I joined IREM in 1989 and have been a member of seven different IREM chapters on the eastern seaboard over the past 26 years, this year I was able to experience the National Conference in Salt Lake City for the first time in my career. The highlight of the week was of course our very own Christopher Mellen being inducted as the institutes national president, however the week of seminars, trainings, networking events and activities left me wondering why it took me so long to attend these conferences. The networking events alone produced countless new friendships and relationships. Over the course of my career, IREM has been largely responsible for my success and advancement opportunities, most of which through the networking relationships I have formed, but the National Conference took this to a whole new level. The training seminars provided so much more insight into our industry on a much higher platform than I could have ever expected, it was almost overwhelming the amount of information and industry insight that I gained in just one week. It is an understatement to simply say that you should attend a national conference; you really need to put this on your bucket list and then make this an annual event, your career will thank you, believe me. Of course the Inaugural Gala was something like the Red Carpet Event you see on television culminating in our local chapter past-president Christopher Mellen’s induction as the Institute’s international president. It’s an experience that really changed the way I perceive my future with IREM, I left the conference really energized to get involved on the national level and to take my local affiliation to a higher level. It was truly an experience of a lifetime. Five stars from this guy, for sure. Gregg Jenner, ARM, CPM, is the 2016 vice president of IREM Boston chapter 2016 and a senior manager at The Simon Companies, Braintree, MA