9th International Educational Conference Cancelled

I just received the following email and feel that I should pass it on.

For those of you looking forward to seeing Edgar and the whole gang at Tirado Pilates Apparatus (PilatesApparatus.com), we will be at the Pilates Intensive: Big Bear in August. Or as always, you can reach us via email and phone.

05/19/2009

9th International Educational Conference Cancelled

Dear Edgar, Today, the Board of Directors of the Pilates Method Alliance announced that the PMA's 9th International Educational Conference in November 2009 in Dallas, Texas is being cancelled due to the economic downturn. Please see the statement below from the PMA Board. Having kept a close eye on our conference sales in recent weeks, it has become clear that in the current difficult economic environment we will not have enough delegates to go forward with our 2009 conference. As many of you know, we conducted a survey in mid April. The survey indicated that many of our regular attendees would not be able to come to the conference due to the global financial downturn. The current registration figures for our 2009 conference reflect this fact; our sales are down by 70%. As such, it is with great reluctance that we must announce the cancellation of the PMA's 9th International Educational Conference. We are disappointed about the cancellation because a great deal of work went into preparing a valuable event for 2009, and because we were looking forward to seeing our colleagues in Dallas in November. On the other hand, we feel this decision demonstrates that we are proactive and responsive to current economic realities, and able to make the tough decisions necessary to be fiscally prudent with the funds entrusted to us by the Pilates community. As a not-for-profit organization, we must be responsible to our alliance members, certificants, delegates, sponsors and exhibitors, to ensure that we do not operate the conference at a loss, as this would draw away funds that are needed to continue other essential functions of the PMA. The next PMA conference will take place in Long Beach, California, November 4 - 7, 2010, and will mark the 10th anniversary of the PMA. We look forward to a spectacular new program and celebration! Delegates who have already paid for the 2009 conference are being offered a refund, or an open credit with the PMA which they can apply to the 2010 conference, membership, merchandise, or any of our other offerings. We wish you all the best, and look forward to seeing you in 2010 in Long Beach to celebrate our 10th anniversary. Sincerely, PMA Board of Directors