Letter from the SAWD CEO

WELCOME TO THE SOUTHERN’S 99TH ANNUAL MEETING!

Another year has passed, and another SEC team has been crowned NCAA football national champions. Congratulations to all Georgia Bulldog fans within our association!

With 99 years under our belt, this gathering unlike any other in the industry is truly a family reunion. Every year in mid-June we come together to reconnect, share ideas, meet new people, and have some fun. For 2022, we are introducing a new, streamlined scheduled, ensuring our time together is maximized to its fullest.

This year’s educational program features three rockstar speakers. Employee retention expert Leah Brown leads us off. With almost 30 years of experience, Leah is a powerful and recognized speaker, coach and facilitator in the fields of leadership, employee engagement, organizational development, and workforce retention. She will be sharing best practices and how diversity, equity, and inclusion plays a factor in employee retention.

Shawn Burcham, CEO of PFSbrands and Founder of GRITT Business Coaching, will take the stage next to talk about what it takes to succeed in foodservice in foodservice. Certainly not a stranger to the industry, Shawn and his wife Julie started their company out of their home in 1998. He has a non-entitlement mentality and a straight-talk approach.

This year’s keynote speaker is Olympic gold medalist and current swim announcer Rowdy Gaines who will share his inspiring story of perseverance. His determination to compete in Los Angeles in 1984 after the 1980 boycott and his stellar success mark him as one of the world’s most dedicated as well as ambitious athletes.

In the evenings, please don’t forget to stop by the Hospitality Suite where you can partake in the silent auction which benefits The Southern Education Fund. You can also enjoy a drink and request songs from our own dueling pianist.

For all the excitement there is for this year’s Annual Meeting, one member of The Southern family will be missed. Bennett Roberts of Matrix Brokerage passed away late last year after a hard-fought battle with cancer. Bennett’s legacy lives on as his brother Webb, son Nick, and daughter Madison have taken up the mantle with the association. I know we will welcome them as we do all members of the association.

With a major milestone on the horizon, on behalf of the association, I would like to thank our wholesale distributors and vendor partners who have ensured that The Southern remains a viable and vibrant organization for the industry.

See you at Sawgrass! VJ Mayor

SAWD CEO