First I want to thank the members of the Florida Association of Hostage Negotiators (FAHN) for allowing me to serve as President. I feel it is a true honor to be a part of this great association. I am only as strong as my team and members. These individuals bring experience, knowledge, expertise and talent to help our association achieve the best training in the State of Florida. One of the most valued benefits of FAHN is the opportunity to network with other members throughout the state. The depth of knowledge combined with the variety of different backgrounds and experience is undoubtedly our greatest resource.
I have built relationships with many of you through FAHN, but for those I have not met, let me share with you my path towards becoming involved with this great association. I became a member of FAHN in 2008 and was elected Region 4 training director in 2009. Serving as Ambassador at Large and then Vice President for the past three years. As your President, I am proud and honored to serve you this year. My goal is to make this year, and the years to come, remembered as helping this association grow and succeed.
I’d like to give a special shout-out to Luis Pratts and our Board of Directors for all the resources, guidance and support they provide. I would also like to welcome the new Board members. Together we will continue to provide the best networking and training throughout the State of Florida.
Due to Covid, we weren’t able to provide the regional training we were striving for. We will continue to further enhance our web-based membership database and expand our social media presence. We also plan to get back on track with increasing training availability in each region to a minimum of two sessions per year. Please check our website often for new training opportunities in your area.
We are looking forward to the 2024 conference! It will be held June 3-7, 2024, at the Sheraton Sand Key Resort in beautiful Clearwater Beach, Florida. We have an exciting schedule of speakers lined up for the week to discuss a variety of critical topics for Crisis Negotiators. We will also have case study presentations and mental health topics for our breakout sessions. Please view our conference page to view the complete schedule so you can plan your days! Information can also be found on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/floridanegotiators/ . As the conference approaches, we will update both pages.
For those of you visiting our website from outside the State of Florida, your point of contact is Dave Tuck, FAHN Ambassador at Large. For those of you from within the State, view our FAHN Regional Directors page and locate your director.
I look forward to a productive successful presidency. I promise to lead with the integrity and with the best interest of FAHN in mind. If you have questions, ideas or suggestions please contact me any time (smyers@acso.us). If your Regional Director is unavailable, I will arrange to facilitate training in your area. We are always looking for new training ideas that we can bring to members throughout the State of Florida. Be well, stay safe, and as always, thank you for all you do each and every day!
