LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
Jill Odom Joins NALP as Content Manager SALUTATIONS! CAN YOU TELL I’VE NEVER WRITTEN AN editor’s note before? While I am new to the world of print magazines, I’ve been familiar with the green industry for almost five years now. If my name rings a bell, that’s because prior to becoming NALP’s new content manager, I was the editor of Total Landscape Care. I’ve been at many NALP events over the years and have had the pleasure of meeting a number of its members so far and I look forward to meeting even more of you in the future. Going from an online industry trade magazine to the association I so frequently interviewed for its stance on matters is an interesting transition. Becoming part of the organization that is the true voice of the industry is an exciting challenge I look forward to tackling. As spring heads into summer, I’m sure no one would have predicted 2020 to have panned out the way it has. Pandemics aren’t exactly common occurrences that your business prepares
8 The Landscape Professional //May/June 2020
for, unlike unfavorable weather conditions. Yet despite the challenges, both NALP and its members have risen to the occasion. When the National Collegiate Landscape Competition scheduled for March 18-21 at Michigan State University was cancelled due to COVID-19, NALP created a virtual NCLC event where students and industry members could still connect. Read more about this event on page 14-15. As for upcoming events, the situation with coronavirus is constantly evolving, but at this time, events in the fall such as LANDSCAPES on October 2023 in Louisville, Kentucky, are still a go. Members have also been making the best of it by ensuring their employees are able to work safely while keeping a
positive attitude about things. Many have been thinking about how to improve their company’s operations in the wake of this global crisis. You can read about how some of these companies are forging forward on page 20. In the words of Samwise Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, “Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer.” In the meantime, NALP has developed a coronavirus resource center online that is updated regularly with information on regulations, best practices and guidance surrounding COVID-19. We will get through this as we are stronger together. Please do not hesitate to contact me at jill@landscapeprofessionals.org and share your thoughts, concerns and stories. TLP
