As a reporter covering conferences from year to year, there are a number of people I look forward to seeing. Part of the fun of being at a meeting is catching up with conference buddies, some of whom are other reporters.

One fellow journalist that I've missed seeing at the last two captive conferences is Karen Cutts, publisher and managing editor of the Risk Retention Reporter. We've been attending some of the same conferences for the past eight or nine years.

Karen was absent from the Captive Insurance Companies Association conference in March and from the Vermont Captive Insurance Association conference earlier this month, for health reasons. She also has had to suspend a monthly column she writes for NU on risk retention groups.

I read a notice today in the latest Risk Retention Reporter that Karen is expected to remain on medical leave for an extended period of time. Meanwhile, her husband and business partner, James Cutts, has stepped in as publisher. Chris Dauer, whom I met at VCIA, is now working as staff writer for RRR, covering the East Coast, the notice said. Chris, in fact, was an employee at NU before I started here in 2000.

Here's something interesting that happened a couple of years ago at the CICA conference, when Karen and I were catching up at dinner in the hotel restaurant. Karen noticed that renowned White House correspondent Helen Thomas—who was to be keynote speaker the next day—had been seated at a table near ours. She suggested we say hello, so we stopped by on our way out and chatted with Helen for a few minutes. Helen was warm and charming, and interested in the fact that we were both reporters. She also asked some questions about captives and the insurance industry in general, which we were happy to answer.

And so I anticipate seeing Karen at the CICA conference in March—hopefully before then. I know Hugh Rosenbaum, retired principal for Towers Perrin in London, would also like to see here there. The two play musical instruments and have enjoyed practicing together over the years during conference down-time.

Karen, get well soon!

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