I am delighted to serve as the first female President of our Association for the next year. I hope that you all had the opportunity to enjoy the summer and are rested and eager to get back to work!

I would like for others to enjoy the level of camaraderie that we experience, which I believe exceeds all other professional associations. I feel personally blessed by having been invited into the Association by Jim Rigos, when Jim identified me in a bar review class presented by his firm, Rigos Professional Education Programs. Once I joined the Association, the activities in our Washington State Chapter allowed me to get acquainted with many professionals in my local area.

My goal for the next year is to equip our members with the tools to easily invite other dually qualified individuals to become members of our Association. Our Membership Development Committee and our Executive Director, Clark Mulligan, have already devised a support structure for membership recruitment. Recruitment tools are available for each of us to use to approach those we believe are potential members, such as sample letters, a list of benefits, and answers to objections. The tools are on the website at www.attorney-cpa.com/recruit.

Remember, it is not necessary that the dual qualifications of an Attorney-CPA be contemporaneous or current. Many of our members originally practiced as a CPA in one state and then become members of the bar in a different state, or vice versa. Also, Associate memberships are available to those who are qualified in one profession and are actively seeking qualification in the second. Getting actively involved in membership recruitment will allow you to personally strengthen your ties to other similar dually qualified individuals and will eventually strengthen your local Chapter. The program for membership recruitment includes recognition among your peers for your support of the Association, as well as prizes. Clark is happy to forward a package to each of our members who are willing to reach out and contact potential members.

Please consider joining one of our committees. The committees provide valuable input and direction for our Association. As a Committee member, you are provided with advance notice of meetings and copies of meeting minutes.

Most of our Committee meetings are via conference calls which generally last around thirty minutes. A list of open Committees, upcoming Committee meetings, and past meeting minutes are posted under the Members Only section of our website. I encourage you to join the Committee that most closely matches your interest by using the committee sign-up form on page 17 or by contacting the Association office at 888-ATTY-CPA.

Fast approaching is our upcoming Regional meeting in Detroit, Michigan on Friday September 29th and Saturday September 30th. Our line up of outstanding speakers consists of both past speakers and several new speakers. On January 26th and 27th of 2007, the Southwest Region will sponsor a meeting in San Antonio, Texas for the Southwestern Region. We also plan to meet in the Southeastern Region during the Heckerling Conference which this year will be held in Orlando, Florida, January 8-12, 2007. We will also have a table top booth at the Heckerling Conference this year which will help with our PR and membership recruitment efforts. Details for both Regional meetings are on our website, as are details of our Chapter meetings.

I am eagerly anticipating the outstanding meeting planned for Washington D.C. this November 8th through the 12th. We have a dynamic education program as well as many opportunities for social interaction and professional networking. A meeting brochure has been mailed to all members. Registration information and agendas are also available online.

All of us who attended the annual meeting in Toronto this July have wonderful memories of the beautiful city of Toronto and of new experiences with both old and new friends. Many thanks to Howard and Ann Port, our Meeting Chairs, and to Nicole Emard, our new Meetings Director, for helping to make the Toronto annual meeting a huge success.

I look forward to meeting many of you over the coming year!