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Presidents Address
Spring 2003
With the 7th International Boating and Water Safety Summit now
officially over, there are several of us that finally can breathe a sigh of
relief. I know for the Summit Advisory Committee the end of the Summit was a
particularly welcome sight – the work the committee puts into planning and
staging the annual event can be overwhelming at times.
But in all, seriousness, this years Summit at the Alexis Park Resort Hotel in
Las Vegas, Nevada from April 13-16, was an overwhelming success. It was
successful, because once again, you, our members took advantage of everything
the Summit had to offer!
Officially, 435 individuals attended the Las Vegas Summit. The Advisory
Committee was extremely pleased with these numbers considering everyone’s
present budget situation (federal, state, and private), and the rapidly changing
current events taking place throughout the world that obviously impacts our
daily lives.
Through it all, the Summit continues to get better each year. I am amazed when
I think back to prior years when we thought that we may have reached a pinnacle
in providing new educational ideas and training opportunities for our members,
along comes another Summit that simply pushes the previous one aside.
This years Summit jumped off to a very dynamic start with the opening general
session on Monday April 14th. Several powerful inspirational
speakers set the tone for the entire week. My thanks to Karen Steely, the
founder of “Aaron’s Foundation”, and Monica Keys, (Scotty’s Mom), Phyllis
Kopytko, and Nita Boles, co-founder of “The Coalition of Parents and Families
for PWC Safety” for their heartwarming discussion of personal tragedies that
have affected their individual lives resulting from powerboat and PWC
accidents. Their stories reminded us all why we are here and the need to
continue to stress water safety.
Continuing with the opening general session on Monday, Dr. Robert Conn of the
SmartRisk Foundation presented a discussion of “Risk and Risk Prevention”. If
anyone could not find something on accident prevention that they could not take
away from his presentation, then you were at the wrong meeting altogether.
The following two days a record six breakout track sessions dealing with topics
such as Education, Outreach and Awareness, Water Safety Education, Risk
Management and Liability, Law Enforcement, and Paddlesport Safety, saw capacity
crowds attending every presentation: I know because I saw the hotel staff
deliver more chairs to each breakout room, standing room only was the order of
the morning!
My special thanks to the Paddlesport Safety track. The Paddlesport breakout was
a special addition for this year’s program and it did not disappoint. Their
presentations over the two day period were insightful, educational and
instructive on the use of paddle boats in either white water rapids or shallow
draft water such as kayaking and canoeing, a fantastic all around presentation
from top to bottom.
I
could go on; - from the “Hydro track” to the “Sea Planes and Boat Safety”, to
the “Recreation Boating Capacity issues tabulated at Tims Ford Reservoir in
Tennessee” – the Summit was an outstanding effort on everyone’s part. And, I
would be remiss if I did not mention the Tuesday afternoon rafting trip on the
beautiful Colorado River. The scenery was fantastic, weather perfect, the river
guide’s narrative of historical facts surrounding the construction of Hoover Dam
quite informative, and, the serenity of the Black Canyon itself was something to
behold. I can only say, if you did not participate in the trip, you simply
missed an enjoyable afternoon.
Our Wednesday afternoon Awards luncheon and evening Dinner Banquet recognized
our Regional and Merit Award Winners, along with our Letter of Accommodation
Winners. The highlight for me was having the privilege to present the NWSC
National Award to Mr. Frank Trent for his outstanding career efforts in
developing numerous U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Water Safety Programs; and the
NWSC Presidents Award to Mr. Fred Messmann, for his notable work efforts in
serving the National Water Safety Congress over the years. My congratulations
to both individuals, and my sincere thanks and appreciation for your outstanding
efforts in promoting water safety on a national level.
In closing, I want to thank our Summit Advisory Committee for all their hard
work, our Summit Co-Partners - the National Safe Boating Council, the Exhibitors
for their continued support; the Summit Co-Sponsors for their financial help;
the National Water Safety Congress Board of Directors; and the individual
members of the NWSC, for their efforts in making the 2003 Summit in Las Vegas a
success.
If you were in attendance, I believe you know what I am talking about; it was a
special four days. It no doubt will be difficult next year to duplicate these
efforts; - we set the bar rather high. But, I have the up most confidence that
we will succeed once again!
Please mark your calendars now for the next Summit scheduled for April 18-21,
2004, in Panama City, Florida, you do not want to miss it, you really cannot
afford to.
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