New Jersey was in the spotlight as the site of the National Guard Association of the United States (NGAUS) 122nd Annual Conference at the Atlantic City Convention Center, September 10 through 15.

Make no mistake; this was a massive undertaking. Approximately 3,000 Guardsmen from 54 states and territories gathered at the convention center for the week-long event. Gov. Christine Todd Whitman made an appearance, as did Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric Shinseki. Then Presidential candidates Vice President Al Gore and Governor George W. Bush spoke via satellite. Soldiers and guests also gathered for banquets and social events throughout Atlantic City. The conference included business sessions, exhibits, and various athletic competitions.

Behind the scenes, managing the transportation, communications, operations and more, were Jersey Guardsmen and civilian volunteers.

"Their goal was to make everyone feel welcome here in the Garden State," said Col. Ronald Cefalone, Director of Logistics, NJARNG, who served as the conference subcommittee chairman for support services. "We had more than 3,500 guests," stated Cefalone. "We tried to accommodate their entertainment, social time, and accommodations. That was a big event."

Planning began in January 1998 when the state learned it would host the conference. Since then, more than 400 soldiers and state employees were organized into committees to work on the conference.

Speaking during the conference, Cefalone said, "Success to us is when people, as they get off the bus at the airport on Friday, have feelings of satisfaction and enjoyment and feel like we exceeded their expectations. We wanted this conference to be one of the best ever."

Staff Sgt. Frank Cumberland, of the STARC Property and Fiscal office, was busy registering exhibitors and soldiers. As one of the first faces newcomers saw at the conference, he heard a lot of first impressions. "Most of them were shocked at how green New Jersey was," he noted.

Sgt. 1st Class Lisa Homan, served in the command post arranging transportation for guests. She was bracing for Friday morning, when the 50-plus distinguished guests attending the conference would all leave at once.

The first convention of the millennium was also the first completely wired one. 167 cell phones were employed and closed circuit televisions broadcast the proceedings throughout the facility. A new registration database was capable of producing any number of reports while keeping track of attendees, hotel reservations, transportation arrangements, and ticketed events.

In the end, the convention went off without any major snags and the guests returned home with great memories of the Garden State's hospitality.