RCMA Attendees Enter a Gateway to Excellence at 33rd World Conference and Exposition
Attendees at the 33rd Annual RCMA World Conference and Exposition, "Gateway to Excellence," pursued professional and personal excellence during an energizing week of education, networking, and fellowship, Jan. 25-28, in St. Louis.

RCMA 2005 featured dynamic speakers, an impressive array of tutorials, fun-filled evening entertainment, and behind-the-scenes looks at how meetings are put together.

More than 1,300 attendees saw firsthand the marvelous America’s Center convention center, a versatile, convenient venue. The center hosted general sessions, tutorials, the exposition, and entertainment on two evenings.

RCMA’s general-session speakers included therapist/minister/comedian Will Miller, humorist Jeffrey McMullen, and communication expert Susan Carnahan. Tutorials offered practical information on a wide range of topics, including crisis management, contracts, marketing, negotiating, cost control, and technology.

Academy Award winner Shirley Jones wowed the attendees Wednesday evening with a performance of classic show tunes at the Ferrara Theatre in America’s Center. Ventriloquist Jay Johnson of "Soap" television fame opened for Jones. Tuesday’s entertainment was a re-creation of the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair and included a Ferris wheel, arcade games, fair-themed food, old-time bands, and roaming entertainers. At Thursday’s gala, pianist Wayland Pickard and vocalist Valerie Perri (the original "Evita" on Broadway) shared their remarkable talents to an appreciative audience.

RCMA’s Behind-the-Scenes Experiences, in which meeting planners have hands-on access to the inner workings of meetings, included half-day immersions at the convention center, a downtown hotel, and a public relations firm. RCMA is the only meeting industry organization that offers its members this type of experience.

RCMA 2005 was a memorable one, and here are other highlights:

-- The RCMA Board of Directors voted in their meeting immediately following the conference to donate $100,000 to World Food Programme, the United Nations food aid organization.

-- RCMA Executive Director DeWayne Woodring reported the conference expo for St. Louis sold out in one day.

-- Woodring also noted that RCMA’s membership numbers in 2004 increased for the 22nd straight year. Membership now stands a record level of 3,332.

-- RCMA bestowed its 2005 President’s Award on Thomas Jackson, executive administrative assistant and general conference planner, United Pentecostal Church International, Hazelwood, Mo., whose history with RCMA goes back to 1972, when he and three other ministers hatched the idea of creating an organization for religious conference planners.

-- Four RCMA members were appointed to three-year terms to the RCMA Board of Directors: Michael Butts, executive director of Visit Charlotte; Ronald Kelly, general secretary, The Wesleyan Church, Noblesville, Ind.; Jack Stone, general secretary/headquarters operations officer, Church of the Nazarene, Kansas City, Mo.; and Jackie Walker, convention and meeting planner, Church of God Executive Office, Lawrenceville, Ga.

-- The RCMA Board of Directors announced its selection of Orlando, Fla., to host RCMA in 2008. RCMA will be in San Jose in 2006 and Louisville, Ky., in 2007.

RCMA is the world’s paramount society for religious meeting professionals. RCMA is the only international organization composed exclusively of religious meeting planners and those who provide services within this specialized field. RCMA provides a wealth of resources designed to enhance the professionalism of its members and to improve the experience of religious meeting attendees worldwide.