San Antonio native, Colleen Swain, was recently named World Heritage Director for the City of San Antonio. She will be coordinating activities associated with the San Antonio Missions' development as a World Heritage destination. A 15-year veteran with the City of San Antonio, she previously served as Assistant Director for Center City Development before taking on her new role.
 
"San Jose was my grandmother's church, and my family has about four generations of association with the Missions and the Southside," Swain commented. "It is a tremendous honor to serve as the first World Heritage Director, but also a major responsibility given my family history and the importance of the Missions to our great city. These are invaluable cultural resources and we anticipate visitors from all over the world coming here to see this World Heritage site."
 
Swain noted one of the immediate tasks at hand will be gathering stories from the community surrounding the Missions to preserve the cultural aspects of the Missions' history. From a business perspective, she will be spreading the word about World Heritage and helping businesses understand how they can grow their enterprises with the increase in visitors. And one critically important focus will be working with all of the partnering agencies and organizations to ensure the proper infrastructure is in place to make a Missions World Heritage tour a memorable one.