The 12th Biennial Convention is just a few months away and, by all indications, it will be one of our best. We have three keynote speakers scheduled for our general sessions, as well as, some wonderful "pep rally" events to get your marketing and promotional blood flowing. Add to that the return of our great auctioneer Larry Brown and everyone is in for a fun, interesting experience. At our opening general session on Wednesday, our keynote speaker will be the nationally known fitness walker and motivation speaker Sara Donavon. Sara is also the founder of WalkSport, a new mall walking organization. Thursday's general session will bring you mystery writer JA Jance. JA Jance has included volkssporting and one of our own volkssporters, Hal Witter, in one of her books. She will also be signing some of her books for folks who would like to purchase a special remembrance of the convention. On Friday, our general session will feature an old friend of volkssporting, Rob Sweetgall. Rob, who has walked across the United States several times and spends his days promoting walking through our schools, will give us that final motivation pitch to encourage us to work even harder to renew The Spirit of Walking across the United States. Get your registrations in now. You will not want to miss this special biennial event. And, stay tuned to this column for more exciting news about the convention.
The long-promised, revised policy manual is included with this issue. Please review it and discuss it with your club leadership. These policies were developed by your Executive Council to provide a standard for all of us as we seek to give walkers quality, fun events.
Some important things to remember --
- You have all received a Delegate Selection and Proxy Designation form. Please complete your form and send it to the National Headquarters before June 15. This form is a legal requirement for certifying individuals who may vote at our membership meetings during the convention. Remember, verification of voting eligibility will not be made until after May 14, so you will not receive your copy of the verified form until after that day.
- May 14 is the magic day when the National Headquarters will review the status of all clubs to determine which ones are eligible to vote. This means that on that day your club must have no past due after-action reports or quarterly participation reports and no past due financial obligations. As a reminder, all charges are due thirty days after they are billed and become past due thirty days after the due date. We are currently reviewing the club accounts and will contact clubs that we are concerned about. We will also review the accounts on May 1 and immediately notify clubs that might be declared ineligible to vote.
- May 31 is the postmark deadline for submitting club applications for the 2000 Star Club Awards. These awards will be presented at the convention.
- The next issue of CHECKPOINT will be coming to you within the next couple of weeks and it will contain the proposed amendments to our Bylaws. These will be voted upon at the convention. Please review the changes so that you will be prepared to vote.
Thank you for helping us renew The Spirit of Walking across the United States as we begin our celebration of twenty-five years of volkssporting in this country.
WHAT DID THAT POLICY SAY???
Did you know that when you have a walking event, you must always have a 10 kilometer event? That's right. AVA Policy 5.01, II, 1 says "Regular Walking Events. Sponsoring clubs must offer at least one short and one medium distance at an event. Instead of a medium distance, clubs may allow participants to walk the same trail twice at no additional charge. They may also offer a long distance."
Along the Trail
Important information from Jackie Wilson, Director of Operations--Seasonal stamps must be returned to AVA Headquarters within 10 days after the event ends.
Also, New York's Ticonderoga 10/11-kilometer walk (YR1570, May 26 through September 30) was canceled. It should not have run in TAW. Please alert your members.
From Brandi Deemer, Special Projects Coordinator--Coming in May clubs can expect to receive a shipment of the new Why Walk brochure. Please replace your existing Why Walk brochures with these and distribute them with your AVA Spirit of Walking brochures.
Also, as we prepare to head to Bellevue for this year's convention please keep in mind the eight week deadline for all sponsorship requests. Since most of the AVA staff will be in Bellevue from June 24 through July 1, clubs which are holding walks in July will have to be sure to send all sponsorship requests by the first week of May in order to assure that their giveaways arrive on time. This is a busy time and I would greatly appreciate your cooperation.
On another note last month Kimberly Landry joined the New Balance Marketing Department. She will be handling all AVA promotions. She is also working on a system to develop a stronger relationship between AVA clubs and their local retailers. So be ready to see more retail involvement! This is great opportunity for our walkers to take advantage of their retailer's expertise. See you on the trail.
Please don't overlook Opportunities and the IVV World Report, which are both enclosed.
Last Updated: 1/17/02
© Copyright 1996 Wendy Bumgardner Clubs may reprint for club use.