In 2005, the NCBTA established the President’s award. This award is given out to one direct and one allied member who have distinguished themselves with contributions to the chapter throughout the year. Once again, the decision to select two members was extremely difficult as we have such a high rate of volunteerism among our membership. Over half of the chapter members contribute time to at least one task force, with many deserving on two, three and more. I’d like to personally thank each of you for your time and effort. Because of your contributions, our chapter continues to be one of the most successful within NBTA.

 

The two members selected for special recognition have both, once again, tirelessly served our chapter. This year’s Direct Member winner is Jan Shoemaker from Land O’Lakes. Jan has been active within the chapter for many years. She is extremely dedicated and never hesitates to pitch in and help. She has been working diligently with the Education Summit task force to put together a top notch day.

 

This year’s Allied Member winner is Gina Zappa from Corporate Travel Solutions. Gina is a member who has served on the Membership Committee and who has been a life line to our website team. She has stepped in and has been instrumental in getting information posted to our new website. This job requires attention on an almost daily basis to keep the website current. Congratulations Jan and Gina!

 

For the past several years, there has been an initiative to have a joint meeting with the Wisconsin, Chicago and North Central BTA’s. The primary purpose of this meeting was to look for ways that we could help each other and provide greater benefit for our members. We finally pulled it off on April 9th at The Graves 601 Hotel in Minneapolis. Each chapter was represented by three to four members from their respective boards and the meeting was a tremendous success. We’ve agreed on a number of undertakings, including such things as a “Tri-State” membership, a joint educational summit, combining our buying power for speakers, and looking at engaging a professional marketing company to help market each chapter. I am really excited about the possibilities that this partnership can bring to our chapter.

 

Last, but not least, the response to the election nomination process was exceptional. Thank you to those of you who agreed to run for a position on the board of directors. We have at least two individuals running for every board position and based on the nominees, we will have at least four new members on the board. In June, we will have our annual board planning session. This is the time where we help transition the board and set the plan for the next year. If you have any specific suggestions or recommendations, please reach out to one of the board members and let them know.