Category: Congress 2013
New Developments in the LifeRing Election Contest
21 April 2013
There are now four seats open on the LifeRing Board of Directors. Troy Spears, a Modesto, CA, member. has announced his decision to step down from the BOD before the end of his term. This means that the current five candidates will be vying for four seats in the election that begins at the LifeRing Congress on June 2 in Denver. The fourth place finisher will serve out the rest of Troy’s term while the top three take the three full-term spots. Others may, of course, enter the race. We strongly urge anyone still considering running to let the Service Center know that they’re interested by May 15 – an email to service@lifering.org will suffice nicely and the office will respond with a simple form to fill out giving very basic information so that we know how to contact you.
We have a page on this website for use by candidates to make clear why they’re running and for interested members to make comments or ask questions. Four candidates are using the pages, which can be accessed at http://lifering.org/lifering-election-central/. Those four are Mahala Kephart, Jeff Koch, Joe Mott and Tim Reith. The other announced candidate, Bob Omohundro, has opted not to have his own page at this time but has been posting comments on the pages of the other candidates.
We’re having some technical problems with the comment system, so please bear with us — if your comment disappears into the ether, send a copy to cswhalley@lifering.org and he’ll be sure it gets posted ASAP
LifeRing Candidates, Members Invited to Share Views
10 April 2013
A page on this website has been created for candidates and members to give their view on the upcoming election for three Board Of Director seats. It is hoped that each candidate will submit a comment on that page giving what they consider their qualifications and relevant experience, or anything else they consider appropriate. And all members are invited to give their views and preferences. It is hoped that a degree of civility will be maintained.
So far, there are five announced candidates for the three open positions. Unofficially (the list of candidates could change before it is firmly set), the candidates are, in alphabetical order: Mahala K., Jeff K., Joe M., Bob O., and Tim R. Board members usually use their full names in public, but candidates are not required to do so. If candidates would like a snapshot to accompany their initial introduction, that can be arranged (I think).
So all are urged to check LifeRing Election Central to read about the candidates
Spring LifeRing Newsletter Published
19 March 2013
Carola Ziermann, editor, has published the newest LifeRing Newsletter. This quarter’s edition feature stories about the upcoming LifeRing Annual Meeting in Denver at the end of May, along with an explanation of proposed bylaw changes that will enable elected delegates to vote on candidates and issues raised at the LifeRing Congress, held on the last day of the Annual Meeting. Among other articles are a book review of “In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts” by Gabor Mate, the featured speaker at the Denver meeting. See the newsletter by clicking on this link: LifeRingNewsletter Spring 2013
2013 LifeRing Annual Meeting Taking Shape
02 March 2013
Denver, CO. May 31 to June 2. Be there!
Plans are well underway for the 2013 LifeRing Annual Meeting in Denver. Every year, LifeRing hosts a get-together to which all of our members are invited. It’s a social event, a learning experience, and a political gathering all at once.
Planning continues, but so far we know that the main speaker will be Gabor Mate, author of the bestselling In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction. Click HERE for details.
The whole weekend promises to be memorable. Great programs; warm companionship; maybe even a trip to the baseball stadium to see a game! Click HERE for more details, and check back — we’ll be adding more information as it becomes available.
Absentee Voting Plan to be Introduced to LifeRing
23 February 2013
For the past several months, a committee of the LifeRing Board of Directors has been working on a plan to bring more democracy to LifeRing. Starting at the 2013 Annual Meeting, in Denver from May 31 to June 2, we hope to implement a plan to allow absentee voting on elections to the BOD and proposed changes in the organization’s bylaws. As before, each LifeRing meeting will be entitled to choose a delegate to the annual LifeRing Congress. Until now, those delegates could only vote on things if they attended the Annual Meeting. From now on, though, we plan to have a system in place to allow delegates to have a vote, whether they attend or not. Our hope is that in addition to making LifeRing more democratic, this change will bring with it more interest and involvement in organization-wide matters.
Developing the logistics of the plan has not been particularly easy — there are all sorts of complications in setting up procedures that will be smooth, timely and easily understood. The committee is now ready to present its plan to the BOD and to the membership. You can read about some of the details of the plan HERE.