It has been a very active and extremely busy third quarter at the CU. The most obvious change is the four new people that have joined the ranks of the Executive and staff since April. It was with great regret that I accepted the resignation of Ted Brown from the Board of Directors. Ted had some health concerns that needed his undivided attention. I relied heavily on Ted to always bring a different perspective to all our discussions. His point of view generally hits an accord with a large number of our members and his important voice is missed around the meeting table. We wish Ted all the best and know that he will continue to offer his leadership at the local level in his own club and combine.
On a more positive note, we were fortunate to have had a large slate of candidates that ran in the previous election. The member that had accumulated the next highest vote total in that election was Jesse Vanderlaan. The BOD offered the remainder of Ted’s term to Jesse and he accepted. We welcomed Jesse to his first meeting on 11 May 2010, where he immediately offered valuable input and a fresh perspective to the decision making process. Welcome Jesse.
On the staffing front, we ran a competition to fill the vacancy for a part time office assistant to help Monik with the various administrative tasks associated with running the CU. The total number and overall quality of the applications for the position was amazing. It was a real struggle to short list down to 10 applicants to interview. In the end, we offered the position to Shannon Beadow. She will introduce herself to the membership elsewhere in this newsletter, so all that I will add is that we are extremely fortunate to find Shannon. She had recently moved to the area due to the relocation of her husband’s job, and brings with her a wealth of experience in related fields.
Another of the candidate’s that shone brightly in the competition process was Jane Coyle. Jane has a long time family connection to the Tillsonburg area and a wealth of experience in office administration. Jane agreed to accept a contract position to help out with overflow work and as back-up to both Shannon and Monik for vacation and other absences. Again, Jane is going to introduce herself, so just let me say that I believe that the office now has an extremely experienced and talented staff, which leaves us in an excellent position to meet any challenge the future may send our way.
We had another surprise in store as a result of the administrative assistant competition. We received an application from a talented young women who happened to live within walking distance of the head office. Naomi Armstrong scored very well on the administrative portion of the competition, but her credentials demonstrated another skill set. Naomi had graduated from Wilfred Laurier University with a specialized honours degree in animal behaviour. She had excellent work experience in both promotions and working with youth groups. She also has amazing computer skills and a keen interest in the scientific and behavioural aspects of the homing pigeon and the people that race them.
So as not to lose the chance of having Naomi apply her talents for the betterment of the Canadian Racing Pigeon Union, the BOD devised a plan to create and fund the position of Special Events Coordinator. We were able to offer this position to Naomi, which she accepted. You will read more about Naomi and the work she is leading in other parts of the newsletter. On a personal note, I believe this to be the most exciting and progressive step that the CU has taken since my first involvement way back in 1967.
In other news, the CU has committed to sponsoring a 10 X 10 booth at the International Plowing Match this year. The project is being coordinated and spearheaded by Steve Walsh of the Tillsonburg RPC. He is looking for help from fellow members of the South Western Ontario Association of Racing Pigeon Clubs. From the plans that Steve has shared with us to date, I am confident that we are going to see an excellent exhibit that will garner much needed positive exposure for our sport. Thanks for taking this on Steve. It is a great example of the depth of talent we have within the ranks of our membership.
Steve has also been serving the membership in other ways this year. Steve recently retired from the OPP as a senior manager and the Secretary/Treasurer of the Commissioned Officers Association. At my request, he conducted an operational review of the CU which resulted in a very professional and in-depth report, which is posted on the website. It has provided the BOD with a much needed and overdue look at the policies and practices of the organization. One of the more urgent recommendations of the report was a complete review of the CU Constitution and rules. These had not been formally reviewed in total since incorporation in 1944. Steve has volunteered, with the assistance of the BOD and legal counsel, to conduct this review. It is hoped that the results will be available for approval by the membership at the annual general meeting in Stafford on 09 OCT 2010.
Another big event in this business quarter was a full day strategic planning workshop held on 18 APR 2010. Each elected director and Monik shared their personal vision of the role of the CU and the short term and long term issues that we need to be working on as priorities. This workshop laid the ground work for the development of a five year business plan. It was a great beginning, but much more work, including membership feedback, is required.
The CU held a joint fundraising auction with the Ladies Auxiliary to create a war chest for the newly formatted annual convention to be held on DEC 2nd, 3rd and 4th 2011 in Niagara Falls. Thanks to the support of our sponsors, the Canadian International One Loft Race, ChoicePigeon.com and several members donating birds, we were able to raise over $7000 clear profit. It was a great event and a great day. Thanks to everyone that participated.
A few other items that have occurred since my last message:
- We have added a nice collection of books to the store from Silvio Mattacchione Publishing. Make sure you check them out;
- Monik is working with Shannon to hire a contract employee through Service Canada to complete the CU conversion from paper based to electronic filing. The salary of this position is paid for by the Federal Government; and
- Jim Jenner has been consulting with the CU regarding his newest video. It promises to be a real eye opener and a promotional bonanza.
I am looking forward to seeing everyone at the Stratford Convention. Until then, keep them flying.
Mike van der Jagt