The soft voice on the other end of the telephone line apologized for being tardy in response to a voice mail I had left a few days earlier. She had been quite busy, she said, and besides that was finding it difficult to talk.

I understood.

Elaine Thompson’s husband, Lynn, was an industry veteran who had amassed not only great professional credentials but even more importantly a greater number of friends in a storied career before his retirement in 2007 and eventually his passing on January 4 after surviving cancer for a number of years.

I shared with Ms. Thompson that an apology was not necessary. January 30 is rapidly approaching as the two-year marker since I lost my own wife, Tanya, when she suffered a coronary dissection during an otherwise normal angiogram day surgery procedure. I knew well the fresh pain that Elaine Thompson was feeling.

I further shared that many in the industry have been asking IAVM about any memorial service that might be planned for Lynn. She told me that he was cremated and that there was not a funeral service, but would like to have a memorial service to honor her husband, most likely in early February.

She seemed truly overwhelmed and at times composed herself in order to continue our conversation. It was good to hear that she has already located and wishes to be involved in a grief support group. Such a gathering has been incredibly instrumental in my own personal walk and journey these past two years, and I shared that with her.

Before a memorial service is planned, she indicated that she would like to have a sense of how many might come. To that end, whether you are able to attend a memorial service or not, she covets your calls and emails and asked that we share that information with all of Lynn’s IAVM friends.

Contact Elaine Thompson by email at bitsy29@sbcglobal.net or at her landline number in Florida at 772-266-8757 or her cell phone at 775-250-5219. The 775 area code is correct as it is a Nevada prefix.

Just before we finished our conversation, I urged Elaine to feel free to contact me at any time to talk about life, healing, or just to cry and let me be an ear to listen to her. This is what the people in our fantastic industry are truly about, and this is what makes it the most special industry and association to be a part of.

The conference and meetings industries are in an exciting place right now. Technology is sweeping through every part of events – from the concept stage to automatically generated following-up messages to attendees – drastically changing how venues and organizers plan, set up, and execute. The overall goal is to get attendees engaged and excited long before they walk in the door. Create a memorable experience!

Convention centers can be at the forefront of tech changes on a large scale; changes that make conferences, trade shows, and other big events more interactive, flexible, and enjoyable. Because at the end of the day it’s all about improving the customer experience. Here are five trends that I think will impact convention centers in 2017.

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Learn more at this Pollstar Live 2017 panel, sponsored by IAVM. Registration for this event is now open: www.Pollstar.Live

You, as an IAVM member, are our most important asset. Without your commitment to the association and to the venue management industry, we wouldn’t be here. Because of your support, we are featuring member profiles in our I Am Venue Management series. If you are interested in participating in the I Am Venue Management series, please visit http://www.iavm.org/i-am-venue-management-share-your-story.

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We all need to be sensitive to the impact manufacturing has on the world around us. The world of sustainability has its own lexicon of terms that everyone may not fully grasp. Here is a glossary of terms that will help you better understand sustainability.
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