ERAPPA President’s Message

On September 14, 1814, Francis Scott Key peered through clearing smoke to see an enormous flag flying proudly after a 25-hour British bombardment of Baltimore's Fort McHenry.  Key was on the British Ship for the purpose of negotiating with the British and once negotiations did not result in a peaceful outcome, he was not allowed to return to shore and had to watch as his countrymen were bombarded.  Key was inspired to write a poem, which later was set to music.  Even before "The Star Spangled Banner" became our national anthem, it helped transform the garrison flag with the same name into a major national symbol of patriotism and identity"

In celebration of Baltimore's history and the tradition of ERAPPA, MD/DC APPA would like to announce that "ERAPPA 2008, Your KEY to Success" will be the theme for the 2008 annual meeting in Baltimore, Maryland.

Thinking of Francis Scott Key’s inspiring poem or of that master key that gets you in everywhere or the keystone in the middle of that celebrated campus arch we begin to experience more fully the central theme of ERAPPA 2008, “Your KEY to Success”.  Just like the poem, master key and the keystone, ERAPPA 2008 promises to inspire you and to help you with access and understanding of how we might manage pressures in ways that maintain the critical balances that underpin our success.

The ERAPPA Board of Directors is proud to invite you to ERAPPA 2008 in Baltimore, Maryland.  This will be ERAPPA’s 58th annual meeting and will be centered in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, an area rich in history and opportunities for learning and fun.  The hard working host committee is planning programs, speakers and events that celebrate Baltimore’s unique character and at the same time enable education and networking that when combined will be the  “Key to Success” we all need every day.  We will be partnering with a diverse mix of Business Partners whose support and expertise are so essential to our success as facilities professionals.

Please consider sharing the lessons you have learned over the years with your colleagues by participating as a presenter.  The call for presentations is scheduled for the spring of 2008 and we anticipate a response that will lead to an excellent education program.  The educational program is the “Key” to a successful meeting and your participation is essential.  Most of us share similar problems and it is in sharing creative solutions with each other that helps us to become more successful.

Facilities professionals have long experienced the fact that our jobs involve working with people, money and within our environment.  We are constantly looking for the right balance so that we can maximize each of these three components.  If we let any of the three get out of whack, we hear not only from the other two but also from our customers and our institutions.  These three components represent the three legged sustainability stool upon which we sit.  Finding the Key to this balance and managing the pressures they represent remains the essential challenge for facility professionals.

We know that the methods, practices and even policies of the past will not enable our continued success.  We need new keys for new challenges and at the same time we need to assure that that old keystone continues to hold up the arch.  The various keys to our success will be explored and revealed to us through the education programs and networking at ERAPPA 2008.

Please join us, invest in your future and have some fun along the way.  You will want to experience ERAPPA 2008 and not hear about it from others!