Greetings from OWAA headquarters! Things have been been pretty busy here so far this year. Membership and Conference Services Coordinator Jessica Pollett and I really appreciate all those who have helped us keep things running smoothly at headquarters while a search is being conducted for a new executive director.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR SEARCH UPDATE
As of press time, final candidate interviews are underway with the intent that a new executive director will begin their duties this April. An announcement will be posted online and sent via email, with a profile of the new director slated for publication in the June/ July issue of Outdoors Unlimited.
OWAA ELECTIONS
All Active, Senior-Active and Life members have the opportunity to weigh in on the future of OWAA. Turn to pages 16-19 to learn about the board candidates and ballot measures that you can vote on during the 2013 elections.
2013 SHOT SHOW
For the first time in recent years, OWAA held its winter board meeting in conjunction with the 2013 SHOT Show in Las Vegas. Aside from attending the quick and productive meeting, of which you can read the minutes on pages 20-21, Jessica and I joined several other board members in meeting with supporting group representatives and individual members who were also at SHOT. We also had the chance to reach out to prospective supporters and members and generally spread word of OWAA’s benefits to many industry folks who were in attendance.
MEMBERS PETITION FOR NEW SECTION
OWAA is always looking for ways to provide relevent benefits for its wide range of members. A group of public relations individuals petitioned the board to create a new section to represent a growing population of OWAA’s individual membership. More details about the new media relations section can be found on page 26.
OWAA WEBSITE IMPROVEMENTS
By the time this issue reaches your mailbox, we’ll have completed a restructuring of the way members-only content is organized on the OWAA website. Our hope is that this new members-only area will be easier to navigate, whether you are looking for the list of product discounts or the latest Outdoor Market posts. Along with this reorganization of content, we plan to take another look at the way the login/logout process works on our website to make sure it’s quick and easy for members and supporters to access this exclusive content.
EXCELLENCE IN CRAFT CONTESTS
Judges are busy poring over more than 600 entries ranging from magazine articles to photographs and blog posts. Headquarters will publicly announce the list of winners in June.
GET OUTSIDE AT THE 2013 OWAA CONFERENCE
Several new trips have been added to the already extensive list of pre- and post-conference trips available in September, before and after the Lake Placid, N.Y., conference. Check out owaa. org/2013conference for the latest news. ◊
— OWAA Communications and Publications Director,
Ashley Schroeder,
aschroeder@owaa.org
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