August 2012: Letter from the president – CAMP site selections

By Katherine Ann Rowlands

The JAWS Board has selected the sites for our next three conferences, keeping in mind the membership’s desire to hold CAMP at a beautiful, affordable and accessible location. This is no easy task, especially when adding geographic diversity into the mix of criteria. But we try to please most members most of the time with a variety of selections and knowing in advance should help you — and the board — to plan.

2013: It’s time to return to the Northeast with a chance to experience lovely autumn colors and beautiful scenery with a stay at The Essex Culinary Resort & Spa in Essex, Vermont. The Essex boasts of its culinary delights and beautiful grounds.  It’s about 15 minutes from the Burlington airport, 3.5 hours from Boston and just 1.5 hours from Montreal. As long as Becky Day gives her approval after a site visit soon, CAMP will be held here Oct. 24-27, 2013.

2014: A chance to take advantage of unusually low rates at a gorgeous resort on the West Coast will bring JAWS to La Quinta Resort & Spa in Palm Springs, California. This luxury resort catered to the Hollywood elite from Garbo to Gable. It’s minutes away from all the outdoor activities of the Santa Rosa Mountains and shopping of Palm Springs. The desert temperatures should have cooled enough to make this an enjoyable retreat on Oct. 31-Nov. 2, 2014.

2015: Tradition trumps this year as JAWS celebrates its 30th Anniversary with a stay at Grouse Mountain Lodge in Whitefish, Montana, a place we have known and loved before. The mountain scenery of Glacier National Park can’t be beat and the lodge is happy to welcome us back with great rates and hospitality on Oct. 9-12, 2015.

But first, we have the 2012 CAMP to boast about with a stellar lineup of panels, training sessions and speakers at the Tamaya Resort outside Albuquerque, N.M., Oct. 26-28. Feminist icon Gloria Steinem, Pulitzer winner Sara Ganim, voting rights expert Keesha Gaskins and many other inspiring women are scheduled to speak during a packed weekend. If you have not reserved your room or registered for CAMP, don’t delay. Come early on Oct. 25 to take advantage of editing training put on by the American Copy Editors Society and some terrific sightseeing, cultural outings and shopping trips being organized by past president and Albuquerque resident Megan Kamerick. We are keeping the cost of CAMP low but please consider rounding up your $275 fee by $50 or more if you can so that we can help other members who may have had a tough year but want to attend CAMP. Sharing your room, contributing a fabulous auction item or signing up to make ongoing tax-deductible contributions to JAWS are other great ways to help.

Keep an eye out for a survey invitation coming soon. We are working to create some updated biographies of some of our JAWS founders and trailblazers and we want to hear suggestions from you. We are also looking for writers so let me know if you are interested in tackling an 800-word profile that will be posted on our website as part of our 30th Anniversary project.

Also, don’t forget to update your online profile in the members-only section of our website. We have improved this feature to help members highlight their expertise and interests and make it easier to connect with others. We have an impressive roster so help us keep it current.

Katherine Ann Rowlands
JAWS President