Hello and Happy New Year to all of the ICRI Delaware Valley Chapter current, former, and prospective members! 2024 was a fantastic year for our chapter, and 2025 promises to be even better.
In 2024 we hosted 7 events, sponsored several important causes including Mentoring Young Women in Construction, grew our membership to record levels, and awarded notable projects and Fellows from our chapter’s history. We were honored to receive our own award when we were named Outstanding Chapter by ICRI National!
In the coming year, I want to build on that success via a theme that I hope provides guidance and encouragement to our members, and that is Engagement. While our membership is at record numbers, I’d like to see us focus on bringing younger members of our industry into our chapter and welcoming their fresh energy and ideas. I have always said that the biggest strength of ICRI is our diversity- of backgrounds, of expertise, and of experiences. Our group is unique among professional organizations in that it is comprised of contractors, materials suppliers and manufacturers, and design professionals. This diversity of experience is what allows our members to learn from each other and network in our industry in a way not possible in other organizations. I hope we can build upon that history of diversity by becoming an organization that welcomes students and new hires alike, to provide continuity of our chapter and demonstrate how rewarding a career in concrete and masonry restoration in the Delaware Valley can be.
We all share a finite and precious resource: time. And if you are reading this, you have chosen to truly get the most out of the time you devote to industry activities…by being involved in ICRI and experiencing the opportunities it provides. Join me in helping us make 2025 the Year of Engagement. Tell a student or younger person in your company about our organization, or better yet, bring them along to one of the fantastic educational or social events we have planned this year. If you are already a chapter member, level up your own engagement by volunteering at an event or joining our Board of Directors. I think you will find it time well spent.
See you at the next event!
Nick
