NMTAW - New resources on the website

Marilyn, the web designer here. I just got finished uploading a ton of resources to the website for chapter members who would like to participate in University Day during National Massage Therapy Week, or for those of you who would like to coordinate your own event.

I am so impressed with the hard work that Karen Jensen, Lee Stang and others put in to this project. Every form you could ever imagine that could be used in creating and promoting your own event is there. Kudos to an incredibly well-thought out resource for our chapter!

Please go have a look! And thank those lovely people next time you see them (which I just KNOW will be at the chapter meeting on October 26th!)

Take care, Marilyn

Old Wives tale

Hello from sunny and HOT Phoenix! Well actually I got ahead of myself a bit. I want to start by clearing up some miss information that us New England folks have been fed for years. If its 105 degrees here in Phoenix, and yes it is dry heat, its still HOT!! Now that is fun if its 10 degrees in Connecticut, but I digress.

I am so happy to be serving as an alternate delegate this year, for our much respected state, I might add. We delegates are kept busy every day with our duties so we can report back to you and it is an honor to represent all of you on a National stage.

Speaking of stage, my first view from the podium yesterday serving as MC of our opening session and awards ceremony was seeing our entire Connecticut crew sitting front and center. I am glad they were so close to the stage as it made it easier to accept all of our awards. Congrats to all members of the Sports Massage team, and the Community Service team and of course to Shirley Cooper member extraordinaire.

I must say that the House of Delegates was the most impressive, and productive I have ever attended . In 4 hours we were able to pass 3 position statements and 3 recommendations!!! I am sure some of you are waiting to hear about Connecticut's recommendation, drum roll please............ it passed! Great work and congrats to Maureen Stott and so many others who put so much time and thought into this process! We can't wait to brief you all on the HOD and all of the happenings including the ice cream social we had to celebrate our recommendation passing right in the middle of the house! The alternates were able to send the treats up to the delegates and yes Connecticut was once again the envy of surrounding states. Bet you didn't know how important a job this can be!

So now we have some time, and well deserved down time I might add, to relax amongst friends as tonight is our state chapter dinner. I am told that we are headed for "Southwestern cuisine", and Scott is packing Rolaids for all.

Sending you all a piece of the beautiful sunrise over the mountains out my hotel room window every morning.....................

Cheers,

Kerry Methot

Chapter Presidents Council

Today was the second full day for Scott and I and the first full day for our Delegates. Although I am no longer President I had the opportunity to sit in on the Chapter Presidents Council meeting as an assistant to the facilitator. This meeting was overall good but there were two things that really stood out for me.

The first was the very brief but very emotional speech by MT Foundation President Diana Thompson. You all know that we participate in the dollar per member campaign but I don't know if you realize where our dollars go. It is distributed primarily in the form of community service grants. I don't believe there was a dry eye as Diana explained the two projects we helped fund. 'Bodywork for the Homeless' in Seattle and 'Massage Therapy for Torture Survivors' in Chicago. It was heart rendering and tremendously powerful and truly shows the enormous healing powers of Massage. Also announced was that the New Mexico Chapter no longer donates $1.00 per member but $5! Maybe we need to think about this! The Foundation work is very important and in many ways I believe it is one of the keys in helping to shape the future of our profession.

The second event that stood out was watching our Chapter President received his Presidents pin from National President MK Brennan. There were 29 new Chapter Presidents. Scott is already making his presence know as indicated by the fact he was nominated for moderator for the Presidents Council for next year. Once again our leader is making us PROUD. It has been a busy yet productive day here at the National Convention. Stay tuned for more stories from Phoenix!

Talk to you all later!

Lee Stang

Shape the Future

As part of the Dollar per Member Campaign, the AMTA Connecticut Chapter donates over $2000 per year to the Massage Therapy Foundation. All donations will help promote collaborative research, deepen the understanding of massage therapy, and bring massage to people in need. If you would like more information or would like to donate, please click on the link above and visit their website.

Thanks,

Scott Raymond

President

AMTA CT Chapter

AMTA collaborates with ISPA

AMTA and ISPA will be working together in collaboration in the very near future. The hope is to educate spa owners and directors on how to grow the quality and the quantity of massage therapists working in spas. Currently 28% of AMTA members work in spas at a national level.
Spas are the second highest work setting for massage therapists, and massage is the number one service offered in spas.
After the two associations disscussed their options, ISPA came back to the AMTA and would like to work together starting in January 2009.
The motion was approved unanimously. If you are interested in learning more about ISPA, please click on the title, and it will bring you to their home page.
~ Scott

National Board of Directors Meeting

Starting out with a moment of silence, we kept in mind things that we cannot control. With the current economic stress, market events, and the devastation that the weather has bestowed on us, we will keep all of those affected in our thoughts and prayers not only during this moment, but for the rest of the week.

The National Board has voted on the location of the 2011 National Conference.........the winner is......Portland, Oregon! As Lee stated, the location for the 2009 National Conference is Orlando, Florida, and in 2010 it will be in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Be sure to plan ahead and say "Count Me In!"

We also learned that the 2010 Massage Therapy and CAM Research Conference will be held in Seattle, Washington. Stay tuned for details.

For every step into the future, someone had to wonder what the possibilities might be. - Juanita Brown

Greetings from Lee Stang

Hello Everyone,

Lee here reporting in from Phoenix. Once again it is great to be able to keep you all posted on Convention happenings. I sit in the National Board Meeting with Scott and am pleased to announce, to no surprise, that he represents our Chapter well as President. People already know him and the general consensus seems to be that he is a great guy and terrific leader. Now we in CT already know that but it is nice to see our impressions reinforced! We are in good hands with him leading the way!

Our delegates are arriving today as you know and we look forward to an exciting and busy convention. There are certainly some important things at hand as we move into House of Delegate business, so keep checking the site and we will keep you updated. Something to keep in mind. Next years convention is in Orlando. Wouldn't it be great to have lots of CT therapists take advantage of it being on the east coast. It is a great opportunity for education in terms of classes but it is more impressive the education you get simply networking with hundreds of therapist from all areas of the United States. So start a new budget line and think about saving for Orlando.

That's all from now. We shall keep in touch. Have to spread out the fun anyway we can!

Lee Stang,
Immediate Past President

Greetings From Phoenix, Arizona

Hello from sunny and hot Phoenix, Arizona.

I am so glad that Marilyn was able set this up for us. We will now be able to communicate a lot of wonderful information through this new Blog. Not only will we be able to utilize this blog to hear from delegates and AMTA CT board members at National Conference, we will be able to "blog" for the New England Regional Conference in March as well!

Lee and I arrived late on Sunday, and we were able to get ourselves acclimated to our surroundings today. We walked throughout Phoenix in temperatures that reached 104 degrees. Later, we were able retreat to the AC and sit in on the open session of the National Board of Directors meeting. The National Board of Directors are meeting Monday and Tuesday. I will be able to let you know the location of the 2011 National Conference and a lot more information later on this week. I hope to be able to post some pictures of our delegates in action. We have a CT delegates meeting scheduled for Tuesday Evening at our Hotel. If you have any questions or concerns in regards to this year's National Conference, be sure to post a blog question, and I will be happy to respond. I am just getting adjusted to the time change. Hope all is well back in CT. ~Scott

Welcome to the AMTA CT Chapter blog!

We've set up this blog just in time for the AMTA National Convention in Phoenix. Stay tuned for updates from our President Scott Raymond.