b"THE OFFICIAL NFBA MAGAZINEA MESSAGE FROMMEGAN POPENFBA EXECUTIVE DIRECTORW e are just weeks away from the 57th Annual NFBA Conference and Expo in Knoxville, TN!In this edition of the magazine, you will find lots of great DIRECTOR'S MESSAGEinformation about what we have in store for you.We kick off our first day on Wednesday, April 2nd with a solid lineup of valuable sessions. This day brings nine educational options in three different tacks for you to choose from. Following our morning sessions, we will gather for our Annual Business Meeting and our Keynote Speaker, Rulon Gardner, Olympic Gold Medalist in Greco-Roman Wrestling. Rulon will also be available after his keynote in the NFBA Booth. Make sure to stop by for a photo, an autograph, and a chance to hold REAL Olympic Medals!The Keynote will be followed by the grand opening of the Expo!This years floor is PACKED with exhibitors who are looking forward to your arrival.You will have opportunities on all three days of our event to visit with the exhibitors and be a part of the buzz that is the Expo floor.There are also five FREE presentations that will take place on the Expo floor in the NFBA Demo Area: the 3-Hour Firewall session with Tim Royer P.E. of Timber Tech Engineering; a Fall Protection Drop Demonstration; a Rapid Framing System safety demonstration with Todd Meinhold & Dwayne Borkholder; a look at the evolution of our industry with long-time NFBA Member and Post-frame Historian, Rudolf (Rudy) Heusuk; and special guest, Kyle Stumpenhorst of RR Buildings who will be showing you how to properly install doors and windows using Plycos professional products. Thursday morning brings us nine additional options for education followed by our Annual Awards Luncheon.The luncheon is a celebration of our Industrys best as we recognize our Building of the Year Award winners, our Foreman of the Year, and more.And what is a Conference without some networking fun? NFBA has 4 major Networking Events available for you and your crew to attend at no additional cost:The Women in Post Frame Meet N Greet will be held at the nearby Downtown Grill & Brewery. Please join us Wednesday after the Expo for an opportunity to make new acquaintances and share challenges and solutions from your day-to-day experiences.There will be fun activities, prizes, and an engaging presentation from Conference speaker, Rachel Mawhirter of Marketing Maven Consulting! The Plyco Reception brings a very enjoyable close to our first day of conference with their annual celebration.Expect a fun lineup of delicious drinks and refreshments, great entertainment, and a packed room of friendly faces.We have the Christians In Construction gathering on the second night of the show.This is a family-oriented celebration with feel-good music, food, and fun features for kids. Following the Christians In Construction event, we have our Expo Social which will feature musical entertainment, food, drinks, and the NFBA Foundations Fundraising Auction.The Foundation is a 501(c)(3) whose purpose is to raise funds for Post-frame Industry research, education, and scholarships for NFBA Members and their families.This years focus for the Foundation is raising funds to support the new edition of the NFBA Post Frame Building Design Manual. Please join us for a fun County Fair themed night of seeing old friends, making new ones, a cornhole tournament, and supporting the Post-frame Industry.Safe travels and well see you soon!Megan PopeNFBA Executive Director6 / FRAME BUILDER - VOL6 1"