NSA met in Savannah, Georgia for the 101st Annual Meeting. Program Chair LeRoy Creswell put together a diverse program with 3 concurrent sessions on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, and with 4 concurrent sessions on Thursday. The complete program is still available online at shellfish.org/101stAnnualMeeting

More than 250 individuals attended throughout the week to hear 23 technical sessions that included nearly 200 oral and over 50 poster presentations! Adding to the typical fare of talks on molluscan shellfish were daily concurrent sessions on crustaceans and a novel session on shellfish archeology. NOAA sponsored a session on shellfish and the environment and additional financial sponsorship provided by Maryland DNR, Florida Sea Grant, Georgia Sea Grant , Mississippi/Alabama Sea Grant , South Carolina Sea Grant, and Virginia Sea Grant enabled us to provide travel awards to nearly 20 students. We thank you all!

Sunday evening began with a wonderful display of shrimp, clams and oysters generously donated by Taylor Shellfish Farms Inc, Little Skookum Shellfish LLC, Baywater Inc, Louisianna Oyster Dealers and Growers Association, Georgia Marine Extension Service, Cedar Key Aquaculture Association,Pemaquid Oyster Company, and the Ocean State Shellfish Cooperative.

Monday evening was fabulous! NSA sponsored a Low Country Boil at Historic Fort Jackson, and the East Coast ShellfishGrowers Association sponsored "Romancing the Clam" at Bryson Hall in Savannah. The food was stellar at both events and the company was even better.

We had a rousing time at Tuesday's Student Endowment Fund Auction with our multi-talented Sandy Shumway as Auctioneer. As many of you know, Sandy appears 'in costume' at the auction - this year it was Miss Sandy as Southern Belle! The Auction raised a record $4200+ for the SEF. Thanks to all who participated, especially those who donated items to be auctioned.

We held our Annual Business Luncheon on Wednesday. Sandy Shumway received the David H. Wallace Award and Gene Burreson received the Honored Life Member Award. Dave Bushek handed over the gavel to incoming President Joth Davis. Look for updates on the website to the officers and committee chair assignments in the next few days.

The 101st meeting concluded at noon on Thursday. Student presentations appeared throughtout the week so stay tuned to hear which students earned Thurlow Nelson and Gordon Gunter awards for making outstanding presentations during the conference.

We had significant participation in the meeting in spite of the state of the world economy. Thank you to the meeting organizers (particularly Lou D'Abramo, Randy Walker and his local crew, LeRoy Creswell and Karolyn Hansen), the session organizers, and the attendees. We look forward to seeing you in San Diego at Aquaculture 2010, March 1-5.