NATCHEZ &8212; The &8220;Lookin&8217; to the Future&8221; conference, today through Friday, is one of the most challenging the Natchez Convention Center staff hosts, said Walter Tipton, director of tourism for the city.

For Natchez businesses, it is one of the most exciting, as the 400 conferees come for three days. Only one meal, the Friday luncheon, is a planned meal at the Convention Center.

Restaurants should be prepared for the extra people, Tipton said, as they are among the businesses asked to donate door prizes.

&8220;They try to give out the door prizes at the very beginning of the conference,&8221; Tipton said.

The door prizes serve two functions &8212; to get the conferees to the restaurants early in their stay and to let the restaurant owners know about the conference.

For Susannah Cherney, executive director of Southern Christian Services for Children and Youth, the Natchez Convention Center simply works well for the convention her agency sponsors.

&8220;The best thing about coming to Natchez is how the Convention Center works for us,&8221; she said. &8220;I mean both the facility and the staff.&8221;

People who attend the conference enjoy Natchez hospitality, too. &8220;We love the restaurants in Natchez,&8221; she said. &8220;People are very hospitable.&8221;

For two consecutive years, the conference met in Natchez; last year, it went to Vicksburg.

&8220;We&8217;re kind of parked in Natchez now,&8221; Cherney said.