Hello fellow SME members,
The Georgia Section of SME is considering revitalizing our chapter and resuming meetings. Many of you will recall that for years prior to COVID we were an active local chapter with bimonthly meetings, usually in Milledgeville.
To gauge whether there is enthusiasm and energy to resume chapter activities, we encourage two actions on your part:
1. Send an email to Jim Renner and Steve Stokowski indicating your interesting in participating in local meetings and potentially volunteering to serve. You can reach us at james.renner@chemours.com and sstokowski@yahoo.com.
2. If you are attending MinExchange in Phoenix in two weeks, please join us in the SME Connection area of the Exhibit Hall from 4:45 to 5:15 on Monday February 26.
In particular, we want to know:
· Have you ever participated in GA chapter events?
· Would you participate in face-to-face GA SME chapter meetings? If so, where and how often?
· Would you participate in other events, e.g. virtual meetings, field trips, meetings with other organizations? If so, what or with whom?
· Are you active in other geoscience or similar organizations? Would these be good groups to partner with for activities?
· Would you be willing to volunteer your time to help run the chapter and plan activities?
· Other suggestions?
As a recap, our old model was bimonthly meetings in Milledgeville at GA College and State University. The meetings included a brief social hour, dinner, announcements, and a guest speaker. The cost was modest - about $30, which included dinner and meeting room rental. With money that we raised, we were able to bring in SME-sponsored speakers, e.g. the Dreier lecturer, at least once a year.
The meetings were in Milledgeville because the officers were kaolin employees and we had consistent active participation from central Georgia members. However, we are open to any new ideas and approaches that promote participation by current members and attract new members, particularly students at schools with geoscience programs.
Participation in SME has been one of the most important parts of our professional development, and we look forward to hearing from you and hopefully seeing you at MinExchange.
Jim Renner, PG Steve Stokowski, CPG, PG
Manager of Environmental Stewardship Petrographer and Geologist
Chemours
James.renner@chemours.com sstokowski@yahoo.com
(912) 215-9318
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James Renner PG
Manager of Environmental Stewardship
Southern Ionics Minerals
Patterson, GA, USA
9122159318
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