Dear MPI Texas Hill Country Chapter and IAEE Central Texas Chapter Members,

We are writing to you jointly, as representatives of the MPI Texas Hill Country Chapter and the IAEE Central Texas Chapter, to share an important decision about the future of Southwest Showcase.

After careful discussion between our two boards, the offices of both presidents have mutually agreed to formally dissolve Southwest Showcase as a joint annual event. This was not a decision either organization made lightly. Southwest Showcase has represented years of partnership and shared purpose between our chapters, and we recognize how many of you have contributed your time, talent, and enthusiasm to make it a success.

We also believe our membership deserves transparency. The 2025 Showcase encountered a series of operational missteps that left the event with a deficit budget. Following a full review, both organizations concluded that we are no longer able to responsibly fund the event in its current form. Rather than risk repeating those outcomes or placing further financial strain on either organization, our boards agreed that dissolving Southwest Showcase is the right and responsible path forward.

We want to be equally clear about what this decision does not mean. It does not mean the end of collaboration between MPI Texas Hill Country Chapter and IAEE Central Texas Chapter. Our two organizations share a common mission and a common membership, and that relationship remains a priority for both boards. We are already looking at new, more sustainable ways for our chapters to partner going forward, and we look forward to sharing more as those conversations develop.

In the meantime, we want to turn our collective energy and attention toward an event that already brings our community together:  Texas Education Conference, TEC 2026. This conference is supported by The MPI Texas Hill Country Chapter and the MPI Houston Area Chapter. This year's conference will take place October 28–30 at Kalahari Resorts in Round Rock, Texas.

TEC26 has always been a place where meeting professionals, suppliers, educators, and industry innovators from across Texas come together to learn from one another and strengthen our shared industry. We would love for IAEE Central Texas Chapter members to join us there this year, not as a replacement for Southwest Showcase, but as a chance to build something new together — stronger education, stronger networking, and a stronger partnership between our two organizations.

We are proud of what Southwest Showcase meant to this community, and we are just as excited about what comes next. Thank you for your understanding, your continued membership, and your trust in both of our organizations as we move forward together.

With gratitude and forward momentum,

Michele Gonzalez, CMP
President, MPI Texas Hill Country Chapter

Brooke Cowart
Past Immediate Chair, IAEE Central Texas Chapter 

MPI Texas Hill Country Chapter

Are you a meeting professional? Are you a supplier for the meetings and hospitality industry? Are you a student trying to figure out your career path? Do you want to learn more about meetings and event management? Are you an association or corporate meetings manager? Are you looking for community and perspective with other meeting professionals?  If you answered yes to any of these questions, then YOU BELONG HERE!

I chose the theme this year to remind people how being a member and participating in MPI’s Texas Hill Country Chapter can still be a valuable resource for your career. Professional development seems to have been buried under budgets and excuses since the pandemic. MPI has never wavered from its commitment to education and giving our members the tools they need to succeed and excel in the meetings industry.

The Texas Hill Country Chapter wants to continue to lead the way in educating about the latest technology, safety, best practices, and accessibility to make your events memorable because everyone felt welcomed and it ran flawlessly.  

We aren’t here to waste your time.  We are here to help you level up and represent yourself with professionalism and integrity. Forget what you think you know about this chapter. Join us with pride and purpose.  Help us make 2026 a year of community, excellence and fun!  

Michele Gonzalez, 2026 MPI Texas Hill Country Chapter President

For meeting professionals in the greater central Texas area, MPI Texas Hill Country Chapter (MPI THCC) proudly represents the geographical diversity of the greater Austin and San Antonio metro areas, plus destinations from Laredo to College Station and the Gulf Coast, catering to business and association meetings, tourism, weddings and other special events.

Chartered in 1983, MPI THCC is home to 200 members, and the Texas Education Conference (TEC).