our passion

Lincoln Hotel Group was founded in 1998, allowing John and Tami Klimpel to build a company that reflected their values. We strive to create a culture where our team members thrive, our guests remember, and our owners trust. LHG provides the local knowledge we believe necessary to achieve our mission of providing superior hotel guest experience, financial performance, and growth opportunities for our employees, at each of our managed properties, as well as internally. It is an industry we love and therefore rarely feels like work.

John and Tami’s vision when LHG was formed over 30 years ago has not wavered.

As we continue to grow our business, our vision remains at the core of our mission: to establish a culture that clearly defines the goals, values, expectations, and attitudes that everyone in our company truly believes in. We have identified market leaders to join our team in order to meet our mission objectives and better serve our guests.

corporate management team

John E. Klimpel
Tami A. Klimpel
Roland Morgan
Lucas Arias
Joe Kotopka
Steve Young
Melanie Thompson
Carrie Fleck

John E. Klimpel

Co-Founder and President of Development

John Klimpel has 45 active years in the Hospitality and Food and Beverage Industry. Starting out as a busboy in St.Louis then a Food and Beverage Manager, he learned all aspects of the industry. His growing passion and work ethic brought him to Lincoln, NE, where he was given the opportunity to run a full service hotel. In 1998 John and Tami purchased their first hotel, founding Lincoln Hotel Group in the process. Since then, John has overseen the full development of over 35 hotels.

Though Lincoln Hotel group has continued to grow and change, John Klimpel’s selfless attitude remains true today. He doesn’t hesitate to pick up a broom in the lobby or help serve food in the kitchen. His strong work ethic and loyalty are the driving force to Lincoln Hotel Group’s continued success. John is always looking for opportunities to expand Lincoln Hotel Group and is looking forward to the bright future surrounding the company he and his wife have built.

John Klimpel has 5 kids that he loves dearly and constantly supports in everything that they do. He loves getting to know his employees, traveling and of course the St. Louis Cardinals.

Tami A. Klimpel

Co-Founder, President, and CEO

Tami A. Klimpel has more than 25 years experience in the hotel industry. She began her career at the Cornhusker Hotel in Lincoln, Nebraska. In 1998 John and Tami purchased their first hotel in which Tami was the General Manager. In that capacity, she gained a keen sense of the importance of the hotel’s employees and delivering a satisfactory experience to each of the hotel’s guests. In recent years, Tami has been the Human Resource Consultant and Training Advocate for several hotels owned and managed by Lincoln Hotel Group. She believes that “if you take care of your employees, they will take care of your guests, which will in turn create revenue for investors.” This mentality is key to the continued success that John and Tami have witnessed over the years. Tami currently is as Lincoln Hotel Group’s Co-Founder, President, and CEO, ensuring that every aspect of our process runs smoothly.

Tami is the mother of three boys, a Senior Airman in the United States Air Force, and two crazy twin boys. She enjoys baseball, traveling, a fun girls’ trip, and a good sale.

Roland Morgan

Chief Operations Officer

Roland began his journey with Lincoln Hotel Group in October 1999, starting as a part-time front desk associate at the Holiday Inn South County Center in St. Louis, Missouri. He quickly fell in love with the hospitality industry and, within just two years, moved into hotel management. His adaptability, leadership, and operational talent made him the company’s go-to resource for hotel openings, operations, acquisitions, and renovations.

Over the years, Roland has opened Cendant, Marriott, IHG, and Hilton hotels on behalf of our group, playing a key role in establishing the operational foundation for multiple award-winning properties. He has managed or overseen operations at nearly 20 hotels, consistently delivering strong returns for our investors.

As Lincoln Hotel Group’s portfolio expanded, Roland was the natural choice to lead operations across all properties. Today, as Chief Operations Officer, he continues to elevate performance, helping ensure our hotels remain leaders within their markets and across their respective brands.

Loyalty, trust, and commitment define who we are as a company—and Roland exemplifies those values every day. Outside of work, he is a devoted husband and father, a man of faith, and an avid fan of the outdoors, St. Louis Cardinals baseball, and the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

Lucas Arias

Senior Vice President of New Construction and Renovations

Lucas is the Senior Vice President of New Construction and Renovations for Lincoln Hotel Group-managed hotels. He has 20 years of hospitality experience in restaurants and hotels. His job roles range from dishwashing, cooking, serving, management and sales. As a General Manager, Lucas received 4 IHG Torchbearer Awards as well multiple other recognitions. As Project Manager, Lucas has completed 5 projects and continues to serve alongside John in the building and development of new aproperties.

In his free time Lucas likes to play sports, workout, ice fish, and is a diehard Chicago Cubs fan.

Joe Kotopka

Chief Financial Officer

Joe Kotopka holds a B.A. in Accounting from Doane University. With eight years of experience in the banking sector, spanning from customer service to commercial lending. Joe now serves as the Chief Financial Officer at Lincoln Hotel Group. In this role, he manages the financial operations for a portfolio of multiple hotels across 5 states. Joe oversees accounting, budgeting, forecasting, revenue optimization, and cost management. He is also responsible for hotel planning, investor management, and financing. Joe works closely with the corporate team to achieve amazing hotel projects with exceptional returns for our clients.

Steve Young

Assistant Hotel Controller

Steve Young has spent his career in the Hospitality Industry, with the last 13 years on the financial side of the Hotel Industry and a part of the LHG Financial Team since late 2015. Prior to that he spent his career in Management, Quality Control, and the financial side of the Restaurant Business. Steve is a licensed Mortgage Loan Originator and has independently brokered mortgage loans for over 20 years.

Steve enjoys travel, golf, and spending time with family.

Melanie Thompson

Director of Operations

Melanie Thompson is the Director of Operations with Lincoln Hotel Group. She has several years of experience in Bank Management and 15 years of experience with Hilton. After taking a break from Bank Management to start a family, she joined the Hilton Garden Inn team in Perrysburg, Ohio. A couple of years later, her family relocated to Nebraska with a job transfer and easily converted to The Good Life.

She joined the Lincoln Hotel Group team shortly after the Grand Opening of the Hilton Garden Inn Lincoln Downtown/Haymarket in 2013 as Sales Coordinator. She also held the roles of Bookkeeper, Front Office Manager, and General Manager of Hilton Garden Inn. Her knowledge of Hilton programs and products is vast, and she loves learning new and different ways to honor every guest. She has worked in a Regional Role with Marriott as well and loves to see the way each brand operates and welcomes its customers.

For many years, Melanie has volunteered through several local clubs, PTAs, the YMCA, and the Salvation Army. Melanie is focused on her family, enjoys the arts, and cheering on the Huskers!

Carrie Fleck

Human Resources Director

Carrie Fleck, Human Resource Director, joined Lincoln Hotel Group in 2022 with over 30 years of experience in the hotel industry. Prior to LHG, Carrie was the General Manager for 22 years at an extended stay hotel, and before that she worked multiple years at a downtown hotel as a front desk agent, reservations manager, and catering and sales manager. She is leading the human resources efforts of LHG’s multiple locations. Her experience in hospitality has been helpful in assessing, developing, and implementing policies and procedures at all hotels.

Carrie is the mother of twin boys who keep her and her husband busy with all their activities. She loves baseball (especially when her boys are on the field), the Huskers, and tailgating on football Saturdays.