Update from LRTA: 2021 State Fall Meeting Cancelled

Dear LRTA Members,

I hope you are all safe and well. This has been quite a tumultuous time for our members. Between the recent storm and surge in COVID-19 cases, we have had to cancel many meetings and move back to a virtual platform.

We had to cancel our Fall District Meetings at the beginning of September. Fortunately, we were able to pivot and the staff and I are recording my presentation that I would normally give at the Fall District Meetings. Additionally, we are working with the District Presidents to reschedule their meetings. Information about the rescheduled meetings and my presentation will be available on the LRTA website as it becomes available.

Although we have continued to make progress in recovery efforts since Hurricane Ida, many of our members are still feeling the effects of the storm. The effects of Hurricane Ida also continue to impact different areas of Louisiana, including the hotel and hospitality industry. All hotels and venues in Baton Rouge have cancelled bookings not related to hurricane recovery efforts at this time. After considering the situation hotels are facing and recognizing that many of our members are struggling with storm recovery at this time, the Executive Committee has made the difficult decision to CANCEL the Fall Meeting. The decision to cancel was not made lightly. We were looking forward to meeting with LRTA members again, but we also understand many of our members are not in a position to meet at this time. We look forward to a time when we can meet in person and hope that this will be in the near future.

The LRTA Executive Board will still meet virtually to conduct essential business. Katherine Whitney, TRSL Director, will also present an update on the retirement system during the Board meeting. Members are welcome to observe this meeting. Registration will open on Monday, September 27. Please keep an eye on your emails and check the LRTA website, www.lrta.net, for the announcement.

We do have some fun activities planned over the next couple of months that we hope you will participate in. All activities can be done remotely. Please stay connected with LRTA through the Email Club and on Facebook for details on these activities. Again, we miss seeing our members, especially in person. We hope the activities we have planned will bring some joy as we continue on the path to recovery.

For more information on recovery efforts or if you have been impacted by Hurricane Ida, you may want to consider these resources: https://hurricanerecovery.la.gov/ or https://www.fema.gov/disaster/hurricane-ida.

Please stay safe, and take care.

Regards,
Rodney R. Watson
LRTA Executive Director