Laissez les bons temps rouler

This isn’t the first time (and it won’t be the last time) that you’ve heard me mention AFP ICON 2023 in my Monday message, but with the early bird registration deadline just a few days away, ICON was a (big) easy choice for this week’s topic. 

That’s right! AFP ICON is coming to New Orleans, aka the Big Easy, April 16-18.

Like many of you, I look forward to ICON every year, and this year is no exception. We have an amazing lineup of speakers, an exhibit hall filled with leading industry partners, and plenty of opportunities to have fun and make connections with fellow attendees. 

Getting to talk face-to-face with people who share your passions is one of the biggest benefits of attending an event like ICON, so there are plenty of coffee breaks, receptions, and even a speed-networking event to get your creative and collaborative juices flowing. 

Speaking of drinks, we’d be remiss to let you go to New Orleans without getting a taste of the local cuisine. I want to give a shoutout and say thank you to our NOLA host committee who have designed this year’s FUNdraisers’ Fest with the authentic New Orleans experience in mind. 

Attendees will get to see the iconic Mardi Gras World, where the Mardi Gras parade floats are created and stored, and then enjoy a wide range of New Orleans entertainment, food, and drink, while admiring a view of the Mississippi River. As they say in New Orleans, laissez les bons temps rouler (Let the good times roll)!

More good news for you foodies, legendary chef, Emeril Lagasse is our closing keynote speaker! 

In his New Orleans kitchens, Lagasse serves up some of the best food on the gulf coast, but at ICON you’ll get a taste of his philanthropic side. In addition to being a legendary chef, cookbook author and TV personality, Emeril is the founder of the Emeril Lagasse Foundation, which has distributed over $18 million in grants benefiting children’s charities and supporting the development of kids’ culinary skills. 

It's truly inspiring for me to see the impact that our profession has and the wide range of causes that your organizations support. I’m looking forward to hearing from all of our speakers, who have volunteered to share their expertise. We couldn’t host this conference without them, so I’d like to give them, as well as our event sponsors, their own well-deserved shoutout too. 

Finally, ICON wouldn’t be possible without all of you attendees, so don’t forget to register before the January 20 early bird deadline, so you can join us and thousands of your fundraising peers for the world’s no. 1 fundraising event of the year! 

As always, if you have any questions, comments, or you want to hear more food related puns, don’t hesitate to reach out to me via email at Mike.Geiger@afpglobal.org or on Twitter at @AFPMikeGeiger. I’d love to hear from you. Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Mike Geiger, MBA, CPA