Born April 18, 1963 to George Arthur and Patricia (Arnquist) Wright. S. was third of their four children. D. A. Wright of Minneapolis, MN, J. K. (Wright) Moen of St. Paul, MN and J. S. (Wright) Hale of Brooklyn Park, MN.

S. R. F. Wright was born in St. Paul, Minnesota on April 18, 1963, to George Arthur Wright and Patricia Ruth (Arnquist) Wright. He was the third of their four children: D. A. Wright, J. K. (Wright) Moen and J. S. (Wright) Hale. His mother Patricia recalled that S. was born very quickly and early before his father George could get to the hospital from his Boy Scout meeting; "and S. has been late ever since then".

Wright met the love of his life, B. W. Gillispie in 1994. Although S. Wright and B. Gillispie always celebrated their anniversary on Labor Day weekend. The pair met in 1994 through mutual Denver friends on a houseboat vacation getaway to Lake Powell, AZ. After decades of waiting, Steve and Bruce were finally able to legally marry in May 2014 when the United States Supreme Court made it legal for same sex couples to marry. This SCOTUS decision would come into question again in November of 2022 when the conservative SCOTUS started questioning prior SCOTUS precedents. The US Senate voted to Codify Same Sex Marriage protection on November 16, 2022 with all Dems voting to support the measure but only 12 Republicans voting to approve this. The US House of Representatives voted to approve the legislation in December 2022. Although none of their Arkansas representatives supported the measure.

As a youth S. attended Edgerton Elementary, Parkview Junior High and Frank B. Kellogg Senior High in Roseville, Minnesota. S. was inspired to music by his Grandma Ruth (Hooper) Arnquist who was a gifted piano and organ performer and teacher. Wright was active in choir and earned Minnesota High School vocal competition awards. This led to his involvement in high school theater productions. His highlights were starring as Fagan in Oliver, and as Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls. He had a lifelong interest in theater especially musicals, and was a Friend of the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas for many years..

After graduating from high school in Roseville, Minnesota in 1981, S. Wright started his college education at Seattle Pacific University with intentions of earning a degree in education. He later moved back to St. Paul, Minnesota to continue his general education requirements at the University of Minnesota. Once the general college requirements were completed Wright was accepted into the Hospitality Management Program at the University of Wisconsin – Stout in Menomonie, WI. While attending U of WI he had his first opportunity to travel with the university to Europe in 1987. This led to a lifetime passion and wanderlust for global travel.

Wright chose a career as a Hospitality Management Professional with expertise in Customer/Guest Services, Revenue Management, Business Development, Team Leadership, Human Resources, and Sales & Marketing Management. Wright was an accomplished professional with a track record of success of leadership driving organizations & teams to top performance, resulting in increased revenue, exceptional customer satisfaction, & employee morale. He was an innovative thinker & problem solver with talent for analyzing trends, developing business plan strategies and thorough communication to achieve success in challenging, highly competitive markets. Combining drive & exceptional leadership skills with proven ability to build rapport at all business levels contributed to his lifelong career.

Wright began working as a Management Trainee for Hyatt Regency Hotels & Resorts Corp. in 1988 and was first trained at the Hyatt Regency Denver Tech Center in Denver, Colorado. It was at this location that Wright booked and serviced many top musicians and bands that were performing a Fiddlers Green Amphitheater. He was also put in charge of the annual New Year Eve party. He fell in love with live concert performances that would last throughout his life.

Upon completion of the Management Trainee Program, Wright was promoted to Sales Manager at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Downtown Oakland, California. Wright never forgot 5:05 PM on October 17, 1989, the day of the 6.9 Loma Prieta Earthquake in Oakland. He was part of a hotel staff meeting in the rooftop restaurant managing hotel arrangements as they hosted the Bay Bridge World Series Baseball game between the Oakland A's and the San Francisco Giants. At 5:05 PM the hotel began to shake and sway, and the management team knew they were experiencing a major earthquake and took cover under the tables as dinnerware and glassware crashed all around them. After the initial impact, the management team was able to view the collapsed double decker Nimitz freeway leading to the San Francisco Bay Bridge. Wright led the team to a quick switch of function as a World Series team and media headquarters; to instead be the headquarters for the Army Corp of Engineers rescue and recovery effort which Wright had quickly negotiated and contracted. His next promotion was to National Sales Manager for the Park Hyatt Hotel San Francisco in the heart of the financial district until 1991.

