Dear Colleagues,
WELCOME
Welcome can be a noun as a manner of greeting someone, used as a verb to greet (someone arriving) in a friendly way or used as an adjective for a new arrival gladly received. January is the start of 2022, a new year that offers many opportunities to welcome the people around us and the events we share. As I prepared to be the next chapter president, I considered choosing a platform or theme for this year. I had a few ideas in mind and after some reflection on the current and future state of matters I have chosen “Welcome” as my theme.
I justify my choice because in the January 6th edition of TxA Checkset your 2022 TxA President Eva Read-Warden has chosen “Connection” as her theme for her presidency. I see many commonalities in her idea of “Connection” when talking about architecture, the environment, and people in general. In fact, I feel “Welcome” and “Connection” can be interchangeable.
So, to who and what do we have to look forward to welcoming?
After years of planning and hard work, El Paso will welcome the TxA Annual Conference & Design Expo back for the first time since 1977. It has been a long time waiting, and a lot has changed. However, El Paso will welcome our colleagues from across the state and showcase our architectural history, points of interest, and our proud and diverse cultural fabric.
Your Executive Committee welcomes familiar faces in new positions and new faces in familiar positions. Please welcome Rida Asfahani - Vice President, Elias Padilla – Community Director, Sebastian Escobar – Associates Director, and Edgar Lopez – TxA Director. We can all also welcome our new TAC Trustee, Charles Mais. As your representatives, we hold your and the Chapter’s best interests in mind. We establish a strategic plan, review policies and engage in outreach and promote our profession to name a few. However, I want to ensure transparency in our membership. I welcome you to reach out to the Executive Committee and provide your input, your ideas, or be active by joining a committee or speaking at our chapter meetings.
A goal for this year is to strengthen our chapter, and that can only be done collectively with a deep and active membership base, our Professional Affiliates, and our friends in the industry. As we continue to navigate the pandemic, I look forward to seeing you at our events and chapter meetings where I will greet you and say “welcome.”
Sincerely,
Michael T. Stills
2022 AIA El Paso Chapter President