Fellow FCCMA Members:
Do not forget it’s time to register for the FCCMA annual conference! It’s important to register early, please make the commitment. Your President-Elect, Shannon Lewis (CM-Melbourne) and the Conference Planning Committee have been working really hard to put together another great conference. The President-Elect’s main job is to plan the annual conference and our best benchmark is getting more attendees this year than last year when I was chairman of the planning committee. I want Shannon and her committee to surpass last year’s numbers and have bragging rights for at least a year to having planned the best-attended conference ever! The speaker line-up is phenomenal, you will not be disappointed with the sessions planned, this will be our best conference ever.
Never forget what we do matters greatly. Sometimes this can be forgotten in the day-to-day grind of working hard to build community. FCCMA’s Professional Management Matters program recognizes the importance of training and mentoring the next generation of Florida’s professional managers through internships, college programs, job fairs and regular interaction between managers and public administration students. As our current officials reach the end of their careers, the need to encourage the next generation to approach city/county management with an emphasis on quality, efficiency, experience is more vital now than ever. Do not miss another opportunity to demonstrate how much Professional Management Matters and how big of a role each FCCMA member plays in the discussion.
On a sad note, W. D. Higginbotham, a 25+-year FCCMA member, recently passed away. Mr. Higginbotham’s distinguished public-sector career of over 30 years has included serving as chief executive officer and chief financial officer of cities in Florida and California. He served as City Manager of Gainesville, Melbourne Beach, Surfside, and Madeira Beach. After being recruited by the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) on behalf of the Department of Defense, his service to Florida cities was briefly interrupted in late 2007 and early 2008 when he served in Baghdad, Iraq as a member of the United States Provincial Reconstruction Team. He was an active member of ICMA and the Florida City and County Management Association (FCCMA) and has been recognized by both organizations for over 25 years in the local government management profession. He was active in FCCMA the last few years in assisting with resume reviews at the Annual Conference. He will be greatly missed.
See all of you at the FCCMA Annual Conference in Orlando!
