HLAA Celebrates 30 Years of Hard Work: Highlights from Nashville

The HLAA Convention 2009, held in Nashville, marked the 30th Birthday Celebration of that organization. One of the events at the HLAA Convention in Nashville was a night at the Grand Ole Opry — the longest running radio show since 1925. The Opry is "rich in tradition of performers who know the value of remaining genuine and honest." At the same time, the Opry management spearheaded by Vice President and General Manager Pete Fisher and its performers, continue to forge the Opry's future.



Saturday, June 30, 2009 - Executive Director Brenda Battat (left) and Deputy Executive Director Barbara Kelley (right) meet with Opry General Manager Pete Fisher and performer Little Jimmy Dickens on stage prior to the show.

On Saturday night, June 20, the Grand Ole Opry was real-time captioned. As the announcer said at the top of the show, "an historic event in the history of the Grand Ole Opry." Thanks to Karyn Menck and her team of CART writers, the HLAA staff, and to Opry management, we enjoyed the show with real-time captions. Performers included Vince Gill, Alison Krauss, Rhonda Vincent and several others. Associated Press picked up the story about the captioning and the news spread across the country.



Country music legend Vince Gill and real-time captioning

It was fun to be a part of history, satisfying to have communication access, and rewarding to know that the work of our organization and others is paying off. Thanks to the Grand Ole Opry for looking forward. We hope it continues.