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Past President's Message

January 10, 2020

Past President's Message

Happy 2020! I hope this letter finds you to be healthy, happy and excited for the new year! 

At the conference this past fall, I was able to provide an update on the Chapter to a group of past presidents. Seeing the progress we continue to make as a Chapter year after year is quite remarkable. Ten years ago, as we were moving into 2010, I was serving as a Director on the Executive Committee, Dan Gage was turning the presidency over to Dave Hutton and Angela Popenhagen became our Chapter Delegate. To save costs and protect the environment, we began the process of going green by eliminating the Chalkline newsletter and designing our current Chapter website. We awarded $7,750 in scholarships that year, had our first graduating class from the Underground Utilities and Construction Inspectors School (UUCIS) and were receiving our 5th Presidential Award for Chapter Excellence (PACE) from APWA.
 
As we begin 2020, Chapter membership is at an all-time high with over 1,070 members, we have added an Alternate Delegate position and have several new committees. We also have several Chapter members serving on national committees. Our scholarship funding has increased to $20,000 per year, and, since its inception, nearly 300 students have graduated from UUCIS. The Chapter received its 15th PACE award and we remain in a strong financial position, which will allow us to continue providing our members with education and training opportunities, networking events and high-quality conferences. 
 
As I said, our Chapter’s progress is remarkable (imagine if we looked back 50 years!) and I’m confident we will continue to expand and grow to better serve our membership and the communities in which we work, live and play. 
 
In 2020, we will focus on the Raise Our Grade (ROG) campaign, which was launched at this year’s spring conference, and we will continue to explore a civil engineering/public works-oriented partnership with the Minnesota Science Museum. These two initiatives align with two of our strategic goals: being the voice of public works and sharing the value of public works to others. Both can be of great benefit to our industry and so, we will be looking to the membership for your help as we work to advance these initiatives.
 
Serving as Chapter President has been a great privilege and I appreciate the support given to me. Looking back, the new year has made me grateful that I chose to get involved in APWA-MN all those years ago. My professional and personal life have truly been enriched by those I have gotten to know and the experiences we’ve shared. If you aren’t currently involved in the Chapter, I encourage you to do so in whatever capacity you’re able. It’s something you won’t regret! Thank you for the opportunity to serve as your President. I wish you the best and look forward to seeing you soon!
 
Sincerely,
 
Amy Grothaus

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