From the President-Elect

True to form the timing between the August 8 Board meeting and the publication of this column is a little out of whack. Marsha is off on vacation somewhere or another and I’m trying to fill in for her and that ain’t easy.

The ODS Board of Directors would like to extend a huge thank-you to John Craven for his many years of service to the organization. As many of you know, John is a past-President and has been the ODS treasurer for several years. Now John is “retiring” from his treasurer job and turning over is visor and ledger. We are indeed fortunate that Christopher Main is taking up the treasury reins (pun intended) effective September 1. Again, Thank You John for your dedication and also to you Christopher for stepping up.

Lots of stuff coming up in the next few months.

The ODS Championship and Open Show is coming up at DevonWood September 11-12. I know a lot of you are tired of hearing this but volunteers and sponsors are what allow these wonderful events to take place. Volunteers have already put in a tremendous amount of work getting it organized and we are thankful to all of you. There are many more hours of volunteer work needed on game day and there is still ample opportunity to participate. Join us, do a little work, have a little fun, and maybe get some inspiration.

The ODS League Show Championship will taking a new venue for 2010. It is moving south to the Jackson County EXPO in the Medford area for May 22-23. Mark your calendars. Attend some league shows and qualify for the championships. If you aren’t able to qualify for the championships for some reason, come on down anyway. There will be an open show going on simultaneously. Should be good fun at nice venue.

It is getting to be that time of year when thoughts turn towards year end awards. Nominations for USDF awards are due by the end of August which may have passed by the time you read this column. Never fear, there is a second chance. ODS sponsored award nominations are not due until October 31. Check the ODS website to view the awards and nomination procedures. Awards will be presented at an “awards affair” to be held in conjunction with the ODS annual General Membership Meeting and the Region 6 Mini-convention November 21-22. The exact location has not yet been determined but the committee is searching for a site near the Portland Airport. The committee is also lining up several interesting educational sessions for the Mini-convention.

The Mini-convention is, in part, preparation for representatives from Region 6 to get together before the USDF Convention the first week of December. ODS representatives Ed Miller. Rose Newman, Gaye McCabe, Francy Haupt and Marsha Williams (alternate) would love to get your input.

It will soon be time for election of new ODS Board members and Officers. There are two Director-at-Large seats and all four Regional Representative slots up for election this year. Start thinking about who you would like to represent you at ODS. More information on the nomination and election process will be coming soon.

ODS Board has given approval for conducting another “L” judge program beginning this fall. Francy Haupt will be heading up the effort. She is going to need a lot of help and support from the membership to pull it off. It is essential that we get new judges trained if the sport is to continue. I heard a statistic the other day about the percentage of current judges reaching retirement age. Short term memory being what it is, I don’t remember the exact number but it was shocking. Even if you don’t plan on becoming a judge, it is a very worthwhile program to participate it. You’ll get a lot of insight for your riding.

It is now easier than ever to keep up with what’s going on in ODS by tapping into the social networking scene. Corinne has set a Facebook Fan site and is happily twittering away on Twitter (whatever that means.) Check out the sites.

I’ve been squawking for a while now about reaching out beyond our own little community to the broader horse community. I’d like to take this opportunity to bring your attention to an organization established by the Humane Society called the Oregon Horse Welfare Council with a mission of “Saving Horses, Helping People.” Basically the Council was established because in these difficult economic times a large number of horses are being abused and abandoned on both public and private lands throughout the state. One of the activities of the Council has been the establishment of an “hay bank” in which donated hay is provided as temporary assistance to horse owners and rescue organizations for abandoned horses. For information about Oregon Horse Council please contact Scott Beckstead (sbeckstead@humanesociety.org) and for the ‘Hay Bank” please contact Linda Davis at edenfarm@charter.net.

See you all at the Championships.

Ed Miller