President’s Message

Thank you.

Amelia Hodges, CMM, CMP North Carolina Association of CPAs, Morrisville, NC

Wow, what a year this has been . When I committed to the role of President I never imagined that we would face the challenges we all have experienced this year . I was excited about the in-person travel, networking, dancing all night during event receptions, but my year tuned out a little different . I have learned so much over the past year, and my biggest lesson was “change”, and how can I lead this chapter by turning challenges into opportunities . I also deepened my understanding of the word sacrifice, and quickly learned that I needed to push through and create a healthy mental and work life balance to lead this chapter during a challenging time . I would like to personally thank you all for your dedication and support during a very tough year, and even more specifically for our meeting industry . This chapter would not remain in business without our members, partners, and sponsors, who continue to dedicate their time to keep our chapter in business . No task was too small this year, and we all were forced to come together as planners and suppliers to share best practices and support each other . If you took the time to like a social media post, attend a virtual meeting, write an article, serve on a committee, check-in on a member, share a word of encouragement, sponsor an event, or teach a session…THANK YOU . Also, I must give a HUGE thank you to the most amazing and dedicated board of directors that took time away from their families and day jobs to serve our chapter . I appreciate you all so much and look forward to our continued work together as a team . Christine, Sarah, and Vince you all are top notch, and we could not ask for a more dedicated Management Office . We appreciate all your continued hard work and service to our chapter . I would also like to extend my congratulations again to Ricardo, as he steps into the President’s role and leads our chapter through a successful year together . The work is not done, as our 2021-22 board is ready to hit the ground running and lead this chapter to great leaps . Thank you for trusting me this year, and I am happy to serve as Immediate Past President with our incoming board to continue to work hard for our members . I look forward to networking with you all this year at an upcoming in-person event, and please know you can call me at any time, as I find so much joy in connecting with my industry peers . Be well friends . n