President’s Message – May/June 2007

The year end financials for NWSSA are complete. If any of you would like a copy of our Profit and Loss statement, contact me at: macvis@gorge.net or 541-298-1012.

In April, your Board of Directors held a working retreat to discuss the goals of our organization and our roles as a working board. This is somewhat of a departure from the past where the BOD essentially functioned as a managing committee to set policy, but did not pursue an active role in the operations of NWSSA.

We have grown throughout the years and many have said that we need to have a paid staff. Wonderful idea however, we cannot afford to pay for the kind of expertise, knowledge and heart that our volunteers (including most of our current board members) are currently providing.

We will have elections this July at Camp B. Two members are up for re-election and two others have stepped up to become working board members. I have asked the current members of the board to accept more volunteer jobs. I think this would shift our focus toward fulfilling our mission of outreach to the communities we live in, to provide consistent publicity and marketing and to work toward diversified fund raising activities. Some of our board members already run symposiums and serve as officers, but I think other members could do more.

The model of a working Board is consistent with a small organization that cannot afford paid staff members, but requires workers for a vibrant and well run organization. We are not the same group that got together 20 years ago, we have matured and now we need to refocus. And gosh, I just don’t think it will be difficult at all to find BOD members to give some of their time and energy to NWSSA. After all, our association has done such a lot for all of us.

First the hand tool retreat at Pack Forest then the big one at Camp B – the season is upon us!

-Elaine