Greetings to my whole list of friends both old and new in the retired KMEA ranks. As your new retirement chair, I hope to be a trusted friend and someone you can count on to be an advocate for you. A big thanks goes out to Ken Shaheen for helping me to get established in this position. Also, thanks to Billie Hegge-Duvall for keeping us up-to-date on the colleagues we have lost.

It was really good to see those of you who came to the luncheon at the KMEA In-Service Workshop. I think most of you had more than enough to eat, plenty of good company, and great entertainment (those Butler Community College Headliners were really good). If you have suggestions for menu or entertainment choices in the future, please feel free to contact me. Since no one has come forward to take this job, I assume I will still be doing it next year.

I was a little disappointed in the number of people who came to the meeting/luncheon. As I looked through the materials, I noticed both of the last two years had more attendees. Maybe it was just an off year, but please let me know if there is anything I can do to make the event better in the future. I also need help identifying any and all people who have retired from our ranks because some of us get forgetful and do not renew our NAfME memberships. That means folks are left off the best list I have for staying in touch with all of you.

Finally, this publication is going online only after this issue. That may be a not-so-good thing for those of us who are not really into computers and the web. Please know that I will still be sending letters to keep you abreast of anything important. That being said, I would like to have the E-mail addresses of all of you. The best way for that to happen is for you to send me greetings at . Also, please notify me of any changes in address, phone number, or email so you do not "disappear from our radar."

Please stay healthy and involved! Music is a life skill for all ages!