I've been privileged to attend almost every DrupalCon since Barcelona in 2007. I missed Paris in 2009, but I had a good excuse - my wife was due to give birth to our first child around the same time.

The relocation of the Commerce Guys headquarters to Paris has given me plenty of time to catch up on the missed sightseeing, but I still need to figure out how to get to Sydney after missing that one.

Without access to those hundreds of Drupal developers and enthusiasts in 2007, I never would have known anyone was even using Ubercart. I didn't know how to engage other developers remotely (my early forays into IRC were similar to webchick's, I believe), and there wasn't much going on in Louisville, KY where I called home. Meeting others in the Drupal community, learning from my peers, and being mentored directly by many of the same has grown me personally and professionally in ways I never would have expected.

That's why I'm excited about the opportunity to travel to Bogotá, Colombia for the first DrupalCon in Latin America, February 10-12. I can't wait to hear the keynotes from both Dries and Larry, two of my Drupal heroes, and to learn more about the latest developments in Drupal 8 core and contributed modules.

I'll personally be addressing two topics: Drupal Commerce 2.x for Drupal 8 (on behalf of bojanz) and growing a Drupal based product business. I also look forward to the conversations, shared meals, and sprints that make the conference so rewarding.

I strongly encourage you to come if you're in a position to do so!

With the help of Carlos Ospina, I've recorded a personal invitation in Spanish that I trust doesn't have me saying anything embarrassing. I'm sure my Spanish will be better for at least a week after spending time at the conference.