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BY ROBIN GINER
Boxes, boxes, boxes … seems like OWAA headquarters has been mired in boxes for months now. First, with the moving of the office from the Hickory Trail condo to our new digs on Oak Street. And now, with piles of boxes and materials to be transported to our 84th annual conference in Salt Lake City, Utah, in just a few days.
We’re hoping to send conference attendees home with boxes, or loads anyhow, of useful information to help them better their craft and make even more money for themselves in the coming year. You’ve been reading for months about the agenda and the hands-on sessions, the pre- and post-conference trip opportunities, and the excellent facilities awaiting us at Snowbird. Now it’s time for you to pack your bags and meet us there!
Headquarters staff will be loading boxes into a Suburban and taking an OWAA road trip down to Salt Lake, where we’ll begin a couple days of unpacking and preparing to receive our members and guests for a truly unique summer experience, complete with snow and alpine beauty to help them beat the mid-July heat.
While we’re on site, OWAA’s Executive Committee and Board will meet for their series of annual meetings on July 7, 8 and 11.
Among the items to be discussed are the revisions to the new Excellence in Craft contests and rules. Those revised rules will be printed in the September quarterly issue of Outdoors Unlimited, so start thinking about what work you want to enter for next year’s contests. Thank you to those who have weighed in on the conversation by responding to the proposed revisions as printed in the June issue of OU. And be sure to lend your voice to the discussion by attending the membership meeting on Sunday, July 10, immediately following breakfast.
The Board will also look to adopt an updated strategic plan for the organization to help us steer headquarters’ work and build a better OWAA; elect a new treasurer and say goodbye and thank you to Kris Thoemke for three years of service; and welcome new and returning Board members Bruce Cochran, Randy Zellers and Mary Nickum, as they take their seats for three-year terms. There’s much for the Board to discuss this year, and you can find the entire agenda on page 11. Members are welcome to attend the meetings as silent observers.
As we continue packing boxes, we look forward to seeing our members at Snowbird in just a few days. Be sure to bring a light jacket along – the summer heat will not be following us up the mountain. And for those who are unable to join us this year, you’ll find coverage of the conference in the September issue of OU, along with downloadable videos of select sessions in the coming weeks at www.owaa.org.
Have a safe Fourth of July and a warm and wonderful summer. ♦
—OWAA Executive Director Robin Giner, rginer@owaa.org
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Thinking inside the box
