January 1996
I want to take this opportunity to thank Carol Edelen for two very exceptional conferences,
the one in the Spring in Morgantown, West Virginia, broke all previous attendance records.
Carol has given me and future Presidents a "hard act" to follow.
I also want to thank Clarence Phillips for being my Installing Officer. I have had the
pleasure of his friendship and professional support for almost twenty years through the IAI
and his previous positions within the FBI.
As most of you know, I recently changed jobs which required Sandy and me to relocate
to the northern Virginia area. This change brought back the memories of our last move
from Arizona to Virginia and the warm and sincere welcome we received from the members
of the Chesapaeke Bay Division. I have found that when you are actively involved in the
International Association for Identification and its divisions, no matter where your work
takes you, you will always have an extended IAI family.
I such an dynamic organization such as ours, you get so much more out of being a member
if you are willing to be involved and participate in the educational seminars. Besides
the very informative educational sessions and vendor demonstrations, a lot is learned
through the interaction bewteen members during the breaks, meals and in the Hospitality
Suite afterwards. We find what chemicals and/or methods are being used successfully by
the other professionals in this area in certain situations, and being active in the CBD,
you will have someone to call for assistance in almost any situation.
We have the Spring Educational Conference planned for March 29 - 30, 1996 in Williamsburg,
Virginia at the Fort Magruder Inn. I think you will find this conference very informative,
and I encourage you to attend. Please register early for the Williamsburg conference, as
this makes Randy's and Nancy's jobs easier, and if you register before March 10 you will
also save a few bucks. Remember, the cut-off for the hotel is February 28th. The price
and availability of the rooms cannot be guaranteed after that date. The Williamsburg area
has something for just about everyone, from American History (the hotel is situated on a
Civil War battle site, with trenches still visible on their grounds, with the Colonial
Williamsburg, Jamestown and Yorktown nearby), to the numerous modern day shopping centers
and, of course, "The Pottery".
Being the Secretary for the IAI's Latent Print Certification Board, it will come as no
surprise to most, that I firmly believe the Certification Programs as a way to continue
raising the professional standing of those involved in the forensic fields. One of the key
elements of all of the IAI certification programs is the continuing education requirements.
This requirement is to ensure that certified individuals are being exposed to the current and
newly-developed methods of our ever-changing scientific investigative fields, and to other
individuals in our profession.
I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season, and Sandy and I wish everyone a healthy and
prosperous New Year!
October 1996
Thank you to those of you who were able to attend the Spring Educational conference in
Williamsburg, Virgina. The attendance was very good and we received many favorable
comments on the program and the accommodations. The success of this conference was
due in large part to the hard work of Second Vice-President James Johnson, third
Vice-President Mike Grimm, and of course Randy and Nancy Goodwin. J.J. arranged an
excellent speakers program and Mike provided an outstanding vendors program. The
peakers presented inportant and timely information in our fields of endeavor. The
vendors demonstrated the latest supplies and scientific equipment. We greatly
appreciate the continued support of our vendors with their assistance to educational conferences and our division.
I would like to express to the "Chesapeake Examiner" Editor Barbara Pase,
our appreciation for the continued outstanding job she does in preparing our main
means of communication. This is not an easy task to put together such an exceptional
publication.
We had a large turnout from Chesapaeke Bay Division at the Internationa Association for
Identification's 81st Annual Education Conference in Greensboro, NC. Congratulations go
to our First Vice-President Iim Hahn, who received designation as a Distinguished Member.
As usual, the division was well represented as officers of the parent body. Ron Jackson
was elected President; Tom Fiorenza is the Sergeant-at-Arms; Cary Chapman is the Historian;
Board Members include Coy Burns, Norm Smith, Jeff Thompson, Bill Watling and William Whyte.
There were many valuable and interesting speakers and workshops. Of course, it is always
great meeting fellow members of our profession from throughout the world, and exchanging
ideas and information.
Sandy and I want to thank John and Jan Bowman, Carol and Bill Edelen, Randy and Nancy
Goodwin, Jean Smith and all the others who assisted us in making the Hospitality Suite
such a success.
The upcoming CBD-IAI Fall Educational Conference will be held in Virginia Beach, Virginia
on November 1st and 2nd at the Ramada Plaza Resort located at 57th Street and the Ocean Front.
We have put in an order for beautiful beach weather. The Ramada Plaza Resort has provided
us with a real value for Virginia Beach hotel rooms; at $55 plus tax for ocean front rooms,
and $50 plus tax for pool view/city view rooms. The hotel reservations must be made by October
1, 1996 to guarantee availablity of these room rates. In addition to the rooms being a great
value, we will have a Caribbean Delight buffet on Friday evening, on Saturday we will have a
buffet breakfast, Assorted Sandwich buffet with salads for lunch, followed by the Banquet and
Installation of Officers in the evening. The registration form with the fees listed, and the
hotel information will be found in this issue of the "Chesapeake Examiner". Please
get your registration in as early as possible.
As my term as President comes to a close, I want to thank my CBD family for their support
during my time in office and in making our transition to Northern Virginia easier.