Changing of the Guard- Election Committee |
To: FTR Members From: Jim Wilder, Outgoing Chairman, Election Committee Subject: How The FTR Works and How Your Vote Matters For the last two years, I have been the Chairman of the Election Committee. It has been a good way for me to do my part for what I consider to be an excellent, family oriented, racing organization - the FTR. As is often the case, volunteering has also taught me a lot about how the FTR works and how we get things done. Doing this job and participating in many of the official FTR meetings, I have come to realize that many folks are not very clear about how decisions are made. This can be very frustrating for members, so I thought I would take some time to write this message to help folks understand how this works and to reiterate the importance of their vote for officers every year. As with any major organization, we can't just take a vote of all the members every time a decision needs to be made. Can you imagine the chaos? This is why organizations elect officers as their representatives to make important decisions and create committees to get various jobs done. Ideally, these volunteers are trusted people who are qualified to make decisions in the best interests of the membership. This requires quite a commitment of time and energy by these elected officers, all of whom have to work to support their families as well. They must take time to understand all the details and issues so they can make the tough decisions. Of course, that does not guarantee that every decision will be flawless, but the work gets done and the members continue to enjoy the benefits. We expect a lot from these officials. Have you ever had a situation where you questioned the decisions of an elected official? Perhaps it was a bad decision, or perhaps you did not get the whole story. Whatever the case, the membership must support the decisions made by their elected official. Otherwise the trust is lost and the organization cannot succeed. Of course there are exceptions such as unethical conduct, but in general, elected FTR officials need to be supported by the members, even when their decision is not the one you might have made. The key is to elect the best possible officers to the position, then trust them to do the job. If you decide you don't like the way an official is running things, vote for a different person. The better the elected officials, the better the decisions, and the better our organization will become. Can you believe only 300 or so out of over 2,000 members voted in the last two elections? Later this year, Mike Presler will dust off the election box for your votes as he assumes the volunteer job of Chairman of the Election Committee. Please take a few minutes to evaluate the candidates. Ask some probing questions. Look at their experiences, not just how fast they ride or where they're from. If we all take the time to consider the candidates and cast our votes, we will continue to keep the FTR strong. |