Lance Rantala

Dear BLUE HAWK Community,

We would like to thank everyone for your patience and cooperation through the transition from our 2020 Annual Conference in Orlando to a virtual meeting concept. We are deeply saddened we cannot celebrate our 15th anniversary together. Yet, this change of plans is trivial compared to the realities of today’s world.

Additionally, I want to recognize the effort put forth by the BLUE HAWK staff to hatch and develop our first-ever and, hopefully, the last virtual conference during the unusual turn of events. Over the past few weeks, they rolled up their sleeves at their home offices and began creating the best virtual experience imaginable. As one can imagine, adapting a significant event like our conference to a virtual event takes a lot of effort and conviction. We recognize nothing can replace in-person networking and camaraderie, but we did the best we could with limited resources and time.

The focal point of the 2020 Virtual Conference will be our Cyber Face-to-Face (F2F) Meetings. The BLUE HAWK Members, Vendor Partners, Alliance Partners, and Solution Partners will be conducting over 6,000 virtual appointments over the next two months. Our yearly F2F sessions have been vital to our truly member-owned purchasing co-op’s success over the past 15 years. The Cyber F2F Meetings are more critical than ever given the unique circumstances we are facing.

Additionally, we are using a variety of technology platforms to deliver the typical content you have come to expect from our Annual Conferences and a few surprises.

• Annual Business Update
• Buy BLUE Promotions
• PrimeTime Promotions
• Virtual New Product Showcase
• BLUE HAWK University Raffle
• Awards & Recognition
• Keynote Speaker
• Board Elections
• And More

BLUE HAWK appreciates the overwhelming support our Co-op Community has displayed to one another during this difficult time. We will come out of this crisis stronger and better than ever. Our thoughts are with you, your families, and your colleagues.

Think 100% BLUE,