Harmony Heard Steed’s mission is to stimulate the local economy through tourism
Published 4:11 pm Wednesday, January 28, 2026
It’s easy to fall in love with new locations when traveling, but it can be a little more difficult to maintain that level of excitement for the place you spend every day. Rather than looking at each event or location and seeing their unique qualities or rich histories, they begin to fade into the background as we make our way to work or the grocery store. As the Cullman County Tourism Bureau Executive Director, Harmony Heard Steed is hoping to give locals a chance to see their hometown through a fresh set of eyes because, according to her, it is their stories and passion that allow Cullman to be a destination location.
A native of Huntsville, Alabama, Heard Steed served as President of the Huntsville/Madison County Hospitality Association and was an award-winning Assistant Director of Sales and Marketing for the Westin Huntsville for 10 years. She was also 2018 Lead Ambassador for the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce before she accepted a job as Director of Sales at Visit South Padre Island in South Padre, Texas, where her team broke multiple records for growth.
She continues to be recognized as a giant in the tourism industry since accepting her current role in September 2024. Under her leadership, Cullman was awarded the number two spot for Best Small Town Cultural Scene in the 2025 USA Today Reader’s Choice Awards. Visit Cullman was awarded the 2025 Organization of the Year award from the Alabama Lakes Tourist Association and Heard Steed was named the Tourism Industry Employee of the Year at the 2025 Alabama Governor’s Conference on Tourism.
“My overarching mission is to use the lodging tax to generate more lodging tax. My goal is to bring people and visitors into our community to stimulate our economy by staying in our hotels, eating in our restaurant and shopping in our shops,” she said.
A robust tourism industry alone can have a tremendous impact on local communities. More revenue from lodging taxes can allow cities to allocate more funding to emergency services such as police and fire departments, without needing to increase taxes on its residents. It also frees up more funding to invest in local infrastructure, recreational spaces and other amenities that improve the quality of life for locals. But it is the way Heard Steed chooses to carry out those responsibilities. Amplifying voices in the local community brings her the most joy and excitement. It is also one of the reasons she has been able to set herself apart in a growing industry.
“People are really my passion. I love people and I love to help them build community,” Heard Steed said. “My heart is to serve our community and make a difference in the lives of others. And travel is a way for people to connect, unite and celebrate each other.”
Heard Steed said there was already a solid foundation in place from local sports tourism, festivals and different religious destinations such as the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Hanceville and the Ave Marie Grotto at St. Bernard and that one of her main goals at the moment was to connect those experiences with other sites in Cullman to create a more holistic, year-round, destination experience.
“We definitely want to expand on what we already have,” Heard Steed said. “Right now we are working on taking the Christmas experience for people who may just be coming for the Christkindlmarkt, we want to tell them to go to Sportsman Lake Park or the Grotto for the lights. They are also doing Christmas caroling at Sacred Heart. So instead of just coming for the market, they can come for the entire weekend. We are also going to be rolling out an app where we create different trails and experiences for people who come for tournaments or sporting experiences to get them out into our local shops and restaurants.”
Heard Steed said her ultimate goal is to not only market Cullman as a year-round destination location for visitors, but to instill a stronger sense of community pride in locals. After all, she said they are the ones who created all of the things that have made her job such an easy one to execute.
“What I would want our local community to know, is that they should be proud of who they are. People are coming because of our culture and such a great place to live and our people know it. So, we are really just trying to tell that story,” Heard Steed said.