Fellow FCCMA Members:
Thank you for allowing me the honor of serving as President of FCCMA for the 2019-2020 program year. Working alongside dedicated professionals to serve our incredible membership is a privilege I will never forget. I would like to extend a sincere thank you to those who have worked to make FCCMA an outstanding association. Thank you to FCCMA Staff – Casey Cook, Carol Russell, and Linda Bridges – for being FCCMA’s backbone and working tirelessly for our success. Thank you to our Board of Directors and committee volunteers for investing their time and effort to create exceptional opportunities for members of this association. Finally, thank you to our members. Member involvement is crucial to our success, and your passion and dedication to this field is consistently evident.
Despite the unpredictability of the last few months, our committees have done impressive work. To highlight, we have increased membership through direct outreach and engagement; developed 12 webinars on topics directly impacting our profession; planned and executed a successful Winter Institute; increased member engagement through social media and outreach; initiated focus groups concerning women in local government; and served as advocates for our communities throughout the year. None of this would have been possible without committee chairs Terry Atchley, City Manager, Wauchula; John Titkanich, Innovation and Performance Manager, St. Lucie County; Micah Maxwell, Assistant City Manager, Clearwater; Lori LaVerriere, City Manager, Boynton Beach; Aubrey Phillips, Strategic Performance Manger, Pinellas County; Alan Rosen, Assistant City Manager, Port Orange; Sharon Ragoonan, Assistant City Manager; North Miami Beach; Dan Clark, Town Administrator, Lake Clarke Shores; Jeff Tillman, Assistant City Manager, Auburndale; Mark Ryan, City Manager, Indian Harbour Beach; and Sarah Hannah-Spurlock, Nighttime Economy Manager, Fort Lauderdale. Assisting them were equally energetic and committed vice-chairs and committee members.
As a result of COVID-19, our Board made the difficult decision to cancel our Annual Conference; however, the exemplary work done by our Conference Planning Committee has not gone unnoticed. This event is something we all look forward to and though the Board was excited to see everyone, we felt it was more important to cancel the conference so that you could continue to serve your communities and stay safe. We are actively looking at alternatives for the annual business meeting and details will be sent to you soon. If you need professional development in the meantime, including ethics courses to satisfy our ethics requirement, we have webinars archived on the Center for Florida Local Government Excellence website.
As President, I hoped to put FCCMA’s purpose of driving culture and ethical behavior, enhancing collaboration, providing support, and promoting local self-governance and research into practice and I think we did just that. I am very proud of our association and everything accomplished this year. I am also proud of the work you do every day in your cities, towns and counties. Thank you again for allowing me to serve as FCCMA’s President. It has been a joy and an honor. Please stay in touch – I look forward to the next time we can come together as an association!
Best Regards, Shannon