Wright later returned to the Denver area as National Sales Manager for the Radisson Hotel in Downtown Denver from 1991 to 1993. One of his memories here was securing a large group booking for the Bill Clinton Presidential Campaign. Wright was then recruited to return to the San Francisco Bay area in 1994 and was hired as a National Sales Manager for the Hilton Oakland Airport. It was here that Wright had great success with the signing of the Oakland Raiders NFL team as their host home hotel and interim team headquarters after their return to Oakland from Los Angeles.

In 1996 Wright left the Oakland Airport Hilton and moved to Rogers in Northwest Arkansas to join the love of his life B. W. Gillispie who was working at the Walmart Headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas at the time (where Gillispie would ultimately be employed for 40 years). That first year of 1996 Wright was hired to open the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel Bentonville and would serve at this hotel until 2001.

In 2001 Wright was recruited and hired by Omni Hospitality Group in Northwest Arkansas as the Director of Sales, Marketing and Revenue Management for the Hilton Garden Inn Hotel in Bentonville, AR where he worked until 2008. Not long after starting this position came the infamous day of 9/11. At 7:14 AM on Tuesday September 11, 2001, the United States was attacked by simultaneous coordinated suicide terrorist attacks by militant Islamic extremist on The World Trade Center, The Pentagon, and other attempts. Wright watched the live TV coverage with all Americans as he remembered previously entertaining NYC hotel clients at Windows On The World at The World Trade Center. He recalled current Hilton guests scrambling to get any type of rental car or truck they could find and car-pooling back to their homes because the airports were all closed down indefinitely.

While unemployed during the Great Recession, Steve Wright enrolled in the Northwest Arkansas Community College to complete a couple missing program requirements to complete his college degree. Wright graduated from the University of Wisconsin – Stout with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Hotel, Restaurant, Tourism and Hospitality Management in 2009 with a Minor in Business Administration. He graduated Cum Laude with a GPA of 3.5. He also had a Certification in Human Resource Management from the American Management Association.

Wright was recruited and hired as the Director of Revenue Management, Business Development and Sales for the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel in Springdale, Arkansas from 2010 to 2016. Wright motivated and inspired the hotel team to successfully reach a Top 10 Doubletree by Hilton Hotel of over 375+ Doubletree by Hilton Hotels for customer guest satisfaction and REVPAR performance. Wright was a Finalist for the 2011 Director of Sales/Director of Business Development of Year Award. He was nominated as one of a small group of exceptional global directors selected by senior leadership of Hilton Hotel Corp. who oversaw the Doubletree by Hilton brand. Wright was simultaneously the Regional Director of Sales, Marketing and Revenue Management for KHG Hospitality Group which was the local hotel franchisee. Here he was responsible for overseeing the Directors of Sales for six NW Arkansas hotel properties.

In 2016 Wright was hired by Walmart Stores China and moved with his husband B. to Shenzhen in Southeast mainland China. Wright was employed here until 2018 as a Senior Manager of Human Resources where he managed a team of over 60 associates and managed multiple third-party vendors that provided associate services and travel management for Walmart China nationwide. Upon return from China, Wright retired from the hospitality industry. S. and B. especially enjoy the ease of travel from China to explore more of the world.

Together S. and B. 's wanderlust would lead them to explore many destinations including: London, Paris, Brussels, Mediterranean (2004), Barcelona Lisbon, Italy, Naples, Sorrento, Messina, Greece, Rhodes, Mykonos, Santorini (a favorite), Athens, Piraeus, Venice, Vienna, Austria, Bratislava ,Budapest, Hungary, Stephansdom & Belvedere Palace in Austria (2012), Santiago, Chile (2015), Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, South Africa (2018), Phuket (2017), Da Nang, Vietnam (2017), Singapore (2017, Kuala Lumpur (2017),, Sydney, Adelaide, Australia, Tasmania (2018), the Caribbean, Haiti (2005), San Juan, Puerto Rico (2021), US Virgin Islands (2021), St. Thomas, Philipsburg St. Maarten, St. Johns, Antigua, Bridgetown, Barbados, Castries, St. Lucia, Havana, Cuba (2019) Tuscany (2012 and 2022) Italy, Florence, Sienna (spent the summer of 2022 here), Italy, Cortona, Montepulciano, Hawaiian Islands (2004 and 2021), Grand Canyon (2011), Sedona, New York, Washington DC, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Key West, Alaska (2005), San Diego (2019),

Wright had previously been appointed by Mayor and served as a Commissioner for the Bentonville Advertising & Promotion Commission from 1997 – 2007. He was active member of the Bentonville Convention & Visitors Bureau, Local Chambers of Commerce, Walton Arts Center Friend of the Arts Annual Donor, and founding member of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

Born April 18, 1963 to George Arthur and Patricia (Arnquist) Wright. S. was third of their four children. D. A. Wright of Minneapolis, MN, J. K. (Wright) Moen of St. Paul, MN and J. S. (Wright) Hale of Brooklyn Park, MN.

