City Trees

6 CityTREES I am already packing for the Society of Municipal Arborists 54th Conference and Trade Show in Irvine, California! November 5th and 6th are coming up fast; you can see the full con- ference program in this issue. The Society's conference was built on and remains grounded in municipal arborists and affiliated folks coming together to share ideas, reminisce, banter, and support one another through the challenges we face. Don't miss this oppor- tunity to be with a friendly group of people like-minded people and to make connections that can last a lifetime. Our wonderful conference is built each year by an amaz- ing group of municipal arborists that take great pride in a pay-it-forward movement. Syracuse, New York City Arborist Stephen Harris is heading up a brilliant SMA Conference Committee that started working in November 2017 to bring to you as much fun, camaraderie, arboricul- ture enlightenment, pleasant surroundings, and good food and drink as possible in Irvine this November 5 th and 6 th . Consulting Arborist Walt Warner from California and Hawaii is working diligently to bring together a world- class, educational trade show with our esteemed ven- dors from arboriculture and other fields. Upper Arlington, Ohio Superintendent of Parks Steve Cothrel and his awards committee are now accepting nominations for our awards ceremony to be held on November 6 th . You can see nominating information in this issue; I encour- age you to lift up a colleague for a potential award. Providence, Rhode Island City Forester Doug Still is busy setting up a new process for our silent auction that supports the Urban Forestry Foundation. (We hope you are thinking about items to donate!) We are all ready to have a great time, with lots of fun bidding on the auction items serving as great reminders of an orga- nization whose members care about one another. All year, SMA Executive Director Jerri LaHaie has spent countless hours making sure everyone's dotted i's and crossed t's in preparation for the conference. Thank you, Jerri! Thank you volunteers on all the SMA Committees. I know I am about to attend a great confer- ence, with great people, in beautiful Irvine, California. We miss your smiling face. We get it—you're busy, your funds for professional development are lim- ited, and your personal funds are even more limited. Oftentimes, it feels like there just aren't enough hours in a day, with all the demands from work, family, church, and community activities. It's almost easier to run a little faster on the wheel of life you are on than to stop long enough to realize you're alive but you're not really living, at least not in a sustainable, healthy way. That's why things like conferences are so important. You get to reconnect with your own tribe, see what your peers are up to, and hear about new tools and techniques that just might make your life a little easier. Getting away from your usual routine, out of the daily grind, where you have a few minutes to think about you, well, that's just good for you. I thought about this while I was at the ISA Conference in Columbus, OH in July, seeing faces I hadn't seen in a while, old friends, and new acquaintances. PA (Professional Affiliate) Day this year was a walking tour of downtown, and it was one of the best ever. Past SMA President Steve Cothrel, aided by SMA members Paula Chope, Samantha Simmons, and Jodee Lowe, choreographed a local tour that lasted all day and took us over 18,000 steps, accord- ing to my tracker. That's a lot of time to get to know one another, share stories, and make new friends, not to mention reflect on life and get some great exercise. If you haven't registered yet for the annual SMA Conference (November 5-6) and the Partners in Community Forestry Conference that follows (November 7-8), do it for your- self. You'll leave feeling reinvigorated, having spent a few days with people like you who understand the job you do and how difficult it can be. We'll get you out- side where you can connect with nature while you're connecting with people. You'll learn a lot, have fun, get some exercise, and we'll even feed you a few good meals. We're looking forward to seeing your smile. President's Message Sarah Morris Executive Director's Message Jerri J. LaHaie

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