When the Government Finance Officers Association was formed in 1979, the Association was essentially a single mandate committee that existed mainly for the purpose of coordinating an annual conference for the benefit of the province's municipal finance employees. However, a much greater role for the GFOA was realized beginning in the late 1980's and early 1990's. Effective leadership and new initiatives resulted in unprecedented membership growth. Since that time, new ideas and strategic thinking have continued to move the organization forward. The last eight years, in particular, have witnessed great strides for our organization. We are especially proud of our annual conferences and the training opportunities, which offer our members a wealth of opportunity for networking and professional development. Today our organization boasts over 900 members and serves a pivotal role in ensuring the financial well being of local government in our province. The growth and vitality that we have realized, especially in recent years, bears witness to the ever-increasing value of our products and services. As the Board of Directors, our first order of business is to focus this growing momentum in a direction that will lead to future sustainability and expansion.