Greetings to all INOA Members, Colleagues, and Supporters:

Welcome to your Iowa Narcotics Officers Association website. I hope that you will find it informative and visit often. Please do not hesitate to contact me or our webmaster directly if you have questions or suggestions for content improvement.

Our 3 rd Annual Training Conference was once again a huge success. The number of members that were able to attend was down just slightly. However, after learning of all the conflicting schools occurring during the same time frame, I think the number of conference attendees was truly a positive reflection of the support the Iowa Narcotics Officers Association has from its membership. And those who were able to attend the conference shared some tremendous training opportunities interspersed with many opportunities to meet new friends, reacquaint with old friends, and network with members from all over Iowa as well as Oklahoma and Illinois .

Since the Annual Training Conference, we have also presented two days of Regional training - “Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs” in July in Spencer (Region 1) and “Detecting Danger” in Decorah (Region 3) in October. Both were well attended and well received. The next Regional training opportunity will be “Ground Fighting for Law Enforcement”. No one likes to “go hands-on” but we’ve all found ourselves in a situation where we were “jumped” and taken down or had no other choice but to take someone else to the ground. When we find ourselves in such a position, we need to have the mental mindset and physical skills for the only acceptable outcome – WINNING! The training will be February 8 th, 2008 at Camp Dodge . See the Regional Training tab for further information and registrations. Make plans to attend!

As with any volunteer organization or association such as INOA, finding the necessary dollars to support the mission of INOA has always been a challenge. Our membership has quickly come to realize the multitude of benefits that participation in our association provides and you have all been extremely supportive. But with ever shrinking agency budgets and ever increasing demands for those precious few dollars available, we have continued to search for support for INOA and our mission. To that end, this past summer your INOA Board of Directors entered into discussions with Midwest Publishing, Inc. Early this fall, INOA contracted with Midwest Publishing, Inc to conduct a telephone campaign within the state. Some of your agencies may have already fielded inquiries about the campaign. Our hope is certainly to be able to continue to provide the very best possible training opportunities while alleviating some of the financial burden at the same time. And, to the citizens and businesses of this great state who have invested in the mission of INOA through your generous donations, welcome to this website and Thank You for your support!

Due to the numerous conflicts that arose last year, your INOA Board of Directors has moved the date of the 2008 INOA Training Conference up three weeks to April 1 st – 3 rd, 2008 . If you were with us in 2007, you know the conference was well worth your time. Now is the time to begin making plans to attend the 2008 INOA Training Conference. The Board of Directors has been working very hard and has an excellent conference planned. Keep checking this website for information and look for registration information early in January.

I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas. God bless you & yours and keep you safe until we meet again.

Sincerely,

Dave Henderson, President
Iowa Narcotics Officers Association