The Washington Summit was a great success. Thanks to our NMBA President, John Anderson, and fellow local bankers Jay Jenkins, Liz Earls, Jason Wyatt and Gina Ortega who traveled to Washington, D.C., for the event.
As usual, John did a great job of setting up meetings with our senators and representatives to discuss the key banking issues that we are concerned about. Bank fraud is always one of the highest profile topics, along with credit card fees, stablecoins and regulation. I want to give a special shout-out to Sen. Ben Ray Lujan and his staff. For two years in a row, Ben Ray has spent valuable one-on-one time with the New Mexico Delegation, and the senator is a strong supporter of banking in New Mexico.
Connections outside of our meetings included dinner with Lenwood Brooks from the Dallas FHLB, Rodney Hood, the former acting comptroller of the currency, and former Congresswoman Yvette Herrell. John has developed great connections with these leaders in the financial institution space. Next year, I hope more fellow bankers will join us for this great opportunity to connect with our legislative leaders.
On another note, our annual Lenders Conference is scheduled for Friday, April 24, in Albuquerque. This is a great opportunity to help our bankers sharpen their skills and connect with fellow bankers to share ideas. Our reviews of this event in previous years have been extremely positive. Speakers will include regulators and motivational speakers.
Also, Mark Anderson recently sent out a save the date for our annual convention in Santa Fe in June, so be on the lookout for more information about that. We are staying at the La Fonda on the Plaza. Special room rates are available for the initial block of rooms. Santa Fe is my hometown, so I am hoping we can roll out the red carpet for our bankers and guests.
As usual, we will have some great speakers and events for everyone. La Fonda has a great docent tour that they will set up for us to learn about the history of this great hotel. We have also arranged lunch at the Santa Fe School of Cooking with Cheryl Jaimison, our local foodie. Cheryl is a chef, cookbook author and food authority who has received four James Beard Awards. She will prepare a delicious meal for us to enjoy (with wine and margaritas) and will offer signed copies of her most recent book, “Perini Ranch Steakhouse,” or her classic cookbook, “The Rancho de Chimayo Cookbook, 50th Anniversary Edition.”
Golf is scheduled at the Black Mesa golf course, a few miles north of Santa Fe. It is a great course and will challenge most of us. The overall theme of the convention is the Route 66 Centennial, which we will celebrate, and we will have many other opportunities to visit and enjoy each other’s company.
I also wanted to share some of my favorite things to do in Santa Fe to help you plan your trip.
- Eat at great restaurants like Sazón, The Shed, Joseph’s Culinary Pub and Santacafé.
- Hike the Dale Ball Trails.
- Walk Canyon Road.
- Visit the Nedra Matteucci Galleries for Southwestern art.
- Visit Shiprock Santa Fe for Native American artistry.
- Enjoy the hot tub and a massage at Ten Thousand Waves.
- Visit the New Mexico Art and History Museums.
We are excited to welcome you to Santa Fe. If I can help with dinner reservations or other suggestions, let me know. Please join us and celebrate how special it is to be in the banking industry in our wonderful state!