S. R. F. Wright was born in St. Paul, Minnesota on April 18, 1963, to George Arthur Wright and Patricia Ruth (Arnquist) Wright. He was the third of their four children: D. A. Wright, J. K. (Wright) Moen and J. S. (Wright) Hale. His mother Patricia recalled that S. was born very quickly and early before his father George could get to the hospital from his Boy Scout meeting; "and S. has been late ever since then".

Wright met the love of his life, B. W. Gillispie in 1994. Although S. Wright and B. Gillispie always celebrated their anniversary on Labor Day weekend. The pair met in 1994 through mutual Denver friends on a houseboat vacation getaway to Lake Powell, AZ. After decades of waiting, Steve and Bruce were finally able to legally marry in May 2014 when the United States Supreme Court made it legal for same sex couples to marry. This SCOTUS decision would come into question again in November of 2022 when the conservative SCOTUS started questioning prior SCOTUS precedents. The US Senate voted to Codify Same Sex Marriage protection on November 16, 2022 with all Dems voting to support the measure but only 12 Republicans voting to approve this. The US House of Representatives voted to approve the legislation in December 2022. Although none of their Arkansas representatives supported the measure.

As a youth S. attended Edgerton Elementary, Parkview Junior High and Frank B. Kellogg Senior High in Roseville, Minnesota. S. was inspired to music by his Grandma Ruth (Hooper) Arnquist who was a gifted piano and organ performer and teacher. Wright was active in choir and earned Minnesota High School vocal competition awards. This led to his involvement in high school theater productions. His highlights were starring as Fagan in Oliver, and as Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls. He had a lifelong interest in theater especially musicals, and was a Friend of the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas for many years..

After graduating from high school in Roseville, Minnesota in 1981, S. Wright started his college education at Seattle Pacific University with intentions of earning a degree in education. He later moved back to St. Paul, Minnesota to continue his general education requirements at the University of Minnesota. Once the general college requirements were completed Wright was accepted into the Hospitality Management Program at the University of Wisconsin – Stout in Menomonie, WI. While attending U of WI he had his first opportunity to travel with the university to Europe in 1987. This led to a lifetime passion and wanderlust for global travel.

Wright chose a career as a Hospitality Management Professional with expertise in Customer/Guest Services, Revenue Management, Business Development, Team Leadership, Human Resources, and Sales & Marketing Management. Wright was an accomplished professional with a track record of success of leadership driving organizations & teams to top performance, resulting in increased revenue, exceptional customer satisfaction, & employee morale. He was an innovative thinker & problem solver with talent for analyzing trends, developing business plan strategies and thorough communication to achieve success in challenging, highly competitive markets. Combining drive & exceptional leadership skills with proven ability to build rapport at all business levels contributed to his lifelong career.

Wright began working as a Management Trainee for Hyatt Regency Hotels & Resorts Corp. in 1988 and was first trained at the Hyatt Regency Denver Tech Center in Denver, Colorado. It was at this location that Wright booked and serviced many top musicians and bands that were performing a Fiddlers Green Amphitheater. He was also put in charge of the annual New Year Eve party. He fell in love with live concert performances that would last throughout his life.

Upon completion of the Management Trainee Program, Wright was promoted to Sales Manager at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Downtown Oakland, California. Wright never forgot 5:05 PM on October 17, 1989, the day of the 6.9 Loma Prieta Earthquake in Oakland. He was part of a hotel staff meeting in the rooftop restaurant managing hotel arrangements as they hosted the Bay Bridge World Series Baseball game between the Oakland A's and the San Francisco Giants. At 5:05 PM the hotel began to shake and sway, and the management team knew they were experiencing a major earthquake and took cover under the tables as dinnerware and glassware crashed all around them. After the initial impact, the management team was able to view the collapsed double decker Nimitz freeway leading to the San Francisco Bay Bridge. Wright led the team to a quick switch of function as a World Series team and media headquarters; to instead be the headquarters for the Army Corp of Engineers rescue and recovery effort which Wright had quickly negotiated and contracted. His next promotion was to National Sales Manager for the Park Hyatt Hotel San Francisco in the heart of the financial district until 1991.

