Hello everyone,

I hope the holiday season finds you and your family well!

As 2022 comes to a close so ends my third and final year as AMFA president. It went by so fast it is hard for me to fathom where it all went. When Jim handed the reigns over to me at the start of 2020 little did I know what was in store for the next few years. It was definitely a struggle to find what value AMFA could bring to our membership during a time when meeting in person had so many issues. I am happy to report that we have made some very good strides moving AMFA forward. Now as I get ready to hand the reigns over to the next president, I am very proud of all the new events and continued AMFA events that have transpired the last three years. Along with the transition at the parent association MMA to new leadership and new ideas.

Register to attend the AMFA Luncheon Meeting on December 8 at Boomtown Brewery in Hibbing. We will be having a presentation entitled Stopping the Great Resignation by Mike Henke, a northern Minnesota native and national speaker, followed by a tour of Hibbing Fabricators. It will be worth your time to attend!

Make plans to attend the second Beers and Bolts on January 11 on the Iron Range. The first one was in Duluth and was such a nice change of pace with ample networking time. Even if you don’t want to have a beer - come and hang out and get to know your fellow members better. Watch for more details in the coming weeks. This event is for all manufacturers and those that work closely with manufacturers in the area to come together for something that isn't a formal conference or all-day event. We also strongly recommend local educators to attend and help nurture the connection between manufacturers and educators. Manufacturers, we encourage you to bring yourself and other employees to represent the manufacturing industry in the area.

This fall has been busy for AMFA. Thank you for your participation!

• AMFA members participated in Manufacturing Month activities throughout October.
• AMFA hosted our first ever Beers and Bolts on October 27 at Warrior Brewing in Duluth. 
• AMFA hosted a booth and several of our members attended FabTech in Atlanta November 8 -10. Read Rally Hess’s follow up article on the event.
• AMFA hosted our first ever CTE Jamboree on November 17. Read my follow up article on the event. We made some great connections with educators in the Arrowhead and plan to host the event again in 2023. This is a great way to ensure a pipeline of employees in the future!

Plans are underway to host the AMFA Beverage Tasting fundraiser in March at Clyde Iron Works. Our association needs all your participation to make this annual event a success. Please volunteer to help put on the event or bring all your thirsty friends, OR both! Watch for more announcements on the date!

You may have noticed new AMFA branding. We are really excited about the new fresher look that reflects our plans to strategically enhance the growth of manufacturing in the Duluth/Superior and Arrowhead regions. It is also more aligned with MMA and our sister associations which will be even more important moving forward.

The 2023 AMFA and MMA sponsorship package are on sale now. These packages offer an opportunity to put your product or service in front of your prospects at a great value. Save and additional 10% until December 15. Plus your sponsorship should have further reach this year as we welcome our newest emerging association under MMA the (RREMA) Red River Engineers and Manufacturers Association set to start the beginning of 2023 in the Fargo Moorhead area Learn more.

AMFA is always looking for tour ideas for our general meetings and networking ideas. If you have a suggestion, please let us know. We are here to help and I look forward to connecting with you at our meeting on December 8.

AMFA, as always, we’re in it together.

-Wade Karnes
AMFA President