Dear ASCE Members:

Welcome to a new year! We welcome you to the 2012 activities at the Miami-Dade ASCE. With the New Year and all of the New Year’s resolutions I hope that you are making volunteerism a part of your resolution list. While I love the holiday season, I’m already looking ahead to another of my favorite seasons; this is “Engineer’s Week.” Each year, those of us that volunteer within our communities, engage in a celebration of our profession, sharing our love for engineering with everyone in schools from K to 12, to students in college, on up to adults of all ages, culminating in Engineer’s Week in February. Each year we prepare for months during the holiday season in different programs, whether you are volunteering for “Future Cities,” a robot competition, a balsa wood car with the local Boy & Girl Scouts, doing a project with Engineers without Borders or simply volunteering in some meeting to talk about engineering.

Civil engineers are among the most active volunteers, and with good cause.  Civil engineering is truly everywhere, and kids respond well to efforts to teach them about it. When was the last time you shared this message in the classroom of a child you know?  Or perhaps more importantly, when was the last time you thanked a volunteer who has made it their passion to reach out to the next generation for the sake of the profession? Please take a moment of your time and do it now. Send me an article about good volunteering practices and we will publish it. Reach out to our volunteers and thank them, and try to give back a little too. Take time to explain the important role civil engineering plays in our everyday lives to others. Become a volunteer!

The Miami-Dade ASCE has many activities planned during January and February as we prepare to celebrate. On January 21st we volunteered as Judges in the Florida Region Competition of the Future City Competitions. On January 25th we are having a luncheon presentation, about “NW 25th Street-Lessons Learned,” followed by our first Mini Golf Tournament at the Zoo Miami on January 28th, and in February we will be conducting the first “Order of the Engineer” by the Miami-Dade ASCE. All these activities are conducted by our volunteers. I call them our champions! This special group of volunteers will be cited as champions during the Order of the Engineer event on February 23rd. Please take some time and submit to us by e-mail your “Champion,” and I will be there to congratulate this year’s honorees and to personally thank them for their dedication and involvement. All nominees will be recognized and be presented with a small token of appreciation from the Miami Dade ASCE.

I encourage you to join other professionals in initiating or taking part in Engineer’s Week volunteer activities. In the weeks leading up to and including February 19th-25th, make it a point to celebrate engineering, to volunteer or thank a volunteer, and to help others discover the important role that engineering plays in their lives.

As the Co-chair for the 2011-2012 Florida Report Card I am proud to inform you that white papers have been completed and we are in the process of giving final touches to all reports. This has received a great involvement across the State and the results will be used in many effective ways, especially to raise the bar on awareness on the state of our infrastructure, to show the needs and to create jobs that are so much in need in our industry. Get involved; it is not too late to become active in it. Be an advocate! 

We have our “employment opportunities” section on our web site and newsletter. I urge everyone to contact us if you have a job opening or are looking for a job. This is a courtesy service of the Miami-Dade ASCE to all our members. We must help others in the industry.

Come and join us at these Miami-Dade ASCE events:

Please feel free to send in an e-mail or call me at any time. My contact information is provided below. Let us invite you to a board meeting, or simply share your thoughts…this is your family away from home and we welcome you at the Miami-Dade ASCE!

May you and all your loved ones have a wonderful new year! May 2012 bring us peace, joy health, lots of laughter, great camaraderie, volunteers, good times and much prosperity! Peace on Earth!

Sincerely,

President, ASCE Miami-Dade Branch