This membership growth and program strength shows just how serious STA leaders and members take their responsibility as caretakers of this esteemed organization. Many members volunteer to serve on committees that organize these conferences and their hard work and extra effort show. Such success comes from a coordinated, team effort. And as ambassadors of STA, every member has probably “evangelized” at least once to another person about its value, which has helped drive expansion.
As importantly, soon after its 100th anniversary, STA looked to broaden its vision beyond traditional textile operations such as spinning and weaving. And broaden it did, expanding its focus to include a wider range of topics to appeal to a larger sector of the industry. On top of that, the association made the bold decision to open its leadership ranks to non-textile industry members. And within weeks, for the first time in its history, STA had a member at-large who fell into that category. And Ken Rada of Duke Energy climbed the ranks to become president, a position he held until this week when he was succeeded by Judson Boehmer of Mount Vernon Mills’ La France Division.
With another successful Annual Meeting having concluded today and a bright future, the Southern Textile Association remains viable and valuable. Its unofficial motto, coined by STA Past President Steve Dobbins years ago, is “the best bang for your buck in the textile industry.” And given the value STA brings to its members at nominal prices, that rings as true today as it did ever has.
Posted June 17, 2014
When members of the Southern Textile Association (STA) gathered in Myrtle Beach in 2008 for the group’s 100th Annual Meeting – at a time when the industry was feeling the chilling effects of an economic downturn – an unspoken question lay before them:
Can the association survive another century?
Sure, the STA had persevered through two world wars, the Great Depression, numerous recessions, globalization and more. But with many of their industry brethren having fallen by the wayside in recent years and with what would become the “Great Recession” looming, its longevity didn’t seem as promising as they might have liked during that centennial celebration.
Fast forward six years and members probably have a clearer answer to that question: The state of the STA is strong.
The association, which held its 106th Annual Meeting this week in Myrtle Beach, has grown by nearly 100 members to more than 450 since that time. And, having covered all seven of the group’s various meetings during the past year, I’ve been super impressed with the quality and diversity of speakers at each of these programs and the information and knowledge they’ve imparted to attendees. Beyond that, plenty of networking opportunities at these functions have provided a great means of bringing industry members together, and the relationships, partnerships and business deals that have resulted are immeasurable.
STA-ying power
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