February 1970
Robeson Planetarium – Jim Hooks (informal get-together)
The Southeastern Planetarium Association had its beginnings in February of 1970, when Jim Hooks invited a bunch of planetarium people to Lumberton, North Carolina for an informal get together. Their names had been given to him by planetarium sales representatives that had stopped by his facility. Twenty-seven people showed up from ten planetariums. The group felt so good about the meeting they decided to plan another. At the time, there was no regional association for the southeast part of the country, although the rest of the United States was covered and there was talk, among the planetarium community of a national organization, or even international, forming.