A Letter From Your National President

Active 20-30ians,

I am honored to be serving as your national president for 2010-11. Thank you again for a terrific installation in Santa Rosa, as well as the opportunity to lead this great organization.

Over the last year, our Active 20-30 national association board of directors, officers and the national office have worked hard to begin building a long-term strategy for growth in the number of clubs, members, foundation revenue, grants and planning. For this year, 2010-11, we have an opportunity to continue to build on our successes from last year, and build on our future.

I want to thank Immediate past president Evan Hershey for his leadership in promoting ideas and plans that promote growth in our organization. Last year, Active 20-30 United States and Canada was able to charter four clubs in Sebastopol, California, Albuquerque, New Mexico, VacaValley, California and Petaluma, California. Additionally, there was a net increase in the national association by 250 members, and for the first time in many years, our national foundation was able to send funding to help the children of Haiti, who were devastated by the earthquake in January 2010. We saw our trademarking issues being resolved which will benefit the local clubs in how Active 20-30 United States and Canada gets trademarked.

This year, our approach is going to be very similar to last year’s but with a more aggressive approach in chartering clubs and adding and retaining new members. The growth plan for clubs in 2010-11 is chartering 13 clubs, ranging from Boston on the east coast to Monterey Bay on the west coast. Gioia Hershey, president-elect of Redwood Empire #1029 has agreed to lead the New Charter Committee again for 2010-11, and she has an experienced and diverse committee assisting her in realizing this goal.

For new and retaining members, Keith Engel of Eugene #920 has agreed to lead this committee. Keith will have a committee who will be dedicated in working with the Past Active Liaison Chair Tony Cervo, a past president of Sacramento No.1, to identify members who went past active to try and generate interest in the organization, as well as work with existing clubs to proactively work to retain members.

Work to generate revenue for the foundation will take a long-term approach and immediate past president Evan Hershey has been, and will continue to work to find national corporate entities who can assist in providing funding for our foundation. The long term goal of the foundation is to provide funding for special projects and unanticipated events, as well as be used as a mechanism for matching funds for projects with local clubs.

During the national convention in Santa Rosa, a President’s Council was held to discuss with the current clubs presidents ideas and methods for chartering clubs, adding and retaining members, growing the foundation, and developing a strategic plan for the next five to ten years. It is my intent to hold another President’s Council next summer at the national convention in Albuquerque, and also work with several key stakeholders in the national organization to develop a strategic plan that can be discussed and adapted at the next President’s Council.

I am very excited by the opportunities Active 20-30 United States and Canada will encounter over the next year. We have a very enthusiastic group of individuals in the national organization who understand the importance of growing our organization, and also understand our dependence on each other to serve one another, as well as the children of our communities. I look forward to visiting your clubs this year, to gather ideas and share in our common experiences. We are a unique organization with a unique purpose and I hope you will put into the organization, as much as the organization can give you.

If you have an interest in serving on a national committee for 2010-11, please do not hesitate to contact me. We are in need for members who can bring forth great ideas and experience to better the organization. Specifically, we still need a chairperson for national project and grants, as well as members for the sponsorship committee. Any assistance will be greatly appreciated!
Thank you for putting your trust in me to serve the greatest service organization in the world.