Bill Ellis just pointed out, and I agree with him, that there’s a real feeling of excitement in the air here at APhA headquarters.

Tomorrow, we’re hosting our building dedication ceremony. Folks here are sprucing up, and the caterers are loading in. Tropical Storm Ida can’t hold us down. Soon, we’ll have more than 400 remarkable supporters who helped us build the vision that John Gans and dozens of board members and leaders have had for almost 20 years. I’ll write more about the event after tomorrow, but right after the Dedication we move into a board meeting, so it may be a few days before I get to it. I’m sure there will be photos on pharmacist.com.

Thanks to Dr. Gans, all the staff, and our volunteer leaders for their hard work and dedication, and for putting up with all the detail-oriented people who had to make hard decisons about sometimes seemingly trivial things. When you stand back, and look at the entire picture, it is clear to me that sweating all the details was worth it. It’s time to stop for a day and celebrate!

I talk with other executives around town, and they all agree that this time of year is more intense than any other. I thought it would be fun to just share a glimpse at my last 30 days working on your behalf.

During this time, I’ve visited four school of pharmacy campuses, one state association meeting, two federal facilities, five senators’ offices, Institute of Medicine, the annual meeting of the Pharmacy Compounding Centers of America, 8 pharmacies, CMS to meet with the number 2 person there, the Joint Forces Pharmacy Seminar, several APhA client meetings, the NCPA meeting, the new Trustee orientation for those joining the board in March, and a West Virginia University football game against the University of Connecticut (well, maybe that one wasn’t on your behalf, but it was remarkable for the sportsmanship since it occurred just after UCONN lost one of its players to unnecessary violence).

I also participated in the Pharmacy Compounding Accrediation Board meeting, the Joint Council of Pharmacy Practitioners meeting, and an APhA Foundation board meeting. This weekend, I’ll finish it off with a Midyear Regional Meeting in New Brunswick, NJ.

Along the way, I figured out how to use Windows Live and webcams so I can help with my 14-year-old nephew’s homework face to face while I’m on the road.

Despite the hectic pace, I am more thankful than ever for the opportunity to serve this organization and its members. Thanks to all of you who shared your thoughts with me this month. I took a lot of notes.