OPENING PLENARY SCRIPT - American Fraternal Alliance

Let’s face it: The fraternal charter empowers us to serve our members in a different and unique way,
but also brings with it the responsibility to do things the right way. How we sell, how we serve, how we
govern our societies, how we give back, how we confront problems—all these influence our ability to
preserve the charter. In the end, I believe our actions will do much more to determine the future of the
fraternal charter than any isolated activity by a member of Congress or regulator.
So, in closing, I want to thank you for the honor of serving as your chair of the board this past year. I’ve
learned and I’ve grown, and I’ve worked hard to live up to the trust you’ve shown in me.
And I’d be remiss if I did not take this opportunity to thank Joe Annotti and his staff for all they do for us.
Joe is clearly a strong leader who provides advice we can trust, and who isn’t afraid to make tough
decisions. We’re extremely fortunate to have him. And as chair of the board, I gained new perspective
on the work of the staff members and their talent, energy and commitment to our cause. So to Joe, and
to Allison, Rose, Elizabeth, Karen, Alice, Linda, Terry and Jessica, thank you for what you do, day in
and day out, to make our association successful.
I can’t believe it was only a year ago that we met in San Antonio. The time has flown by, and while I am
encouraged by what we’ve accomplished, I know our work is not nearly complete.
I am reminded at every turn that we really do have the “coolest charter on the face of the planet.” Our
fight to preserve the charter and remain relevant to our members and society at large is worth the effort.
I know Mark Theisen will pick up that mantle, and I’m confident that he will lead us to even greater
heights next year.
So to Mark, Godspeed, and to all of you, God bless. And thank you for this last year. (Applause)
CHAIR RASMUSSEN: It is now my pleasure to introduce the NFCA President and CEO, Joe Annotti,
to present the Fraternalist of the Year Award. Joe…
Fraternalist of the Year
MR. ANNOTTI: Good morning, everyone. First things first, I’d like to thank Eivind Heiberg for picking
out my shirt for today’s festivities! Eivind, where are you? Stand up. (Mr. Heiberg is also wearing a light
turquoise shirt.) I think this qualified as one of his less loud versions and also passed muster with my
wife. And I want to thank all of you for being here. We have a full house. If there’s something that tickles
an association executive’s heart, it’s seeing a full house at the annual meeting. Six weeks ago, I
wouldn’t have bet this was the case. You folks really didn’t respond very early this year. There was a
time in mid-July when I thought we were going to have to have a virtual meeting. But gradually the
responses came in and I promise, I promise, I promise, next year, if you respond to the first email, I’ll
stop sending all the rest. But you didn’t so we had to keep following up with you. In any event, you’re
here and I hope we deliver a meeting that exceeds your expectations. Please let me know if we’re
doing that over the course of the next few days.
This is my favorite part of the meeting. This is the part of the meeting where you get re-inspired about
who we are and what we do. It’s where we honor two very special people, people who personify what
fraternalism is all about.
For more than two decades, NFCA has recognized the top fraternal volunteer from among the
association’s member societies. Each NFCA member society is invited to submit a nomination, and an
independent panel of judges selected this year’s winners. This was a very tough year to pick a winner.
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