Keep Growing in Your Profession

OMG!!!! IF YOU MISSED SAFETECH 2024, you missed a great convention. The reports and comments I have seen and heard place this as one of the best conventions in years. I have yet to see all the numbers, but it looks like the loss we experienced last year has definitely been made up for in spades! A humongous thank you to the ALOA staff, the ALOA Education Department, the SAVTA Board and all the volunteers who helped on-site. Without all these people and more, this convention could never have been the success that it was. I am truly humbled by all the hard work and dedication. Truthfully, there are so many people to thank that it would take this whole column to name them all. Suffice to say, I am thoroughly grateful to every one of them. Some of you may not realize all the behind-thescenes issues that we had to overcome, but I believe that means we did our job properly. For those who attended the trade show, you may have noticed that there wasn't any pipe and drape around the individual booths. This was due to another behindthe- scenes issue that actually ended up saving SAFETECH and our exhibitors a lot of money. I have a personal thank you for Kelly Parker, the convention manager for ALOA, SAVTA and the IAAL. Without her diligence, these savings would not have been possible. SAVTA Board Changes At the SAVTA Membership meeting that took place prior to the trade show, two new Board members were elected. We welcome Mike McElheney and Mike Metzger to the Board. Continuing with the Board is Mike Potter, Dan Billheimer and me. A special thank you to our retiring Board members Dave LaBarge and Joe Reustle. The new Board has already scheduled our first meeting of the year, and we will be hitting the ground running to work on next year's SAFETECH as well as the many other issues confronting SAVTA. I am excited about the future of our division. Go ahead and save the dates now for next year's SAFETECH in Lexington: April 7-12, 2025. We'll be back at the Griffin Gate Marriott where we were a few years ago. I look forward to seeing you all there. I know that, together, we can continue to make SAFETECH the resounding success that it was this year.