NCICA PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

Charleston, SC – NCICA Convention 2009

NCICA Convention 2009 will be held October 1-4, 2009 in Charleston, South Carolina at the Sheraton North Charleston Hotel & Convention Center.  Forms for registration are contained on this website.  It is appreciated that everyone  register with the hotel immediately to allow the acquisition of additional rooms if the number of members attending exceed the rooms presently set aside for the  convention.   Hotel policy is that  Individual reservations must be canceled  72 hours before the date of arrival to avoid a penalty of  a one night room charge plus tax. 
NOTE:  For those arriving early or staying later, the Sheraton North Charleston Hotel & Convention Center has extended the special room rates ($109 plus taxes) for 3 days prior to and 3 days after the Convention
in order to  afford an opportunity to visit places of interest that  are not part of the  Convention tours.  Our Convention Host(s) are NCICA President Ted Hinchman and his wife, Pat, of Washington, North Carolina who have  arranged the following: Thursday, as in the past, is the sign in and ‘get acquainted’ day . On Friday (October 2, 2009) a unique tour by horse drawn carriages of historic Charleston homes and buildings often seen in promotions of the  district.  Ted has arranged  for lunch during the tour. Following lunch, we will visit the Citadel (The Military College of South Carolina, established in 1842.) where we will view the Parade of Cadets as a part of our tour.  Following the return to the Hotel, an evening  fish fry has been arranged with the Sheraton North Charleston Hotel.  This will afford some excellent sea food and a relaxed atmosphere for all.

Saturday A.M.will be taken up with  the Board Meeting , the General Membership Meeting and  the evening  Banquet. An outstanding and well known Military Intelligence veteran has been engaged for the banquet speech on Saturday night October 3, 2009. (LINK TO SPEAKER)   In the interim there are other  sites that can be visited:for example, Somewhat near the Convention hotel is Magnolia Plantation.  The interest here is not so much the house as it is the lavish gardens laid out in 1680, the oldest man-made gardens in North America. Charleston is known as The Holy City due to the prominence of many historical churches.  It  city was founded as Charlestown or Charles Towne, Carolina in 1670.  being named after King Charles II of England who granted a charter of Carolina territory to eight of his loyal friends in 1663.  A community of English settlers was established in 1670 on the west bank of the Ashley River, a few miles northwest of the present city.  By 1690 Charleston was the fifth largest city in America.  It remained among the tenth largest cities until the 1840 census.  The name  Charleston was adopted in 1783.  The present population is estimated at 120,000.  Historically, the Civil War began with the bombardment of Fort Sumter by Confederate military forces on April 12, 1861. Though not on the planned tour,  there are boat trips available to Fort Sumter in the Charleston harbor.   Being tgermed the ‘Holy City,’ we can  view a  French Huguenot Church ; Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim,founded in 1749, the fourth oldest Jewish congregation in the United States; and, the First Baptist Church of Charleston -  one of the oldest churches in North America.

Convention Registration Form

The Hotel Reservation Form and Travel Information