vention chair in ensuing years. I chaired sessions and even substituted as the banquet emcee one year when the scheduled emcee got stuck in Juneau by poor weather. Since the early 1980s I’ve probably given two or three dozen technical talks at AMA conventions and other mining meetings in Anchor- age, Fairbanks, Juneau, and bush Alaska, mostly on various prospects I’ve worked on. “These days I view my role as the committee’s institutional memory. I remember the first mod - ern AMA convention (to me) at the old Anchorage Westward when the association appointed Chuck Hawley to be its first Executive Director in the late 1970s or earliest 1980s. Sometimes I’m sort of the curmudgeon on the committee, but I’m a really big supporter of the AMA’s annual meetings. The AMA has managed to combine a trade association’s annual convention with a consistently strong technical program and a very successful trade fair.” — Dave Hedderly-Smith What is your favorite part of the annual convention? “My favorite part is
What role do you play in the convention? “I am on the fall AMA convention committee and organize the Prospect’s Tent and Core Shack exhib- its with Varina Zinno.” — Miles Macdonald “I started out a while back as a member of the Fairbanks Biennial Con- vention committee. My participation morphed and expanded into also help- ing with the annual meet- ing and all the associat- ed events. I have chaired the Advanced Exploration Projects technical session for some years now. I re- ally enjoy working with the convention committee because they are so dynamic and enthusiastic.” — David Szumigala “I play a small role; this year I am assisting in networking events. We are introducing a couple of new events to the fall convention. The first Annual Rock Fight (I promise no one will be throwing rocks at each other) and Shark Tank which we are adding as another element to the now popular Young Pro- fessionals Night.” — Vanessa Larimer “I have been the chair of the Geoscience Techni- cal Session for the past 10 years. I recently turned that role over to Doug Kreiner who I know will do a great job.” — Joe Kurtak “I am chair of the short course committee and try very hard to find the most qualified experts to provide state of the art instruction on current top- ics that will benefit the mining community. Note: I am open year-round to feedback and suggestions for future short courses. I am co-chair of the convention posters committee with Eric Cannon. Eric leads the committee and manages the student posters; I man- age the professional posters. We hope the student posters will introduce students to the mining com- munity and future employers. I like to help the con- vention committee brainstorm on various aspects of the convention and how to help it be informative for exploration and mining in Alaska from every angle, with enjoyable activities for networking.” — Sue Karl “I have sort of a special role these days. In the early 1980s I went through the gamut as a speaker, a session chair, the program chair, and the con-
bouncing between tech- nical talks and the Trade Show floor. I love hearing updates to the great work going on, and then talking and planning with our great vendors who keep our op- erations moving forward.” — Dave Larimer
“Choosing a single part that is my favorite is a tough one! Each year I learn something new and get to ap- ply that to my position, but I guess that is the benefit of attending. I suppose my favorite part is getting to see familiar faces and hear how projects are advancing, see where careers are taking everyone. I started out as Dave Larimer’s wife attending the conference and now, I work in mining. It’s a great place to be!!!” — Vanessa Larimer “I enjoy the short courses as it’s a chance to up- date my knowledge of mineral deposits and new trends in mineral exploration. I also like the exhib- itor’s hall as it’s a great way to network with others in the Alaskan mineral exploration and mining com- munity. The technical sessions are a good way to feel the heartbeat of the mineral industry in Alaska.” — Joe Kurtak
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