CHAIRPERSON’S REPORT - JULY 2006 - JUNE 2007
I am pleased to report on Rayjon’s
activities for last year. It has been the custom for John Barnfield to deliver
this report but the Board has been reorganized in the past year and I have been
given the “lucky” job of chairing the meetings of the Board. One of my duties
is to prepare the annual report outlining the activities of the Board in the
last year.
The Board meets as a whole on 5 occasions each year. One of the
meetings is held in a retreat format at the United Church Camp each year. At
that time we look to the future to see where the organization is headed. An executive committee meets in the 5 other
months to handle various items assigned to it by the Board and to prepare items
for Board consideration.
One of the main topics in this past year has been an effort to
develop a strategic plan for Rayjon for the next
number of years. We have been meeting, and will meet again in December, to set both
one year and five year goals for Rayjon in the area
of trips, projects, Member and Public Engagement activities and organizational
effectiveness. It is our hope that we can engage the entire board in this
effort in order to plan our future with measurable goals in mind. We would also
like to have a manual that will set out how the organization operates.
In the past year, we have attempted to share the duties which
John has been doing for a number of years. Accordingly, that is why I am
chairing the meetings and Debbie Austin is the vice chair with the idea that
she will be chairing the meetings next year. John continues to be the director of
trips and projects and is the spokesperson for Rayjon.
The Board thought he should have a title that reflects his important role so
the Board has informally named him as the President of Rayjon.
The Board is made up of a number of hard working individuals. It
is with regret that two of our members have left the Board. Elizabeth Soltis was the chair person of the Members and Public Engagement
Committee and as such she would enthusiastically engage the board and its membership
in various activities. Recently she has been hired by the United Nations in
their development program as a learning specialist. She is stationed in
Armando Notte has taken on a new role
and his title will be the Corporate Fund Raising Director as well as the
Finance Director. It is his intention to approach various corporations and
other organizations in and effort to raise funds from that section. His goal is
$100,000.00. The M&PE Committee do the community fund raising
from various activities and Armando will be seeking donations from these other
organizations.
New Office Location: The Board is presently looking at sharing
an office location with another non for profit organization in order to have a
permanent location for its administrative resources. There will be a meeting room for committees
and board meetings and some space to store various office materials and Rayjon will have a telephone and its name on a sign post
out front.
The Board is very grateful to all of the persons in the
community who participate in some way whether it be financially or with their
personal time and effort. It may not be easy to see here in
Peter
Westfall - Chairperson