Tony is organizing an early morning walk before the start of each day’s RoundTable. If you’re a morning person, let Tony know of your interest by posting a comment on his blog.

Calling all my Kansas City area church IT homies. You are my “Local Organizing Committee” for the RoundTable. We need to meet next week to finalize plans. How about Thursday, Sept. 13 at 12:30 pm? How about Chili’s in Merriam again? Leave a comment here or e-mail me: clif.guy at cor.org.

Some people have asked about getting from KCI Airport to the hotel and/or church and then back to the airport at the end of the RoundTable.

The hotels we have arranged don’t have shuttle service. However, there is a KCI Shuttle that operates between the airport and many hotels here in the southern part of the metro area (Johnson County). To use this service, simply stop by KCI Shuttle’s ticket counter, which is in close proximity to all baggage claim areas in the airport, to purchase a ride to your hotel. Advance reservations are not required but are recommended if arrival time is after 9pm. Cost is $49 per person (each way); each additional person within the same party is then $7 to $10 ea. (each way). When buying your ticket you can schedule your pickup, too. KCI Shuttle’s phone number is 816-243-5000.

The hotels are 4-5 miles from the church. We want to bless you, serve you, and ensure that you have a great time when you’re here. In that spirit, I’m happy to help you get back and forth between the hotel and the church, but with 60 people coming in, I can’t fit you all in my van in one trip! Hopefully, only a few of you will need a ride. 😉

Most of you coming to the RoundTable will be flying in. The nearest airport is Kansas City International (code=MCI). The airport is on the far northwest side of town and we’re on the south side, so it’s a 45 minute drive with moderate traffic.

Directions from the airport:
South on I29
South on I635 (right exit)
South on I35 (right exit)
South on US69 (right exit after 75th street)
East on 135th street (right exit, then turn left on 135th) approx. 2.5 miles
South on Roe 2 blocks, church is on the right

Google map with directions is here.

Park in Lot B or Lot D. Campus map here, or print this post.

Enter the East Building near the SE corner. You’ll find the receptionists at the crossroads between the main east-west hallway and the main north-south hallway, next to the Memorial Garden. They will direct you from there. East Building floor plan is here (on the floor plan drawing ground floor is on the left, lower level is on the right). Conference check-in will be in the hallway outside Rehearsal Hall A on the lower level. It’s a big, confusing building. We’ll have signs up to help you as much as we can.

The hotel info is provided in the confirmation e-mail after registering, but some people have requested the info prior to registering. So here goes …

Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites – Convention Center
10920 Nall Ave.
Overland Park, KS 66211
913-312-0900 phone
913-312-5992 fax
Check-in time is 3:00 p.m. Check-out time is 12:00 p.m.
Rate = $90.00
Reservations must be made by 9/7/07 in order to receive the $90.00 rate. Ask for the “I.T. Roundtable Conference – Church of the Resurrection” block of rooms.

Wyndham Garden Hotel – Overland Park
7000 W. 108th St.
Overland Park, KS 66211
913-383-2550 phone
913-383-2099 fax
Check-in time is 3:00 p.m. Check-out time is 12:00 p.m.
Rate = $74.00, no breakfast (or $84.00 with breakfast)
Reservations must be made by 9/20/07 in order to receive the $74.00 rate. Ask for the “I.T. Roundtable Conference – Church of the Resurrection” block of rooms.

Or you could always go the Priceline route, like Mark.

… after worshiping at Granger this morning. He reports that the experience was “phenomenal” and “WOW”. Thanks, Jason for your hospitality!

And what vacation trip to the Chicago/Northern Indiana area would be complete without a tour of Willow Creek? Thanks Mark and Brett.

Get the details in his full trip report here.

The two year-old grandson of Linda Ronsick, our Data Quality Administrator, died on Wednesday from an accidental drowning in a pool just a mile from the church. Linda’s daughter, the little guy’s mom, was distracted with putting sunscreen on another of her children when Benjamin fell in. Despite there being approximately 40 people in the pool area at the time, no one noticed until it was too late. The only blessing in this is that his organs have been donated to help several other children in desperate need. The memorial service is tomorrow morning here at Resurrection.

Please stop and pray for Linda, her husband Gene, their daughter Laura, her husband Matt, and Benjamin’s two brothers Luke (4) and Caleb (10 months). They have a difficult road ahead.

A few weeks ago when “Ten Things Your IT Department Won’t Tell You” was published in the Wall Street Journal and made a big stink in the IT community, Ian e-mailed the author. Imagine his surprise when one of his comments was quoted in a follow-up story last week (see #4 in the article) by the same author. Way to go Ian!

Sure enough, our short list of ChMS candidates is getting longer before it gets shorter. We’re adding ACS. And then there were five.

Tony Dye and Chris McGuffin spent an hour on the phone with me today going over detailed plans for the RoundTable. I know our event in October will benefit from the insights they gained from planning and hosting the RoundTable back in April. Thanks Tony and Chris!

If you haven’t signed up to come to Kansas City in October, do it now. It’s going to be awesome!