BOULDER — When asked how she felt about being inducted into the Boulder County Business Hall of Fame, Linda Cain replied that she was “surprised and overwhelmed.” But what may have come as a surprise to Cain shouldn’t come as one to anyone familiar with her success.

As chief executive of Cain Travel Group of Boulder Inc., Cain heads not only a top woman-owned business in Boulder County but also the 56th-largest travel agency in the nation, as ranked by Travel Weekly, a national travel-industry newspaper.

Cain has been involved in the travel industry since 1967, and she and her husband, David, founded Cain Travel in 1985 as the successor to Viking Travel, which was established 10 years earlier. Last year, the company, which specializes in international corporate travel, brought in annual sales of $104 million.

Dennis Paul, assistant vice president of Boulder-based Elevations Credit Union, has worked with Cain Travel for more than eight years and suggested Cain as a Hall of Fame nominee. Elevations provides health savings account services for the travel agency.

“There were a couple of reasons we felt she would be someone to call out as a leader,” Paul said. “Her work in the community, her stature as the CEO of the No. 1 woman-owned business in the county — she represents the best in the business.”

Cain Travel has been recognized in the past for its commitment to its staff. In 1996, the company was honored by President Clinton for its human-resources policies, and Cain was invited to participate in the White House Conference on Corporate Responsibility.

“We’re very proud of our family-friendly practices for employees,” Cain said. The travel agency has 60 staff members, many of whom work from home in different states, and offers flexible hours so that employees can spend time with their families. The company also contributes to individual employees’ causes, such as scout fundraisers and charity walks.

In addition to her commitment to her clients and staffers, Cain is deeply involved with the community and other charitable causes.

She “cares deeply about Boulder, the state at large, and the most vital ecosystems of our world,” said Cain’s son Michael, president of Cain Travel.

She serves on the board of the Robert D. Sutherland Memorial Foundation, which offers help to those with bipolar disorder, as well as the boards of the Colorado Ski and Snowboard Museum and Hall of Fame in Vail and, as an avid SCUBA diver, the Coral Reef Alliance in San Francisco. In the past, she has served on the boards of the Boulder Chamber of Commerce, the Boulder Valley YMCA and the National Association of the Mentally Ill.