Welcome to "Building Bridges", the 62nd Annual Conference of the Tennessee Counseling Association!  Our TCA Conference is the only conference specifically developed by counselors for all counselors in the state of Tennessee.  We have listened to your feedback in order to improve your conference experience.  This year's conference planning has emphasized increasing your opportunities for networking while maintaining our commitment to continuing education and professional development.  Doctors Samuel Gladding, Brande Flamez, and Gerald Pennie have been selected to address our profession's need for advocacy, collaboration, leadership, and social justice.  As counselors, we work in a variety of settings, with clients throughout their lifespan in the three grand cultural and geographic divisions of the state of Tennessee.  Despite these differences, we are one profession working to serve universal client needs.  Emphasizing our similarities as counselors, we have a duty to advocate for both the profession and our clients.  This advocacy requires collaboration among our specialties, with our clients, leadership in our communities, and at times legislative action.  In an effort to improve and enhance the lives of our clients, counselors need to bridge the gaps in the understanding of what counseling is, what counselors do, the needs of our clients, and how counselors can benefit our communities.  Help us build this bridge as we collectively take the time to connect, have fun, renew and restore our commitment to our profession while we acquire the knowledge and skills to improve our practice, profession, and the lives of our clients.  We look forward to seeing you at this year's conference!