August President's Message
Dear GELSSA Members and Friends,I hope you had a great summer! As we wrap up August and head into the Fall Season, I’m thrilled to share the highlights from our fantastic Q3 Membership Meeting that we held earlier this month on 8/6. We had an incredible turnout with 70 registrants for the meeting, and I’m proud to say that over 50 members joined us at Truist Park to enjoy the Atlanta Braves vs. Brewers game that evening! It was a great day and night of networking, learning, new member connections, and enjoying the game!
Our meeting featured a highly valuable session on "Cyber Security Preparedness: It is No Longer a Matter of If but When it Will Happen to You!" led by two industry powerhouses—Dee Ann Harn with RFI, a Pavion Company, and Crystal Jacobs with Security America. Their insights into cybersecurity were eye-opening and crucial for all of us in the industry. If you missed it, I highly recommend connecting with those who attended to catch up on what was discussed. Dee Ann shared her experiences and what she learned through her company's cyber-attack. One of the biggest takeaways is to make sure you have a cyber security insurance policy. Your cyber policy will provide you with crucial resources immediately when you fall victim to a hacker. This presentation also provided a great reminder to review the measures you have in place to combat hackers and phishing scams with your IT team.
In addition, we also had the pleasure of announcing the results of our 2025 elections, our Youth Scholarship Winner, along with a check presentation to GELSSA from Security America. I’m excited to welcome three new members to our Executive Board! Their fresh perspectives and leadership will be vital as we continue to grow and innovate within GELSSA. Please read on for all of the details!
Thank you to everyone who attended the meeting and the game—your participation and enthusiasm are what make our association so special. I look forward to seeing even more of you at our upcoming events including our Fall Summit coming up in November!
Sincerely,
Derek Dever
GELSSA President