A message from the Dean,
Johan Hermans

Dear visitors to our site (and dear members too!)

It would be quite an understatement to say that my first years as Dean of the European Chapter turned out other than expected. Started in good cheer, it developed wonderfully within the partly renewed Board. Soon plans were enthusiastically drawn up that had both an eye for tradition and for step-by-step renewal. We were eagerly looking forward to a Spring Meeting in Cologne, which promised to be brilliant. And then, all of a sudden, the world came to a grinding standstill . . . 

Now, after a year in which we had no meeting at all (2020), one in which we could only meet digitally (2021), one in which we decide to risk a shortened "Spring Meeting Lite", hurriedly convened (but no less delightful for that!), we have recently been able to celebrate (and it really was a celebration!) a new, revived, convivial, interesting and educational Spring Meeting in Thuringia. What a treat it was.
 
The European Chapter is truly international. Our nearly 130 members live in several countries in Europe, Canada and Australia, plus several States in the USA. That makes us the unique and wonderful melting pot that we are. Simply superb !

In practice, this means that for meetings with more than a few members, most of us have to undertake a long journey. Fortunately, we are once again able to undertake these journeys without the additional problems of the restrictions of the pandemic. We on the board work hard to make the annual meeting of our membership (usually, we are able to meet only once a year, though there are years in which we meet in fall as well) memorable and worth the trip and its expense.

Let's inspire each other with our enthusiasm, our stories and experiences ! And of course, plans that we are not able to realize right away will be given an even more important place on our to-do list !

Johan,
Chapter Dean