A raucous meeting of the minds (no Zoom squares in sight)

Long ago, in a world that now seems very far away, I got on a plane and flew to Chicago to meet up with my fellow Cabinet Makers Association members for our second national conference.

“2020 Vision” was held in early March at the Q Center, a former college campus outside Chicago that has been transformed into a conference center.

My fellow board members and I arrived in time to lend a hand to the one person who made the conference possible: Our executive director Amanda Conger created this complicated event almost singlehandedly (which involves a crazy amount of work, of course). We were glad to be able to help welcome and register CMA members as they rolled in from across the country and visit with them at the opening reception.

The speaker lineup over the next two days was impressive and diverse, and like many of the other attendees I talked to, I came away with a lot of food for thought about how to improve the way I run Dark Horse Woodworks.

But I have to admit that no matter how exciting the speakers are, my favorite part of any CMA event is the chance to spend time with the close friends I’ve made and meet new people. So for me, our time registering new arrivals, hauling boxes, chatting at breakfast and lunch, riding the bus to the shop tours and mingling at our cocktail reception and dinner were the highlights.

A lot of us have small shops, and we can go through our workdays only interacting with a few people (or none at all, depending on the day). It’s so great to get these opportunities to spend time with kindred spirits in the industry a few times a year, and I’m really glad that our 2020 Vision gathering squeaked through before the country began shutting down to stop the spread of COVID-19. 

Other events, such as the International Woodworking Fair in August, have already been canceled; it’s a pretty big challenge to bring in thousands of people from across the world to a huge venue and feel good about keeping everyone safe and healthy. 

It’s disappointing to miss a chance to gather again, but in the meantime, I’m keeping up with Amanda, the other board members and other CMA friends in all of the ways we’re used to connecting between events – Zoom meetings, “Hey, how do I fix [XYZ problem]?” texts and phone calls, and posts on the CMA forums. 

The great thing about a strong community is that it hangs together even when times get tough, and time and distance stretch on. In a year that has brought quite a few challenges, I’m grateful to be part of such a supportive “village.”

~ Chris Dehmer