in Jackson, Mississippi. Her twenty-year career in the foodservice industry has included healthcare, catering, retail operations and marketing of food service equipment. Her passion, however, is College/School Food Services.

The key to Cynde’s successful management approach is her ability to build relationships with faculty, staff and guests. Her expertise in specialized meals has enabled her to create a foodservice program that meets diverse dietary needs. An extensive experiences in daily operations gives her the ability to train and support unit managers in developing a staff that can produce 100% customer satisfaction for MMI Clients.

Dave McEwen has extensive education and training in the hotel and restaurant management field, including pursuing hospitality management at Bucks County Community College in Newton, Pennsylvania; casino management at UNLV, and computer sciences at San Jacinto College in Houston, Texas.

Previously, Dave has served as Food & Beverage Director for United Inns of Houston, Texas, Manager of a Ruby Tuesday’s operation in Houston and as Food & Beverage Manager/Resident Manager at the Holiday Inn in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

Dave joined the MMI Hotel Group in 1988 as the Food and Beverage Manager of the Holiday Inn South in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. There, his skills were recognized through numerous MMI awards including Dining Room of the Year, Kitchen of the Year, and was also winner of the company’s highest honor, the prestigious Food and Beverage Operation of the year Award.

Dave is responsible for overseeing food and beverage operations for MMI Dining Systems in Florida and Georgia. Dave lives on Amelia Island in Florida with Susan, his wife of 35 years.

Scott Reese is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of American. He studied culinary arts in Hyde Park, New York and trained in a variety of cuisines including European.

Scott also has a Certified Dietary Managers degree from the Certifying Board of Managers in Chicago, Illinois. He’s applied his training in a variety of roles and locations including Food Service Director for Valley Services, Inc. in Meridian, Mississippi and most recently as the Bench Strength Manager for Morrison Healthcare.

Jeffrey Bates is a District Manager, responsible for higher education and school accounts in the coastal Mississippi and Lower Alabama Division of MMI Dining.

Jeffrey received a bachelor’s degree in hospitality management from The University of Mississippi and has completed multiple CIA Pro Chef certification courses from the Culinary Institute of America’s Greystone Campus in Napa Valley, California.

He joined MMI Dining as the Foodservice Director for Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College and led the MMI team at The University of Mobile before transitioning into his current role as District Manager. Prior to joining MMI Dining, Jeffrey served as a restaurant manager for MGM Resorts, an Executive Chef in the healthcare industry for Compass Group, and filled several roles with Viking Range Corporation, including Food & Beverage Director and Executive Chef at The Alluvian Hotel in Greenwood, MS. Jeffrey also served as Executive Chef for Viking Hospitality Group’s Giardina’s Restaurant, and was a regular culinary instructor for the Viking Cooking School. Jeffrey’s passion for the culinary arts took him around the world as a guest chef demonstrator on Silversea Cruise Line, and chef for the Catfish Institute on behalf of Viking Range Corporation.

Jeffrey has been passionate about providing great food and service to guests throughout the span of his thirty-year career in hospitality. He believes that there is something exceptionally powerful about giving people more than they expect and works to motivate and train his teams to build strong, lasting relationships with clients by exceeding their expectations each day. There is something very special about being able to deliver an experience to guests that’s specific and personal, and MMI Dining is a company that prides itself in doing just that.

Renee Stormes joined MMI Hospitality Group in January 2017 from YoungWilliams, P.C. where she served as Director of Corporate Human Resources. During her HR Career, she has worked for both startup companies, such as Tritel Communications, and Fortune 500 companies, including Home Depot and AT&T Wireless. Prior to her career in Human Resources, Renee worked in the hospitality field as General Manager for Ruby Tuesday Restaurant and as Assistant Manager for Olive Garden and El Chico Restaurants.

Renee holds two Master’s Degrees, one from the University of Massachusetts – Amherst in Hotel, Restaurant and Travel Administration and a second in Labor Relations and Human Resources from Michigan State University. She holds both a Professional in Human Resources (PHR) and Society of Human Resources Certified Professional (SHRM-CP).

As President of MMI Hotel Group, Micajah works with the existing portfolio to optimize the relevancy of and experience in each of MMI’s hotels while also considering how additional properties through third party management contracts fit best into the family of franchised and unique offerings.

Micajah became the third generation in the Sturdivant family to assume the role as president in June 2013.

Outside of MMI, he serves commits a great deal of time to professional and civic causes.  Within the industry, he has served on the global Board of Directors for IHG’s Owners Association while chairing the Crowne Plaza committee.  He has volunteered for this organization for many years in various capacities focused on brands as well as the Distribution-Reservation channels, but his greatest engagement with IHGOA has been the creation of the Emerging Leaders Council, an under-40 body of above-property leaders who have committed themselves to the industry.  Micajah has also worked closely with the AH&LA Hotel Management Council.  Prior banking and real estate experience includes time spent in lending and leadership for regional and national office, residential and hospitality firms. He holds a MBA from Harvard University and a BBA from the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College at the University of Mississippi.

Micajah and his wife, Grace, live in Jackson, MS where they have three daughters – Eleanor, Garnett and Sykes.