Travel in all of its forms has fascinated Jason Foster since youth.
“I always had this fascination since I was a kid with airports and truck stops and everything travel, whether it’s by air or road or train or however. I instantly gravitated towards wanting to jump into this.”
He came to aviation two years ago from working as loan officer in home loans. An acquaintance told him about the job posting for Rogue Valley International-Medford Airport’s (MFR) air service & economic development manager and Foster said as he dug into what the job entailed, he was hooked.
“It really resonated with me as something I wanted to be doing long term,” Foster said.
In his first year for employment, Foster was able to attract a flight school to MFR, a task he was charged with from day one, and something the airport desperately needed to complete their aviation eco-system. Once fully operational, the school will be taking high school students through Instrument Rating by the time they graduate.
Foster has also revamped MFR’s billboard and static display advertising program, helps produce video propaganda and manages the airport’s social media. He manages software systems that aids MFR in attracting new air service and aviation industry and sets appointments at trade shows to help recruit companies to the region.
“Coming to work and being around the travel and various different aspects of what my job entails, I’m always getting to put on a new hat each day, it feels like. I love the variation and the diversity of the job and the industry. It’s almost like going on an adventure every day when I walk through the door,” Foster said.
He sits on local community boards such as the Southern Oregon Air Academy and Travel Medford, that help promote regional aviation efforts and tourism, respectively. Foster has created and is currently leading the regional marketing and air service collaboration, with the goal of acquiring additional funding for marketing MFR’s region and new air service. He has been able to garner over $50K of support in less than a year to attract a new air carrier.
Foster was also the coordinator to work with Travel Medford to design and build a new, state-of-the-art information center at the airport and has written two successful grant applications which awarded the airport $520,000 in total.
“It’s been a fantastic ride,” Foster said of the two years and all he’s accomplished with MFR. “I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.”
