As I wrie my final Message from he Presiden I am reflecing on hese pas wo years as your Presiden. I has been an amazing journey for me personally. I have been coninually amazed by he generosiy and alen of our club members. I now I have said his many imes, bu one more…. THANK YOU! I have grown as a person because of his experience and I have been honored o serve NVPS.
My primary goal upon being eleced in 2009 was o nurure a small communiy feeling wihin an increasingly large membership. Each wee, sore I come early and smile as I fols arriving and looing forward o ing heir friends, sharing heir love of phoography, and ming happy o be . NVPS is much more han jus a phoography club. I has become a haven for a diverse group of people o feel a connecion.
Over he pas wo years we have accomplished a remendous amoun hans o he hard wor and willingness o embrace new ideas of so many people in our communiy. Fifeen o weny differen commiees were formed o ae dling ideas and mae hem happen. Many fols, boh board members and non-board members, oo heir experise and ime o help benefi he 274 members of NVPS.  Below, I will give a shor synopsis of he differen iniiaives ha came o fruiion over he pas wo years.

1. Member Suppor – Creaed guidance/policy on club’s acions o acnowledge member/member’s family in he even of illness or deah.
2. Tech Team – Creaed Tech eam o provide echnical suppor for every meeing.
3. EOY Awards – Developed crieria for adding named awards and defined curren and new named awards (redefined Joe Achison Award).  Added  Dave Carer Educaion Award and Disinguished Service Award  (beauiful lucie uprigh award); deleed oudaed named awards; changed some named awards.
4. Board of Direcors resrucuring – Resrucured he Board of Direcors o reduce he size and o creae reporing srucures o improve efficiency.
   • Changed board organizaion so ha i is no a fla srucure wih all posiions reporing o Presiden.  Board members, now over oher board and non-board posiions
   • Creaed and defined a new board posiion – VP Ops Posiion o be responsible for physical and echnical logisics of weely meeing and EOY Compeiion;
   • Combined board posiions (PSA and NVACC, daabase mgr wih oher posiions);
   • Eliminaed board posiions (Equip Mgr, Meadowlar Rep, PSA, NVACC, Daabase, Faciliies, Digial Compeiion);
5. Edied and amended Consiuion and By-Laws (added #5 above, and Compeiion Rules).
6. Procured on-sie sorage of equipmen a Dunn Loring eliminaing he need for equipmen manager o haul everyhing bac and forh each wee!!!!!
7. Projecion of prins – Increased membership experience for ing prins by seing up video cam o projec prins on he screen during compeiion and oher club funcions.
8. PayPal – Creaed accoun and provided member access o use PayPal for membership and oher fee collecions.
9. Welcoming Commiee – Creaed policy and guidance for a eam of voluneer members o welcome new and prospecive members o NVPS.
10. Members Resource Program – Creaed Members Resource Program o provide phoography suppor o members in a muliude of areas (camera, phooshop, ec.); on line (our websie) resources for educaion and s for info and phoographic services; aricles on phoography, ec.  Creaed non-board posiion of Members Resource Coordinaor o pu ogeher and coordinae a eam of member voluneers wih experise in various areas o suppor he iniiaives of he program.
11. Judge and Speaer Gifs – Changed from mugs o flash drives.
12. Compeiion Rules -Reooled caegories/classes o beer suppor member needs as well as oher minor changes in suppor of membership.
13. Members as Judges – Provided guidance for use of members as judges and added his o handboo.
14. Video Camera purchase.
15. Foofax and Web – Esablished guidelines for consisen inclusion of worshop and oher adverisemen in Foofax and Web. Many enhancemens o boh.

T are so many people o han and I could wrie five more pages jus haning people bu hen I would be afraid o leave someone ou. So le me han ALL he board members for he pas wo years and oher members ha have in any way given your ime o benefi all of us. THANK YOU!

T are several individuals ha I would lie o give special hans o who are eiher moving on or hey have been very inspiraional o me during my ime as Presiden:

Fred Chiy – During my erm, Fred has been my go-o person for geing hings done, giving me hisory on he club, doing deailed saisical analysis on many issues, serving on muliple commiees, and giving me hones advice, a shoulder o lean on and uncondiional suppor. Fred was one of he firs members ha I me and has served as a menor and cheerleader for me for boh my phoography and my personal leadership sills for more seven years. He has been a member since 1995 and has served on he board as Worshops Coordinaor and Treasurer for 7 years. He has coninually done worshops and forums for he club as well. Fred is moving o Hilon Head his summer and will be sorely missed!

