Final President's Message - June Key Note 2021

How will you remember this past year? I will appreciate this recent year as those moments where I found and believed in the power of my own voice – the opportunities to amplify this channel to influence change in myself, my community, and our collective industry. As my term as Chapter President 2020-2021 approaches a close, I reflect on the tremendous honor and privilege to have served our MPI Northern California Chapter and all our valued members. The leadership of our board of directors and the chairs/co-chairs, along with our many amazing volunteers, demonstrated their immeasurable spirit and passion and continuously inspired me to lead with the same level of enthusiasm and joy. It is these individuals I would like to acknowledge as they were the direct catalysts and change makers, and influencers that continue to be the backbone and foundational strength for our chapter.

The journey we shared together this year was an uncertain and challenging one, testing our resilience, courage, and determination. Our industry and community have been, and continue to be, impacted tremendously, and so many of our members were affected both professionally and personally. The world not only experienced the effects of a global pandemic that crippled our industry, but also racial and social injustices, as well as political and economic turmoil. Despite these headwinds and seemingly insurmountable obstacles, we came together to find optimism and hope together.  We sought to find moments of gratitude along the way and to connect with each other as one collective community.

Despite these uncertainties and hurdles, however, the chapter moved optimistically forward with steadfast determination. Your Board of Directors rose to the challenges presented to them. We focused on providing relevant and critical educational programming to ensure our members received needed resources and information.  The chapter created initiatives like “Our Journey of Gratitude”, which was an MPI RISE Award finalist for Membership Achievement that connected our members together and demonstrated the power of gratitude and community.  We recognized the immense value of collaboration and created the inaugural MPI Golden State Collaborative partnering with the four (4) other MPI California chapters for a half day of engaging education which earned the chapter a finalist recognition for the MPI RISE Award for Innovative Educational Programming and Marketplace Excellence. Our signature event, MPINCC Annual Conference & Expo (ACE) was re-imagined into a completely digital event and branded as ACE2.021 with an innovative platform and format using a strategic and thoughtful approach to education content woven with the networking.

Your Board of Directors took on their respective roles with pride and were honored to be stewards in advancing the future sustainability, growth, and success of the chapter. Below are some of the highlights of the past year.

Throughout this year, I wanted to convey to our chapter members, and the industry, the unmistakable resilience, optimism, and hope of our MPINCC community.  We focused on strengthening our connections and realized, in many ways on this journey, that we are stronger together. It is imperative during these times, that we utilize the tremendous influence and impact of our meetings and events industry, and the power of our voice, to bring about social and economic transformation. I ask of each of you to believe in the power of yourself and your voice. Each voice can be a catalyst for change, and my hope is that you will continue your own personal journey to find and use your voice as that instrument. I am humbled and honored that each of you, our members, had the faith to allow me to lead this chapter as President alongside our distinguished Board of Directors during this 2020-2021 year. When we meet, we CAN change the world.