Baltimore Bound

On Friday, July 16 I took a trip to Baltimore sans Super Dave. It was an industry related trip to attend the CMP Conclave sponsored by the Convention Industry Council (CIC). Conclave is the industry’s only exclusive meeting of CMPs (Certified Meeting Professionals). The CIC CMP Conclave is a very unique event for certificates who wish to contribute to their profession. The Conclave provides many opportunities for CMPs to build relationships and partner with other meeting professionals. CMPs also enhance their professional expertise by participating in exam development, attending educational sessions and networking with fellow CMPs. By participating you earn credit towards CMP recertification. I try to attend one every few years or so.

The conference itself is a very short one. I arrived on Friday so that I could get some time in with my girlfriend Kristen and her family. She and I have known each other for many years and go a long way back with one another. She and her husband John have two adorable kiddos; Ian and Kara.

My attempt at getting them to remain still for just a second!

I spent the night with Kristen and John. While it was brief it was a nice visit. On Saturday am my friend and former colleague at the San Antonio CVB, Summer picked me up and I was able to spend an afternoon with her and her husband Mike and daughter Kaelyn.  Talk about your whirlwind visits. It was nice to see Summer again and she's so far away from San Antonio and her daughter is growing so quickly as well!

She is such a fun little girl!

This year's program met at the Hilton Baltimore. After my brief visits with two sets of friends and their families; Summer dropped me off at the train station and I commuted back into town to attend the conference which met at the Hilton Baltimore.

Here I am at registration with the Baltimore Orioles mascot.

It's typically a jam-packed few days as there are speakers, sessions and of course some entertainment as well. Our opening night reception was at Camden Yards! What an incredible ball stadium and such a unique place to have a reception. We got to meet Boog Powell as well. His real name is John Wesley Powell but goes by Boog. He was actually born in Lakeland, FL; home of Florida Southern College where I graduated from! He played for the Baltimore Orioles 1961-1974 as well as for the Cleveland Indians and Los Angeles Dodgers. He was with the Orioles’ World Series Champion teams in 1966 and 1970, the American League Champion teams in 1966, 1969, 1970 and 1971, and the American League East Division Champion teams in 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973 and 1974. The 4-time All-Star won the American League's Most Valuable Player award in 1970 and in 1964 posted a .606 slugging percentage to lead the American League. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed, playing first base, outfield, and designated hitter. Here's his signed baseball card he gave to me.

He owns Boog's Barbecue, which sells barbecue sandwiches and ribs in three locations: on Eutaw Street at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, along the Boardwalk in Ocean City, Maryland, and at a quick-service restaurant in West Ocean City, Maryland.

After the conclave, instead of returning to San Antonio I departed for Albany, NY where I spent a few days with my sister in New Hartford (where I grew up mostly and graduated high school) then we drove to Rochester, NY (where I was born) and had a family reunion.

Follow the next post for the Dudman Family Reunion!

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