ELFA 47th Annual Convention
Financing New Frontiers
October 12 - 14, 2008
Hilton New Orleans Riverside
New Orleans, LA
Convention Home
An Important Message from ELFA President Ken Bentsen:
Dear Members:
On October 12, 2008, the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association will open its 47th Annual Convention in New Orleans, Louisiana at the Hilton Riverside.
The ELFA Annual Convention has been and remains the preeminent event for our industry attracting 1,000 professionals from across the nation and across the globe. As we have in the past, the Board and staff of the ELFA are planning a strong program and many activities, and due to popular demand, the convention will run through Tuesday night.
Many have asked 'why New Orleans, isn't it too soon after Katrina'? Good question and good answers: the 2006 convention was originally scheduled to be in New Orleans, but the leadership decided to postpone the site so soon after Katrina. Even so, our commitment to the hotel remained.
ELFA staff has been coordinating with the hotel, convention and city staff to insure a successful and smooth event. Both Sally Maloney and I have personally visited the hotel and have great confidence in their ability to deliver. Furthermore, the city is back and the areas where we will be holding our events; the central business district; the French Quarter and the Garden District are all fully operational and have been for some time. And we are not alone, more than six hundred conventions have been held in New Orleans over the past two years including many larger than ours.
The hotel, the Hilton Riverside New Orleans, is in excellent condition and just completed a major renovation of the public spaces. There is more than ample space for members to meet and network and it is centrally located in the business district, close to the Quarter. I personally inspected the meeting rooms and accommodations and came away quite impressed.
That is not to say that all of New Orleans has recovered. There is still rebuilding going on, mostly in parts of the city few tourists will ever visit or see. And that is why we are planning an ELFA sponsored community project on Sunday, October 12 to underscore the commitment of the equipment leasing and finance industry. This will be the first of what I hope becomes an annual tradition for an industry so intimately involved in the growth of the American economy.
Please click on the links here on the Convention Home Page for information about the hotel and the city. For your convenience, convention registration is open and the hotel is accepting room reservations. And I encourage you to call Sally Maloney or me if you have any questions or need assistance.
The convention's previous visit to New Orleans in 1999 was a great success, and this year will be no different.
Thank you for your continued membership and support and I look forward to seeing you in New Orleans.
With kindest personal regards,
Sincerely,
Ken Bentsen
ELFA President
The photos above are provided courtesy of the New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau. You can learn more about New Orleans and all the city has to offer by visiting the ELFA mini site at http://www.neworleanscvb.com/elfa/