So many great ideas were in the air at Preservation NC's 2009 Annual Conference! We wanted to preserve a few of them for posterity. Check out some of the PNC staff picks and suggest your own.

Click for a conference slideshow

Or see entire set at Flickr

Best of Conference 2009

• No preservation is possible, said New Bern Mayor Tom Bayliss, "until people learn to appreciate the old stuff."
  
• "Historic materials tell the story with clarity that only words can approximate." — Tim Reilly from the Old Friends Co. (He also made the memorable analogy "plaster: sheetrock :: lead crystal: mayonnaise jar.")
• Home should be personal was the message of author and architect Sarah Susanka's presentation. It is the perceived idea of the resale that makes them anonymous when they should be beautiful and individual. 
• "A rehabbed window plus a storm window performs 6% better than a replacement window (and you reduce waste) . . . Thirty percent of the windows replaced today are less than 10 years old" — Trinity Design-Build's Aaron Lubeck on the need to preserve original windows.
• Secretary of Cultural Resources Linda Carlisle sees the value of historic preservation across North Carolina, "in small towns, big cities, and everywhere in between. Preservation marks the future of those places."
• Get involved in local government, urged PNC's Ted Alexander at the panel discussion on small towns. Get on your town planning board, zoning commission, economic development committee and be a voice for preservation.
• "Telling the truth is part of the brave world of preservation" — Michelle Lanier on telling diverse stories about historic places.

Our 2009 Conference was as fun as it was informative, but it couldn't have happened without the support of our sponsors and the efforts of our hosts from the New Bern Preservation Foundation. Thanks also go out to our volunteers from UNC Chapel Hill and UNC Greensboro.

More information about the conference, including information about the Preservation Awards, is still available at www.presnc.org/Events/2009-Annual-Conference/.

Post your own Best of the Conference