Doug Shima, Clerk, Kansas Supreme Court and Kansas Court of Appeals
I’m writing this article as I admire the snow accumulating in my back yard. The first blizzard in the Midwest for this winter is unleashing all its paralyzing beauty in what is forecasted to be a thick layer of ice underneath nearly a foot of snow. My thoughts turn to my family’s annual snowboarding trip to Colorado later this winter and hope the deep white powdery Kansas landscape is replicated in Colorado in a couple months. However, as soon as I step outside my door to shovel my sidewalks, I know my thoughts will instantly turn to wishes of warmer weather and NCACC’s 52nd Annual Conference and Meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico on August 3-7, 2025. Can’t wait for this incredible conference.
Your NCACC Executive Committee is staying active and hard at work. The EC met for its Fall meeting in Austin, Texas, on October 13 and 14. The EC meeting agenda included a discussion of past and future conferences, a review of all committee reports including my committee charges, a remote introduction of the EC to Sirena Kestner, our association administrator with NCSC, and status updates on the financial well-being of the NCACC.
We stayed at The Line Hotel that will host our 2026 annual conference in Austin. The Line is a boutique hotel deep in the heart of Texas that will provide a fantastic venue for our conference. Its location with scenic overlook of Lady Bird Lake will provide the perfect views of the Congress Bridge Bats. BATS OMG!!! The Austin Bats are Austin’s most popular visitor attraction. The Congress Avenue bridge spans Lady Bird Lake and is home to the largest urban bat colony in North America known as the Congress Bridge Bats. This Austin bat colony is estimated at 1.5 million Mexican free-tail bats. Each night from around mid-March to early November, the Austin Bats emerge from under the bridge to blanket the sky as they head out to forage for food. This nightly event is considered the most spectacular and unusual tourist attraction in Austin. Deanna and Sherri Williamson and Blake Hawthorn have already proven themselves to be hosts extraordinare in just our short time in Austin. Our visits to The Little Longhorn Saloon and Terry Black’s Barbeque and our tour of the Texas Supreme Court and Court of Appeals were just a couple of the highlights of our visit.
I also want to make sure everyone has the NCACC mid-year meeting on their calendars. We are planning a remote mid-year meeting on Monday, April 14, 2025. The exact details are not set yet, but it will probably include (ALL TIMES CENTRAL DAYLIGHT TIME) 1:30 – 1:50 PM – Meet and Greet Social; Introduction to NCACC; Question and Answer followed by 2:00 – 2:50 PM – Being a Great Listener; Building Listening Skills by Kristen Trebil-Halbersma and/or Alecia Burke from the National Center for State Courts. My hope is that we can build on our listening skills remotely in April and then incorporate some programming for fine-tunning those skills in a presentation in Albuquerque in August 2025 at NCACC’s annual meeting.
Last, I would be remiss if I didn’t force you to make some NCACC New Year’s resolutions:
- Reach out to your NCACC colleagues for help or just to say hello. I guarantee you someone in this illustrious group has experienced your dilemma or something very close to it.
- As I’ve told you previously, BE PRESENT and practice gratitude in a 360-degree manner — Gratitude With Attitude – expressing thanks for everything around you.
- Stay involved with your NCACC committees. It keeps you in contact with your NCACC friends and supports the efforts of this great organization.
Take Care and Let’s have a Great 2025 in the NCACC. I’m always available for you for any questions you have regarding the NCACC – shimad@kscourts.org.
Doug