To the Members and Supporters of the North & East Texas County Judges and Commissioners Association:
Wow, where did the year go? I am not sure, but one thing I do know is that the North & East Texas County Judges and Commissioners Association Annual Conference at Moody Gardens in Galveston was one for the record books!
We had the largest number of registrants, exhibitors, sponsors, and smiling faces ever gathered at a North & East Conference. And yes, we even had Lonnie Hunt!
As the immediate past president, it is an honor to be able to recognize so many individuals and organizations who worked so hard in making this the type of conference our members have come to expect. First and foremost, I would like to give a special thank you to Galveston County Judge Mark Henry and the Galveston County Commissioners Court, and especially Roxanne Lewis from Judge Henry’s office who will certainly be missed in her retirement, for once again stepping up and supporting another conference in their county as the host court. We all know that Judge Henry will one day figure out that NO is an answer, but until then, shhhhhh! This group is excellent to work with, and they always exceed all of our expectations.
These conferences are the result of many hours of hard work by your officers, staff and volunteers, and I thank them for their dedication and commitment. However, a special thank you goes out to all of our sponsors and exhibitors who attend and support our conferences. Their contributions enable us to plan and to host a conference where all of the attendees have an opportunity to learn valuable information that will benefit their local communities.
One of the main focuses in planning our conference is on education, and I would certainly like to express my sincere appreciation to Ashley Mathews for the tremendous effort she puts forward on behalf of the V.G. Young Institute of County Government. Ashley is instrumental in helping to plan the educational program to include the Commissioners Court Advanced Curriculum courses, so thank you, Ashley.
A very special thank you goes to the ladies of County Progress, Becky Frost, Leigh Walker, and Amy Drennan. I don’t know (and am probably better off not knowing) how they continue to exceed all of our expectations when it comes to handling all phases of the exhibit hall and the registration of the exhibitors. All I know is we could not get by without their hard work; once again, this was the largest group of vendors at a North and East Conference.
Thank you to Julie Anderson for her assistance and media coverage at the conference events. Julie is a tremendous help with our Resolutions Committee, and you can never tell just where she may show up with a camera in hand. Some of you may need to be a little worried, but I won’t mention any names, Lonnie, until all of the photos have been released!
I would also like to express my appreciation to the ever-calm and stoic Dr. Rick Avery for performing the installation of our officers at the installation luncheon. It was an honor to have him participate in this occasion, and it would not have been the same without him.
I would like to give a big thank you to my administrative assistant, Sallie Alexander, for keeping up with all of the demands over the past year, and to my Commissioners Court for allowing me the time away to serve the North & East Texas Region. I also want to thank the other executive board members of our Association for all of their support and hard work this past year.
There is no region in Texas like the North & East Region. We have a strong leadership team in our Association that is committed to moving us forward, and I am so proud to have had the opportunity to represent you. My heartfelt thanks to all of you for your encouragement, support, and kind words over the past year.
I would like to welcome Smith County Judge Joel Baker as the secretary/treasurer of our Association and say that I am looking forward to working hand in hand with our new president, Cherokee County Commissioner Byron Underwood, and the other board members over the next year. See you all in Waco!
Wes Suiter
Angelina County Judge
Immediate Past President
North & East Texas County Judges and Commissioners Association
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SPONSORS AND CONTRIBUTORS:
- Allison, Bass & Magee, LLP
- Bickerstaff Heath Delgado Acosta LLP
- Bryan & Bryan Asphalt
- Cleveland Asphalt Products, Inc.
- Coastal Securities, Inc.
- Community Education Centers
- Deep East Texas Council of Governments
- Freese and Nichols Inc.
- Galveston County
- Goodwin Lasiter Strong
- Halff Associates, Inc.
- Indigent Healthcare Solutions
- Jack Alexander, Ltd.
- LaSalle Corrections
- Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson, LLP
- McCreary, Veselka, Bragg & Allen, P.C.
- NET Data
- Perdue Brandon Fielder Collins & Mott, LLP
- Raymond K. Vann & Associates
- ROMCO
- Southern Tire Mart
- Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Professional Associations
- Texas Association of Counties
- Texas Political Subdivisions, JSIF
- TransCanada
- Tyler Technologies
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EXHIBITORS:
- Acadian
- Advanced Graphics
- Alamo Industrial
- A-Lert Roof Systems
- Ambulance Medical Billing
- Ameresco, Inc.
- American National Leasing Company
- American Tire Distributors
- Asphalt Zipper
- Auctioneer Express
- BancorpSouth Equipment Finance
- Bane Machinery
- Bickerstaff Heath Delgado Acosta LLP
- BIS Digital, Inc.
- BuyBoard
- Careflite
- CEC, Community Education Centers, Inc.
- Cenikor Foundation
- Centerline Supply
- Choice Partners Cooperative
- Cleveland Asphalt Products, Inc.
- County Progress
- Dannenbaum Engineering
- DuraPatcher/Cimline
- Environmental Products and Applications
- GovDeals
- GrantWorks, Inc.
- Guardian Security Solutions, LC
- Hardin Sign & Supply Company
- Hart InterCivic
- Heartland Asphalt Materials
- HOK Architects
- K&L Supply, Inc.
- KOFILE Preservation, Inc.
- LaSalle Corrections
- Level 5 Design Group
- Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson, LLP
- McCreary, Veselka, Bragg & Allen, P.C.
- Momar Inc.
- Mustang Cat
- Nationwide Retirement Solutions
- NET Data
- North Texas Sales & Distribution, aka Hotsy Equip.
- OneBeacon Government Risks
- P2 Emulsions
- Parsons Roofing
- PathMark Traffic Products of Texas
- Perdue Brandon Fielder Collins & Mott, LLP
- Pioneer Credit Recovery
- Power Curve – Eternagy
- R.B. Everett & Company
- Roadside INC
- ROMCO Equipment
- SAFE-D
- Silpada Designs
- Southern Health Partners, Inc.
- Southern Tire Mart
- Texas Association of Counties
- Texas County and District Retirement System
- Texas Political Subdivisions
- Texas Road and Sign Supply
- The Railroad Yard
- TIPS (The Interlocal Purchasing System)
- Travelers
- Triple Blade & Steel, Inc.
- Tyler Technologies
- U.S. Capital Advisors
- University of Texas at Arlington
- Vanir CM
- Vector Fleet Management, LLC
- Vulcan Materials
- Welch State Bank
- Western Emulsions
- Wiginton Hooker Jeffry Architect