Thank you to the membership for electing me as NACCED president. I am continuing a long tradition with my community being involved in NACCED. I represent Arlington County, Virginia (at 26 square miles, the smallest urban county in the country!), and we were one of the founding members of NACCED in the 1970s.  In fact, Arlington’s first female Housing and Community Development Director, Joan Linderman, was one of NACCED’s early presidents, and my predecessor Jane Eboch was a NACCED president in 2011. So I’m particularly proud and honored to be able to carry on this tradition. 

So, why have we continued to be involved in NACCED?  For me, it’s been incredibly helpful in three ways:

1. Professional development: training, education, and conferences all provide opportunities to learn our craft. The work that we do is complicated and technical and sometimes tedious. Having NACCED as a resource has been tremendously helpful. 
2. Advocacy: NACCED is increasingly our voice in Washington, the voice of communities using federal resources to create local solutions. Partly because of my proximity to Washington, and also partly because of my involvement with NACCED, I’ve been able to learn about the political process and participate in it. It’s very interesting, very rewarding, and it matters. 
3. Community: being able to connect with like-minded people around the country has been really fun. Our world is pretty nerdy, filled with HUD jargon and regs, and I love connecting with other people in this world. I’ve known some members for 20 years, others I’ve just met recently, and there are many whom I consider friends. 

Over the next year, I hope that you find equal value in NACCED. Just like your mother told you, what you put into something is what you get out, so I hope you lean into the resources and the community that NACCED offers.  I’d like to invite you to participate in one or more of the following ways:

• This year, we’ll be undergoing a strategic planning process to make sure that the organization is both meeting today’s challenges and preparing to be a leader in tomorrow’s housing and community development space. Let us know if you’re interested in being a part of this effort. 
• Join our committee calls, All-Member calls, and ad hoc advocacy task forces.  All members are welcome, and there are many ways to get involved. 
• Give me a call and let me know what you or your community need! NACCED’s staff and Board of Directors are always very focused on being responsive to our member needs – let us know. You can find my contact information by logging into NACCED’s website and searching the member directory.

Thank you for your confidence in me, and I look forward to working with you.