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As promised in my newsletter message last week, I am coming to you with news of the 2020 Annual Meeting. After taking a close look at the options that are before us for the safety and well being of our members, your Board of Directors made the difficult decision to cancel the live Annual Meeting set for November 13-17, 2020 in Las Vegas.
Though this is unfortunate news, with COVID-19 numbers rising in many areas, I believe many of us might also be relieved. Most of us are facing circumstances never before seen in our lifetime. With the added risks and challenges in our personal family lives as well as in our own practices, these are the areas where our focus should be now.
Recognizing the need for education, particularly among our student members, the desire to see our friends and colleagues, and the requirement to earn those much-needed NEBO credits, the Education Committee is putting together an online, virtual meeting to meet these needs. Educational content will be live streamed where possible over the existing four days of the conference, then made available to attendees for a limited time afterward.
Registration and the revised program will be available to you in July.
In addition, separate arrangements are being made for Board and Committee Meetings, the Annual Business Meeting and of course the all-important College of Ocularistry education track. We also want to bring an online version of the Welcome Reception and Closing Night events for those who want to tune in and share in the fun and camaraderie of those events.
I, along with each one of you will feel the disappointment in the lack of networking, and visits with friends and colleagues that an in-person meeting brings. We will all miss this, but it may just remind us of the importance conference attendance brings and allow us to appreciate it just a little bit more when we are together next year.
Speaking of next year, while the Board previously approved the site for the 2021 Mid-Year Meeting to be in Clearwater Beach, Florida, we are moving that location to 2022 and will be in Albuquerque/Santa Fe, New Mexico for 2021. More on that in the coming weeks.
Thank you for your patience while we navigate through this COVID crisis. We hope you understand the reasons for cancelling the on-site meeting, and hope you will register and be a part of this exciting new way to attend a meeting and earn your credits this Fall.
Respectfully,
Antonio Alcorta, Sr., BCO, BADO
President
tonysr@ddanzinc.com
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