The month of March has been another busy one for me. It hit a spike mid-month. In fact, on March 15th I found myself in an interesting situation. Two of the local non-profit organizations I have been involved with had AGMs scheduled on that date. While I have been able to juggle attendance at the meetings of both groups as one is an afternoon meeting and the other takes place in the evening, it does make for a busy day for me once every month.
The first group, which focuses on a local ghost townsite, the Granite Creek Preservation Society (www.GraniteCreekBC.ca), I have been a part of since its inception. In fact, when I helped form the group I suggested the head executive position be called Chairman rather than President. That was roughly at the time I was nominated and elected to that position. I’ve held many seats in local non-profits, and usually President or Vice President so I just wanted to shake it up a little and go with the term ‘Chair.’
The afternoon AGM (Annual General Meeting) went well and I was returned to the Chair for another term. The position is far from difficult in my mind as I have a solid Board of Directors around the table and we all work very well together. I often joke about having the main role of “steering the ship” while everyone else does most of the hard work. I know that’s not entirely true, but with a good board it really does make the Chair’s job much easier.
The second group, the Princeton & District Museum & Archives Society (www.PrincetonMuseum.org), I have a much longer history with. About 15 or so years ago I volunteered Sunday afternoons at the local Museum. Over the years I owned a local newspaper I spent many hours in the building either researching stories or taking photos of activities for stories. Last year I was elected as a Director to the Museum board.
The evening AGM also went well. Only this time around I was elected President of the Society. The Nomination Committee more or less surprised me with their recommendation and they assured me that should I get elected to the local Town Council in October, there was a plan in place to fill the seat should I have to vacate it for civic politics. I have been active in a couple of committees within the Museum Board and I have a good grasp of what they are doing.
March 15th turned out to be a rather interesting day for me. I’m very happy to still be involved in two very hard-working local non-profit groups. Both of them have accomplished a great deal in the past year and past few years. As a result I am not looking at conducting any major changes outside of the normal phases either group will encounter. I’m just a little amazed and somewhat humbled by the fact that these volunteer groups have so much trust and faith in me.
This leads me to my point. I am a firm believer that the cultural fabric of any community – big or small – is the responsibility of local residents to build, preserve and share. This requires volunteers stepping up and getting involved in various capacities. I have been a volunteer for many decades. Although I have had many frustrations along the way, I have also learned a lot about myself and others through volunteering. If you haven’t already done so, give some of your time back to your community. It’ll do you and your neighbours some good!
The first group, which focuses on a local ghost townsite, the Granite Creek Preservation Society (www.GraniteCreekBC.ca), I have been a part of since its inception. In fact, when I helped form the group I suggested the head executive position be called Chairman rather than President. That was roughly at the time I was nominated and elected to that position. I’ve held many seats in local non-profits, and usually President or Vice President so I just wanted to shake it up a little and go with the term ‘Chair.’
The afternoon AGM (Annual General Meeting) went well and I was returned to the Chair for another term. The position is far from difficult in my mind as I have a solid Board of Directors around the table and we all work very well together. I often joke about having the main role of “steering the ship” while everyone else does most of the hard work. I know that’s not entirely true, but with a good board it really does make the Chair’s job much easier.
The second group, the Princeton & District Museum & Archives Society (www.PrincetonMuseum.org), I have a much longer history with. About 15 or so years ago I volunteered Sunday afternoons at the local Museum. Over the years I owned a local newspaper I spent many hours in the building either researching stories or taking photos of activities for stories. Last year I was elected as a Director to the Museum board.
The evening AGM also went well. Only this time around I was elected President of the Society. The Nomination Committee more or less surprised me with their recommendation and they assured me that should I get elected to the local Town Council in October, there was a plan in place to fill the seat should I have to vacate it for civic politics. I have been active in a couple of committees within the Museum Board and I have a good grasp of what they are doing.
March 15th turned out to be a rather interesting day for me. I’m very happy to still be involved in two very hard-working local non-profit groups. Both of them have accomplished a great deal in the past year and past few years. As a result I am not looking at conducting any major changes outside of the normal phases either group will encounter. I’m just a little amazed and somewhat humbled by the fact that these volunteer groups have so much trust and faith in me.
This leads me to my point. I am a firm believer that the cultural fabric of any community – big or small – is the responsibility of local residents to build, preserve and share. This requires volunteers stepping up and getting involved in various capacities. I have been a volunteer for many decades. Although I have had many frustrations along the way, I have also learned a lot about myself and others through volunteering. If you haven’t already done so, give some of your time back to your community. It’ll do you and your neighbours some good!
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