Ed Fun – Long, long ime member, Pas Presiden and every board posiion, websie creaor,  Ed Fun has been my oher menor and go-o person since my sar in NVPS in 2004. Even hough Ed hasn’ been on he board in awhile, he coninues o serve NVPS by serving on commiees, aing care of all he End of Year award plaques, giving worshops and forums and never saying “no” o anyhing ased of him. He has made me grow as a phoographer and a person and I will be forever graeful of his indness and suppor.
Mary O’Neill – Mary has served in he VP of Programs posiion for hree years, and before ha she was Forums Coordinaor for wo years and Membership Coordinaor for one year. Despie her incredibly busy wor ravel schedule, she has provided NVPS wih unique, inspiring, educaional diverse and eneraining programs year afer year. Many of he programs ha Mary lined up are deeply imbedded in my memory. Mary will be aing a brea his year so please han her by sending her an email elling her which programs sood ou for you and why.

Sam Schaen – Sam has served in almos every posiion on he board including Presiden since 2004. For he pas four years, he has been our newsleer edior and one of he fols woring behind he scenes o sending hose blas emails and communicaions o he members. Our newsleer – Foofax, has received praise from many camera clubs. Sam is urning over he presses o Dan Ward nex year and will be serving in he very essenial VP Operaions posiion nex year. Sam has been a roc during my adminisraion. He is calm, analyical, and a wealh of nowledge and experience ha he generously shares wih everyone. He has served on many commiees, given many worshops and forums and willingly helps ou whenever ased.

Sco Musson – Sco has held mos posiions in he club, including Presiden, since 2005. He has been he Websie Manager since 2008, and he will be coninuing wih ha nex year wih he assisance of Mie Whalen. Those blas emails you’ve been geing have invisibly come from eiher he Websie Managers or Newsleer Ediors. They wor ogeher behind he scenes o eep you in he loop on all hings NVPS. Sco has also been a wonderful source of advice for me over he years in addiion o his many oher conribuions including muliple commiees, Porfolio Projec eam member, presener for worshops and forums, websie suppor for all funcions of he club including uploading images on he web for worshops, criiques, field rips, compeiions, ec. He also prins he cerificaes for EOY Compeiion.  To me, wo of Sco’s bigges and mos lasing conribuions o NVPS have been a comprehensive survey of members’ needs done several years ago and he creaion of he Board Members Handboo ha has been every board member’s and my bible.

Gayle Dennis – Gayle has been he face of NVPS for wo years as he Membership Coordinaor and responsible for creaing he Member Suppor guidance and Welcoming Commiee. She is he firs person new and prospecive members when hey wal in he door, and I believe she is responsible for our growing membership. Gayle will be sepping down from he Board nex year o pursue higher educaion.

Brian Payne – Brian is a “behind he scenes” guy. Many of you probably have no idea of wha Brian does because he does i so well and everyhing runs so smoohly. Brian has been equipmen manager, VP Compeiion, projecion operaor and mos recenly he firs VP of Operaions. The VP of Operaions was a new posiion ha was creaed a he end of las year ha is responsible for everyhing logisical and mechanical for he weely meeings and EOY compeiion. He and his Tech Team of Jeff Hancoc, Kip Holdridge, Jim Norman and Paul Uhler se all he equipmen up each wee mae sure i all wors smoohly and invisibly. He also coordinaes wih Andy Klein (Faciliies Coordinaor since before my ime) on issues wih our meeing space. I couldn’ be more pleased wih how well everyhing wen his year. Than you guys! Brian is aing a well deserved brea nex year.

Special hans also go o: Tom Bre, John Quigly, Willa and Bob Friedman, Georgee Grossman, Curis Gibbens, Tom Burden, Melanie Mars, Tuan Pham, Andy Klein, Gerry Abbo, Mahew Schmid, Marilyn Gaizband, Charloe DeFuria, Yulan Guo, Jeff Namadan, Bill Prosser, and Paul Simmons for all heir ime and experise in service of NVPS. I am sure we will coninue o mos of you in service of NVPS for many years o come.

I also wan o han all he members ha have educaed and inspired us by sharing heir images or experise on Members Gallery, Forums, or Worshops, Educaion and Training nighs as well as all he fols ha voluneered heir ime on he Welcoming Commiee and Members Resource Program.

Big hans o Bob Friedman for acceping he nominaion o become he nex Presiden of NVPS. I am sure you will be amazed by he suppor and generosiy of our members.

My final han you is o you ALL for a wonderful wo years. I have horoughly enjoyed your camaraderie, friendship and suppor.

Have a grea summer and eep on shooing,
Sandi Croan,
Pas Presiden NVPS