Texas Chapter President - Brenda Padilla | |
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Hello everyone!
I want to report about a very successful and totally awesome state convention we recently had in El Paso. The hotel – El Paso Del Norte was a beautiful historical building filled with rich history experienced by all. We started with a visit from Amigo Man and Chico both the mascots from the city of El Paso and the Chihuahuas Baseball team. Photos were had by all in front of our new backdrop that we will use for years to come. (Check our Facebook page for pictures). Registration went smoothly and the classes were of the highest quality. One of our newest successes was our Soar 2 Success program. This is a program that massage therapy students attended and were guided, inspired and informed about AMTA from our new Secretary/School Liaison- Carolyn Miller. It was wonderful to see young eager faces entering our profession.
Classes were enriching and the food was amazing. I have never eaten my snack out of a flower pot before but it was delicious. On Wednesday evening, we had a meet and greet at the rooftop lounge where we visited and made new connections with a breathtaking view of El Paso and Mexico. Friday night fun was the Chihuahuas Baseball Game and it was a blast. We were greeted by the cool desert winds as the team won the game! Saturday night was the end of the convention. Sad to leave but so happy about the new connections, new friends and new experiences that we got to share.
Thursday night was the Annual Meeting/Dinner. As we enjoyed scrumptious food, I ran my first official meeting as President. I was truly honored to acknowledge members that have influenced us in the past and give them the proper recognition they deserve. We also had educational information from Russell Rust regarding new legislation that was coming up in the Texas Government. Michelle Burns acknowledged the Regional Coordinators for all the regions – and they were many! Makes me so excited to see new involvement and passion for the Texas Chapter. Awards and election results were really fun to present. The awards and results are as follows:
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President – Brenda Padilla
Board Member – Michaelle Fisher
Board Member – Timeka Hunt
Finanical Administrator – Veronica Ortega
Secretary (appointed) – Carolyn Miller
Your Chair Positions are:
Government Relations – Russell Rust
Education Chair and Regional Coordinator – Michelle Burns
Elections Chair- Susanne Luckey-Rimberg
Technology Chair – Sherry Scott
Social Media Chair – Kacie Owens
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- New Volunteer of the Year – Monica Garza
- President’s Award – Michelle Burns
- Meritorious Award – Matthew Manriquez
| See Convention Photos at the Bottom of this Message | |
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By the end of the meeting, I announced the best news of all. The 2024 Annual State Meeting and Convention will be in…Grapevine, Texas!
April 19, 20 and 21st 2024.
Save the date! We hope to see y’all there.
Yours in Service,
Brenda Padilla – Texas Chapter President
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The Texas Board is thrilled to welcome our ongoing & newest board members:
- Carolyn Miller, Secretary & Delegate
- Michaelle Fisher, Board Member & Delegate
- Veronica Ortega, Financial Administrator
- Kacie Owens, Social Media Chair
- Susanne Luckey-Rimberg, Elections Chair
Thank you for stepping into your roles and we look forward to working with each of you.
Our Regions are growing! We are delighted to welcome all our new Regional Coordinators. Please support your region by attending monthly meet and greets plus look for upcoming education opportunities.
I say so long as Secretary but know that Carolyn will be a great Secretary. I appreciate the opportunity to continue to serve the AMTA Texas Chapter.
Veronica Ortega
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Incoming Secretary Report - Carolyn Miller | |
 |  | Warm greetings fellow Texas chapter members. It is an honor to have been appointed as your secretary while continuing to serve as Senior Delegate. What a spectacular 2023 convention we had in El Paso. From the breathtaking views, classes offered, the Chihuahuas winning, and endless food choices available made everlasting memories for me. Mixing that with meeting many new student-professionals at the SOAR 2 Success Summit put icing on the cake. Students had the opportunity to meet with other like-minded students and learn what AMTA Texas chapter is all about. They were invited by Susan Salvo to link up with instructors and discuss ways instructors can better help students in their classrooms and what students appreciate from their instructors. They also had the opportunity to experience classes offered and more importantly see the community within their newfound profession. The SOAR 2 Success Summit was such a success that it will be featured at the 2024 state convention in Grapevine TX, so stay tuned.
In other news, I accompanied our President Brenda and Financial Adviser Veronica to Rosemont, Illinois for the Volunteer Leadership Conference and learned more ways to serve our chapter. I also look forward to representing our Texas chapter nationally in Phoenix, Arizona this August for the Assembly of Delegates meeting. I hope to see you all there!
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Board Member Report
2nd Board Member - Michaelle Fisher
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Texas Chapter AMTA state convention 2023 was spectacular! El Paso greeted us with warmth and hospitality.
History surrounded us at the Hotel Paso del Norte. Beautiful old architecture and a Tiffany glass ceiling were just some of the highlights.
Wednesday evening was a meet and greet that was very well attended. This was modeled the same way Regions are doing Meet & Greets. If you weren't able to attend state convention, I hope you are able to attend one in your region soon.
We were thrilled to see nearly everyone in attendance at the Annual Meeting dinner on Thursday night. Government chair Russell Rust updated us on all things legislative. President Brenda Padilla brought the chapter up to date and she and Michelle Burns expressed appreciation to volunteers who make it all possible. Michelle Burns received the President's award. Matthew Manriquez is our Chapter Meritorious Award winner and Monica Garza got the New Volunteer of the Year award.
