Indy and home again

I spent Wednesday and Thursday in Indianapolis at the semi-annual Collegium of the National Network of Estate Planning Attorneys. I'm not sure what to make of  the organization right now. Attendance was small — around 75 — but I believe that the fall Collegium is their "big" event and this was sort of a "mini" Collegium. Of course, their membership numbers have declined in the past 18 months as they suffered the fallout of the internicine warfare and lawsuits at the top, as well as the problems in their document creation system. For the time being, at least, they seem to be focusing on attracting new attorneys who want to enter the estate planning field and established attorneys who want to  transition into it. We were able to say hello to old friends like Dennis Shelley, Bill Blew, and Roger McClure, but it was hard not to notice all the people who were not there, who would have been in years past.

That's me with Roger McClure of Alexandria, Virginia at top, and under that, with Angela Crossin (left) and Jill Story of Indiana.

Back home on Friday, the Smart Marketing offices were visited by Michael Thomas (right), of Flint, Michigan, who has been a Smart Marketing client continuously since 2002. That means he knew Smart Marketing Events Manager Sarah Marshall (left) before she became mom to Owen, and Mike's visit was an opportunity to meet the first "Smart Marketing" baby. (Not the last, however! Graphic designer Diane Scire is expecting this summer!)