The 64th AGM has been and gone. Thanks to the 2010-11 committee for their great work running the club and to those members who made the effort to attend. For those of you who missed the AGM I have your names and numbers. The highlight was Sue Walsh being made a life member. Sue is one of the club’s staunchest supporters, renowned for her institutional knowledge, sensitivity and tact. If I had to pick a standout achievement it would be her organisation of the club’s 60th Anniversary celebrations which ran like clockwork and were greatly enjoyed by everyone who took part. Like any good tramper Sue brings her terrific endurance and determination to club administration. We are considering cloning her.
Most of the 2010-11 committee are staying on for another year. This is because they forgot to resign, were blackmailed, bribed, or they are excited about continuing to help run the club. As a new President who has not served on recent committees I’m relieved that we have a core group of practical, experienced and effective committee members prepared to stick around. We are also privileged to be keeping the services of key people who undertake club administration outside the committee either on various sub- committees or in stand alone roles. I would particularly like to thank Brain Goodwin, Mike Gilbert and Pete Gent who, with good grace and efficiency, take care of Lodge bookings, the club website and club gear respectively. These roles are tricky, time consuming and all too easy to take for granted.
We have managed to trick some new people into joining us on the committee! Sarah Young has taken over as newsletter editor, Richard Lardner is now officially Amanda’s helper (assistant chief guide), Jenny Beaumont is enjoying a second coming as a tea lady (co-social convenor), Helen Law is membership officer and Kate Cushing is now president of vice. Kate may need some assistance with this demanding role. We hope to bag a journal editor(s) shortly and co-opt some people to assist with promotion.
If the AGM had a lowlight then it was reading the annual report in preparation for attending it. The annual report indicates that the club, while in pretty good shape considering the current economic climate, is not as healthy as it could be. Our membership, attendance at Wednesday night slideshows, trip activity and Whakapapa lodge utilisation are all declining. Now some perspective is needed here. While they have not yet managed to walk on water I know for sure that we have an extremely dedicated, diligent and effective group of people running our club. We need to bear in mind that other tramping clubs, indeed other clubs in general are showing similar trends.
On the other hand, the stats suggest to me that as we go about the day to day business of running the club there is value in asking ourselves is there anything we can do differently, stop doing or anything extra we can do to make the club even better? The answer may be that we are doing everything we are capable of given the time and resources at our disposal but I don’t want to die wondering.
To paraphrase the club constitution, mostly we are trying to make sure that:
- We run lots of cool trips safely and smoothly
- club assets are well patronised and maintained – club vans, Paua hut, Ruapehu Lodge, tea ladies, trip leaders (yep we run training courses just for you)
- We engage, entertain and inform you guys about club stuff so you can contribute
- robust financial management and reporting happens
- we have good linkages and relationships with the wider outdoors community – outfits such as LanSAR, FMC, other tramping clubs.
To this end we will have some planning/brain storming sessions to gather up ideas and assess if any are implementable. This is not a new process, it is traditional for each new committee to “kick the tyres” to see if the club vehicle is still fit for purpose.
I will be reporting back to the membership on any special projects or areas for particular focus in the 2011-12 year. If you would like to help out or have any ideas or feedback on how the club should be run please get in touch with me or another committee member. We are very open to constructive criticism and new ways of doing things. Some of us bark but biting is not currently in fashion. Meantime if you come along on Wednesday nights please make the newbies feel welcome, some of them are tomorrow’s members.
If this all sounds a bit boring, difficult or serious don’t worry, the committee is not about to forget why we are here and neither should you. Most of us were out in the rain tramping, kayaking or cycling over Easter. Hopefully so were you.
Consider this poem by Brian Turner. He’s from Central Otago but obviously harbours a secret love for the Tararuas…
Place
Once in a while
you may come across a place
where everything
seems as close to perfection
as you will ever need.
And striving to be faultless
the air on its knees
holds the trees apart,
yet nothing is categorically
thus, or that, and before the dusk
mellows and fails
the light is like honey
on the stems of tussock grass,
and the shadows
are mauve birthmarks
on the hills.