EXECUTIVE PERSPECTIVE Happy New Year! L ast year continued to be challenging for many people and businesses. Illness, lockdowns and the changing way of business continue to change our everyday lives. ALOA SPAI has had its challenges as well, including not being able to hold our SAFETECH convention for the second year in a row in 2021. Yet, hope remained, and we saw im- provements and growth in several areas. We were able to return to print copies for our magazines, we grew our list of edu- cational webinars, and our 2021 ALOA Convention & Security Expo in Orlando was a great success. It was a wonderful week of classes, camaraderie, product education and more. Thank you to every- one who attended, taught and exhibited, and we hope you had a wonderful time. 2022 Conventions Be sure to mark your calendars for ALOA 2022 in Las Vegas, which will be held July 24-30 at the South Point Hotel & Casino. This was a great venue for us in 2019, and we are very much looking forward to returning. Unlike many of the other big casino properties, the classroom and Expo areas are consolidated into one gen- eral location, so you don’t have to walk around a lot. And if you want to go to the Strip, it’s a ten-minute cab ride away. But first, we have SAFETECH 2022 coming up in April. Online registration is now open, so go online to SAVTA.org to view the full registration brochure and to register. We have several new classes and the return of the safe-moving class 6 KEYNOTES JANUARY 2022 “One of the best pieces of news has been the establishment of a new automotive division.” we have held before. For those looking to get into safe work, safe moving is a good service to consider, but it’s essential that you know the safety procedures. More Good Things to Come Over the past two years, ALOA has made so much progress in adapting to the new busines environment and making im- provements that we’ve wanted to pursue for years. One of the best pieces of news has been the establishment of a new au- tomotive division. The formation of the International Association of Automotive Locksmiths (IAAL) was approved at our November board meeting. It will oper- ate much like SAVTA does: as a separate division with its own board, but with a representative on the ALOA board to have a voice. The division’s operations are being planned, and we are hoping to have more automotive education offerings this year. If you have any suggestions, please con- tact [email protected]. We are also hopeful that we will be able to hold more webinars and other online education activities this year, as there has been so much participation and interest. This is such a good way to get in some CEUs from the comfort of your home or office. And, if you didn’t know, we also offer some testing online. Talk to our Ed- ucation department for any questions. Throughout the pandemic, our staff has continued to serve members in all the ways we always have. We are here to answer questions, provide technical information, take your suggestions and help you in any way we can. We may have changed locations, but our operations are the same: You, our members, are our priority. Thank you for signing on for an- other year as ALOA SPAI members and for supporting the industry. We hope that this is a great year for you all and that you remain healthy. What- ever challenges 2022 throws at us, we are prepared to tackle them — together. Mary A. May Executive Director [email protected] WWW.ALOA.ORG