Wright later returned to the Denver area as National Sales Manager for the Radisson Hotel in Downtown Denver from 1991 to 1993. One of his memories here was securing a large group booking for the Bill Clinton Presidential Campaign. Wright was then recruited to return to the San Francisco Bay area in 1994 and was hired as a National Sales Manager for the Hilton Oakland Airport. It was here that Wright had great success with the signing of the Oakland Raiders NFL team as their host home hotel and interim team headquarters after their return to Oakland from Los Angeles.

In 1996 Wright left the Oakland Airport Hilton and moved to Rogers in Northwest Arkansas to join the love of his life B. W. Gillispie who was working at the Walmart Headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas at the time (where Gillispie would ultimately be employed for 40 years). That first year of 1996 Wright was hired to open the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel Bentonville and would serve at this hotel until 2001.

In 2001 Wright was recruited and hired by Omni Hospitality Group in Northwest Arkansas as the Director of Sales, Marketing and Revenue Management for the Hilton Garden Inn Hotel in Bentonville, AR where he worked until 2008. Not long after starting this position came the infamous day of 9/11. At 7:14 AM on Tuesday September 11, 2001, the United States was attacked by simultaneous coordinated suicide terrorist attacks by militant Islamic extremist on The World Trade Center, The Pentagon, and other attempts. Wright watched the live TV coverage with all Americans as he remembered previously entertaining NYC hotel clients at Windows On The World at The World Trade Center. He recalled current Hilton guests scrambling to get any type of rental car or truck they could find and car-pooling back to their homes because the airports were all closed down indefinitely.

While unemployed during the Great Recession, Steve Wright enrolled in the Northwest Arkansas Community College to complete a couple missing program requirements to complete his college degree. Wright graduated from the University of Wisconsin – Stout with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Hotel, Restaurant, Tourism and Hospitality Management in 2009 with a Minor in Business Administration. He graduated Cum Laude with a GPA of 3.5. He also had a Certification in Human Resource Management from the American Management Association.

Wright was recruited and hired as the Director of Revenue Management, Business Development and Sales for the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel in Springdale, Arkansas from 2010 to 2016. Wright motivated and inspired the hotel team to successfully reach a Top 10 Doubletree by Hilton Hotel of over 375+ Doubletree by Hilton Hotels for customer guest satisfaction and REVPAR performance. Wright was a Finalist for the 2011 Director of Sales/Director of Business Development of Year Award. He was nominated as one of a small group of exceptional global directors selected by senior leadership of Hilton Hotel Corp. who oversaw the Doubletree by Hilton brand. Wright was simultaneously the Regional Director of Sales, Marketing and Revenue Management for KHG Hospitality Group which was the local hotel franchisee. Here he was responsible for overseeing the Directors of Sales for six NW Arkansas hotel properties.

In 2016 Wright was hired by Walmart Stores China and moved with his husband B. to Shenzhen in Southeast mainland China. Wright was employed here until 2018 as a Senior Manager of Human Resources where he managed a team of over 60 associates and managed multiple third-party vendors that provided associate services and travel management for Walmart China nationwide. Upon return from China, Wright retired from the hospitality industry. S. and B. especially enjoy the ease of travel from China to explore more of the world.

Together S. and B. 's wanderlust would lead them to explore many destinations including: London, Paris, Brussels, Mediterranean (2004), Barcelona Lisbon, Italy, Naples, Sorrento, Messina, Greece, Rhodes, Mykonos, Santorini (a favorite), Athens, Piraeus, Venice, Vienna, Austria, Bratislava ,Budapest, Hungary, Stephansdom & Belvedere Palace in Austria (2012), Santiago, Chile (2015), Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, South Africa (2018), Phuket (2017), Da Nang, Vietnam (2017), Singapore (2017, Kuala Lumpur (2017),, Sydney, Adelaide, Australia, Tasmania (2018), the Caribbean, Haiti (2005), San Juan, Puerto Rico (2021), US Virgin Islands (2021), St. Thomas, Philipsburg St. Maarten, St. Johns, Antigua, Bridgetown, Barbados, Castries, St. Lucia, Havana, Cuba (2019) Tuscany (2012 and 2022) Italy, Florence, Sienna (spent the summer of 2022 here), Italy, Cortona, Montepulciano, Hawaiian Islands (2004 and 2021), Grand Canyon (2011), Sedona, New York, Washington DC, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Key West, Alaska (2005), San Diego (2019),

Wright had previously been appointed by Mayor and served as a Commissioner for the Bentonville Advertising & Promotion Commission from 1997 – 2007. He was active member of the Bentonville Convention & Visitors Bureau, Local Chambers of Commerce, Walton Arts Center Friend of the Arts Annual Donor, and founding member of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.