Ray Adauto

Executive Vice President El Paso Association of Builders

The Holidays are upon us and once again we look forward to the new year . Our agenda will be full as we take our every other year pilgrimage to the state Capitol to meet with our legislators and Senator . This takes place on February 11 , followed by two days of meetings at the TAB Winter Board . We are looking at getting a good turnout from El Paso , always a fantastic way to walk into the Capitol and meet one on one with the folks making important decisions for us professionally and personally . The official hotel is the OMNI Austin , 8th street in downtown Austin . Join us .

Our end-of-year events were successful with the generosity of our members and their support . Parade of Homes went well , our turkey drive hit new highs , and our installation was a success . I would like to thank all our sponsors for their support , and the 280 guests we had that night . The event is featured in a story in the following pages .

As we wind the year down , we look at what is to come , and as you ’ ll see the headline will be “ change .” Margaret will be stepping down in the next few months , something we have semi-planned for . Semi because she is a wealth of knowledge that just can ’ t be replaced as

I ’ m sure many will agree . So in that effort we are transitioning our association systems into a new ( to us ) management support system called NOVI . The changeover will take probably 120 days , and then maybe a little more . Not that it is complicated but because we will be discovering new processes and opportunities using it . Bear with us during these moves . All good things take time and patience . Be prepared for both . Happy New Year . See you in January .