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This letter is being posted on the ALSA
website in a continuing
effort to promote open communication
between your Board of Directors and the membership. It was felt
by the BOD that an explanation concerning
the decisions made regarding this year’s Grand
National Show and Regional Shows would be of interest to
ALSA members.
Your Board
of Directors, in an emergency meeting on July 16, put
forth great effort and spent many hours in two
separate marathon sessions to come up with a solution
that would benefit the largest number of members. The finances of
our association were also in the forefront of our
discussions. The
BOD unanimously voted to continue with this year’s
Grand National, in spite of the fact that the
potential loss for ALSA in holding the G N this year
could possibly
be in the tens of thousands of dollars if
we do not all pull together for the support of our
association.
The
current national economic climate with regard to gas
prices, and contractual guarantees to the Event Center
in Lincoln, contributed to our concern that there may not be
large enough participation to offset this loss.
The BOD felt that canceling the Grand
National Show or any of the Regional Shows this year
would be detrimental to the future of the organization
as a whole and was not an option.
Many members had already gone to great effort
and expense to qualify animals under the valid
assumption that there would be a National show, some
with reservations already made for that weekend in
Lincoln. By
the time the economic conditions were apparent, it was
simply too late in the show year to cancel. The only
way to keep our losses to a minimum this year was to
try to fill as many stalls as possible at both
Regional Shows and the Grand National.
Again, your BOD agonized over these
decisions, the result of which you have seen in the
posting of the new (for this year only) qualifying
requirements posted on the website.
It is
hoped that open entry to the Regional shows will
enable many to participate that, because of economics
or other obstacles, would have otherwise not have been
able to attend and thereby stimulating attendance in
years to come. Likewise,
hopefully a more relaxed requirement for Grand
National will produce greater participation and a
larger audience to experience
the excitement and celebration of the annual ALSA
Grand National Show of Champions. The
Grand National Show is indeed a grand finale to a
year of showing fantastic animals! We can all work together to make this work!
In the
end, this organization belongs to you, the members. Without the
exhibitors at the shows, large and small, there will
be no ALSA. Your
BOD is asking your involvement and help in making this
a strong, healthy organization.
We encourage all of you to participate as
fully as you are able in your area shows, your
Regionals, and the Grand National.
Attend the membership meeting at the Grand
National Show. If you have access to a computer, please utilize the
Discussion Board on the ALSA website.
If we all pull together to work toward
solutions to our most pressing problems, we can assure
ALSA’s success.
Sincerely,
on behalf
of your Board of Directors,
Mary Beth
McCormick
ALSA President
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