Another Blog Value: Thanking NAPSA

This blog provides a great opportunity to write about a lot of things, some of which might be interesting to you folks and some just fun to write about. But one of the things I just realized is it enables me to publicly thank some of the people who help us out, at National Pavement Expo, for example. So thanks to the handful of members at the North American Power Sweeping Association (NAPSA) who help put together and host the annual "Best Practices" workshop, which is fast becoming one of the best-attended sweeping sessions at NPE. Uri Ben Yashar, East Coast Lot & Pavement Maintenance, was a driving force behind the concept and serves as the moderator each year, but he couldn't do it without a number of NAPSA members stepping up to direct one of the discussions of one of the six topics covered during the 3-hour session. The program (offered at a special $75 rate to NAPSA members) is organized in a roundtable format, literally around round tables, where participants exchange ideas and solutions about a topic, then switch tables (and topics), and do it all again. Results from each group are reported back to the entire group, so anyone in attendance gets some darn good analysis, insight, and suggestions on six different sweeping-related issues, making the session one of the most cost-effective of NPE. Anyway, this isn't meant to plug the session but to thank the six NAPSA members who volunteered to facilitate the topics. They don't get paid, though they do get free admission to NPE, but that doesn't come near reimbursing them for their efforts in planning and coordinating the discussion of their respective issues. So thanks to: Carl Barton, Aardvark Sweeping Service Ray Confer, C&J Parking Lot Sweeping Inc. Debbie Jacketta, Jacketta Sweeping Service Gerry Kesselring, Contract Sweepers & Equipment Mike Lucht, Progressive Sweeping Contractors Inc., and Gabe Vitale, C & L Sweeper Service Corp. for stepping up to direct these sessions. This type of program couldn't happen without their involvement. Thanks, too, to Amy Allen, NAPSA administrative director, who is tasked each year with coordinating much of this with Uri and me. For more information on the "2008 'Best Practices' for Contract Sweepers" workshop, to be held Friday, Feb. 1 at NPE, contact NAPSA at www.napsaonline.com or visit www.nationalpavementexpo.com.