I hope this finds you all well and happy. Recently, I’ve been sitting in on the sessions of the current Fall 2019 Birmingham Citizens Academy class, acting as an “ambassador” for the Alumni Association, and it has been an eye-opener for me. The sessions have been interesting and the presenters excellent, as always, but I’ve been most struck by the class members themselves. What an attentive, enthusiastic, engaged group they are! Several have mentioned that they are looking forward to joining the Alumni Association and remaining active after their class graduates, and I strongly suspect that they will have an impact on our chapter.

Their most outstanding characteristic is their enthusiasm – you get the sense the whole class is leaning forward in their chairs as they hear about the mission and methods of the FBI, as they are being brought into the “Circle of Trust,” as they learn the importance of the Bureau in keeping us safe, and of the opportunity we are given to act as “Force Magnifiers.” And witnessing this enthusiasm and their discoveries affects me, too. Coming to these classes on behalf of the Association – now for the, what, fourth or fifth time – gives me a new perspective. Far from being bored or jaded by hearing the presentations again in the company of the new class, I feel I’m vicariously experiencing the impact of this information for the first time. And it’s a powerful jolt. It makes me hyper-aware what an honor it is to be nominated, to be selected and to attend the classes; and now to be able to serve as an active part of the Alumni Association.

Similarly, I was on a Regional Leadership Conference Call earlier today, and got to hear about some of the projects that are in the works nationally; but what raised my pulse was the chapter reports: hearing how much good work so many of our local chapters are accomplishing. Guys, I hate to tell you this, but some of the other chapters may be catching up to us. We may have to reach down and find another gear in order to stay ahead and remain the nation’s premiere FBICAAA chapter.  

And we will. We have our Civil Rights and the Law conference dead ahead in Birmingham, followed closely by our participation in the National Night Out in Huntsville; and we hope you’ll join us for an FBI After Dark event in October (touted elsewhere in this newsletter). We are working on a similar event in Huntsville for November, so look for an announcement of that soon. And our newly-trained Bomb-Making Awareness Program administrators will be beginning to do training sessions aimed at teaching the public to detect and report attempts to acquire materials for explosive or incendiary devices. And stay tuned – soon we will be announcing the date, location, program and other important details of our chapter’s Annual Meeting, to be held in early December.

Once again, thanks – for your support and for all that you do. I hope to see you soon.

Paul H. Franklin, President

FBI Birmingham CAAA