I just returned from my trip to Bellevue, Washington for the 2023 ASPE Tech Symposium. Well, maybe not exactly just—we did take some time to see that part of the country. Now that I am back, it means time to catch up on everything: emails, phone calls, and voice messages. Among those emails was one announcing the October 5, 2023 issue of ASPE Pipeline. One item jumped out at me. In the Affiliate Corner of that newsletter, the first headline reads, “Thank You, American Society of Plumbing Engineers.” Reading further, “Willoughby Industries would like to thank ASPE for another amazing event—the 2023 Tech Symposium in Washington!”
That seems like a twist to me. Don’t get me wrong—I was glad to see that Willoughby enjoyed the Symposium enough to voice their appreciation of ASPE. However, I do think that ASPE owes its appreciation to Willoughby and each and every other sponsor that provided their time and expense in supporting our event. Thus, I’m going to get an early jump on the Thanksgiving season and list all involved in making the 2023 Symposium a resounding success.
I’ll start by thanking the aforementioned sponsors and Product Show exhibitors. Their generous backing is what makes the Symposium possible. A special thanks goes to Charlotte Pipe and Foundry, who sponsored the Friday night welcome party. From the feedback we received on the Product Show floor, it appears that the booth traffic was busy and sustained, so I’ll add my thanks to our designers and engineers who made our exhibitors happy.
The next group I need to mention is the talent: that would be the speakers who imparted their technical knowledge for the benefit of our attendees looking to collect CEUs. I was able to attend eight of the sessions and can report that all eight of those presenters were excellent. On behalf of the Board of Directors, thank you to all of the presenters. While I’m on this subject, I also have to express thanks to the Education Committee for its job evaluating speakers and setting up the sessions.
Behind the scenes in bringing everything together for the Symposium is the ASPE Staff. They work tirelessly to juggle and coordinate every aspect of the event. They often go unnoticed, but they keep it all going like a well-oiled machine and deserve high praise. I do know that they keep me in line, and I am very grateful to each member of ASPE’s Staff.
Symposium attendees got a gift bag courtesy of the host Seattle Chapter. The Chapter volunteers were also visible providing directions and helping monitor the tech sessions. I’d like to thank the Seattle Chapter members for their gracious hospitality in Bellevue.
What would our Symposium be without each of you, the attendees? Thank you to everyone who took the time from your busy schedule and made the commitment to be there. I hope you had time to combine some sightseeing with the business part. If you did attend, I’d love to get your feedback. Send me an email or chime in on ASPE Connect. If you could not attend, we did miss you, and we hope you can make it to the 2024 Convention & Expo in Columbus, Ohio.
Before I wrap up this month, I feel that I need to offer an explanation to a recurring question. You may have seen a picture or two of me falling on ASPE Connect or maybe even live and in person. Let me allay any concerns. My health and my balance are fully intact (that may be subject to debate). The falling is just a fun thing that started way back before my time on ASPE’s Board of Directors. I have fallen in places around the world, for fun. It’s followed me around ever since. When it comes to the business of ASPE, the Board of Directors, including me, conduct that business faithfully. When the business is completed, we do enjoy downtime like everyone else. I do believe in tempering the work with fun. I hope it doesn’t alarm or offend anyone.
Thanks for reading this article. I’ll be back next month.
