[PAO] National Board

[Blake Sasse]

I attend state, regional, and national scientific meetings on a regular 
basis and having hosted several, these prices don't seem terribly out of 
line for a conference with 500+ people (I'm assuming that is what our 
attendance is).  If you're looking for a site that has lodging and 
conference facilities available for a group of that size in a city with 
commercial air service its unlikely to be found for less than $100 a 
night.  You can usually save significantly on your lodging costs by 
staying at a cheap hotel and driving to the conference hotel (assuming 
parking is available and not too expensive).

The registration fees do seem a little higher than I would hope, but 
costs for renting conference rooms and related expenses (food/beverages 
for breaks, projection equipment, etc) are probably not going to be much 
less than $150 for a larger conference these days.

I do agree that the smaller metropolitan areas are where you should be 
looking for our venues.

On 7/19/2014 8:44 AM, Karen Copenhaver wrote:
> Dear Fellow PAOs,
>
> As we continue our volunteer commitment to an outstanding 
> organization, we gladly donate our resources to train and 
> participate.  Across the years, we have attended conferences for our 
> wing, region and our national board, and the cost has slowly 
> increased, mainly because of the economic posture of the time. 
> However, after reviewing the current cost associated with our national 
> board, personally I am voicing a concern of how many members can 
> afford this astronomical cost.  Registration - $205 per person plus 
> room of more than $100+ per night (don't forget tax and tax); (plus 
> the extra days lodging for a total of 5 nights if you stay for the 
> entire event) then if you plan on attending our PAO Academy it is 
> $45,  and if you want to attend the FEMA course it is $20, then 
> Incorporating the Medal of Honor Character Development Program into 
> Character Development for $20 and Grant Writing for $10.  We can 
> easily add these costs to be exorbitant for many.  I've attended many 
> National Board Conferences, but never experienced such fees, and would 
> like to know what the "registration" is suppose to cover, if not the 
> work labs, and associated hand-outs.
>
> I would like to see a more reasonable cost for our National Board 
> Conferences in the future.  We do not necessarily need a place like 
> Las Vegas, Washington or Atlanta, or the like, as we do not have the 
> numbers  of attendees to support that type of location as we once did 
> with totals of upward of 2,000+ attendees.    We have some locations 
> that could support the size of our event, with less expense to our 
> members, such as Charlotte, NC,  and communities of that size across 
> our country.  Our overall cost has escalated to a level whereby one 
> must truly set aside additional funds up to more than $1,000 to 
> attend, and that does not include airline tickets, which are 
> escalating too.  I don't know how many of you join me in these 
> sentiments, but we need a more economical platform for our national 
> board conferences.
>
> One other comment, wouldn't it be nice to have a non-military speaker 
> like Bill Cosby to entertain and inspire us to continue our service?  
> As a volunteer organization, who gladly gives and gives so much to our 
> communities and nation, I would hope that an individual like this 
> would not charge, but to have airfare and other related costs (room 
> and meals) to be covered to get him/her to be our speaker.
>
> Realizing our organizational funds are somewhat limited and reduced 
> greatly across the board, we could certainly reduce our cost by 
> holding our national conference in a less costly location, and it 
> would increase the numbers who can afford to attend.  It indeed is a 
> great experience that everyone should have the opportunity to attend.  
> The labs, breakout sessions, or workshops... what ever they are 
> called, are always phenomenal. The opportunity to network with your 
> fellow members and national staff  is something that you will always 
> remember as you also establish a contact and many times lasting 
> friendships.  If you can..... please attend as it is an experience 
> that you'll want again and again.
>
> Thank you for your commitment and dedication to one of the best 
> organizations of which you could ever be a part.
>
> Respectfully,
> Karen L. Copenhaver, Lt Col, CAP
> Deputy Director, Public Affairs
> MER
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Subscribed Email Address: bsasse at sbcglobal.net
> CAP-PAO mailing list
> CAP-PAO at lists.sempervigilans.org
> http://lists.sempervigilans.org/mailman/listinfo/cap-pao
>