I look forward to a successful meeting where great science will be presented and friends reunited to discuss the important events that have occurred in their lives during the past year. The opportunity to do both is great, with over 3,000 lectures and abstracts being presented and 14,000 American and international colleagues, including those from AFLAR, APLAR, EULAR, and PANLAR, in attendance. In anticipation of this day, I considered the best organization for this speech. I decided that giving thanks at the beginning of my remarks will offer the opportunity for you to know who has truly made this a successful year for me, and inspired the substance of my thoughts for this discussion. I want to thank the membership of the ACR and ARHP for the honor of representing you over the past 12 months. I will always value the trust you placed in me. I am also grateful to the Executive Committee