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We are so proud and thankful for all our volunteers. We have a place for you to serve too, any amount of time you want to give. Please reach out to any board member or chair.
Every class was a hit. Students raved about the instructors.. Classes ran Thursday through Saturday. Thursday morning started with a teacher training by Susan Salvo and a Student Summit - Soar to Success by our very own secretary, Carolyn Miller. These were very well received and ended up joining together at the end of their time. It was wonderful to see.
AMTA Texas Chapter was recognized at the Chihuahuas game on Friday night. Amigo Man (an El Paso Ambassador) and Chico the Chihuahua both came to the hotel Thursday morning during registration.
The food was fun and delicious.
As always, when the last class ends, no one really wants it to be over.
Look forward to seeing everyone in Grapevine next year!
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Government Relations Chair Report
Russell Rust
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From the Law and Legislation front:
This legislative session has finished, with words being tacked onto a bill that passed. HB3579 allows for the Executive director to have the power to halt the operation of a massage establishment if law enforcement has an investigation ongoing under section 20a of the penal code, trafficking of a person. This seems unconstitutional and will be challenged in court but that is not our problem. HB2134 did not make it to a senate committee hearing (great) but the senate just tacked it on as an amendment to HB3579. The term special use permit is a word that could be used by cities to regulate massage if the intent of the language of the bill is not followed. HB2134 only allows cities to use the tools if a massage establishment has committed the following intent:
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(A) where three or more arrests have occurred or citations in lieu of arrest have been issued for an offense under Section 43.02, 43.021, 43.03, 43.04, 43.05, or 71.02, Penal Code, that was committed at the massage establishment;
(B) where an offense under Chapter 20A, or Section 34.02, 43.02, 43.021, 43.03, 43.04, 43.05, or 71.02, Penal Code, was committed that resulted in a conviction;
The intent is where the focus will be if any city decides to permit massage therapists or establishments more than what our license dictates except in zoning. Depending on where you live if you run into any problems always know
Texas AMTA has your back.
Thanks
Russell Rust
Government Relations Chair
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We are growing! As we work to bring our community together to support each other and our profession (cooperation, not competition) more people in more areas are joining our efforts. We have more people joining as co-coordinators, more events, more regions and more education offerings. | | |
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Michelle Burns
Education Chair
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In addition to the phenomenal continuing education classes offered at the annual convention in El Paso (thank you Susan Salvo, Christina Montes de Oca, Sheila Palmer, Robert Gardner, Sheila Alexander, Christina Hughes, Kelli Lene, and Amy Scottino), we have also begun providing 1 day CE classes in regions. The first class we offered was Introduction to Lymphatic Drainage by Amy Scottino in the Heart of Texas region. It was a big success and registration filled in the first 4 hours. These classes are offered for free to members, so watch for a class to come to your region. Several other regions are in the process of setting up CE classes, including Austin, SE Houston and Coastal Bend. | We now have 10 local regions holding monthly get togethers (Meet & Greets) which may also include therapist exchanges, short discussions of techniques, what is happening in the legislature, or fun picnics to meet families. Each region helps determine what they want to see and do for their region. We now have regions in: Edge of Texas (El Paso/Van Horn/Big Bend), Fort Worth (Ft. Worth/Arlington/Grapevine/Granbury), Big Country (Abilene/Brownwood/San Angelo), Heart of Texas (Waco/Temple/Belton/Killeen), Austin (Round Rock/Austin/Buda/Bastrop/Dripping Springs), Coastal Bend (Corpus Christi/Port Aransas/Alice), North&west Houston (Tomball/Katy/Houston), South & East Houston (Houston/Friendswood/League City), and Golden Triangle (Beaumont/Orange/Port Arthur). And in July San Antonio & | | |
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Border (San Antonio/New Braunfels/Bandera) region will begin holding meetings. Eventually, there will be 16 regions in the state of Texas holding meetings and providing CE’s, so watch for meetings and classes coming to your area. If you would like to help bring community together in your area, please reach out to the Education chair at
educationchair.amtatexas@gmail.com.
We would like to begin regional activities in the following regions: Permian Basin (Midland/Odessa/Ft Stockton), Panhandle (Amarillo, Lubbock), Brazos Valley (College Station/Bryan/Victoria), Dallas (Dallas/Plano/Garland), Northeast Texas (Tyler/Palestine/Athens/Nacogdoches), and Valley (Brownsville/MacAllen/Harlingen/Laredo).
All the regional events can be found on the calendar at: AMTA WEBSITE and on each region’s Facebook group page. Emails are sent out to each region before each event, but if you will be outside your region and want to connect with other therapists, check the calendar to see if there is an event. You are always welcome to attend events in other regions. It is a great way to get to know other therapists and build a great referral network.
Finally, we are excited to be holding the 2024 annual convention in Grapevine, Texas. We are already working to bring incredible instructors and classes to the convention, so watch for announcements about instructors beginning in August!
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Photos from El Paso - Viva Massage! | | | | |
