I appreciate your well-thought thoughts, CAPS! I agree that you are better utilized as a Collindale board member, Heidi. However, encouraging Janie to be involved in this as much as she will is a good thing in my opinion. Janie will tell you "no" if she doesn't want to--although in a very nice way. :-)
I will have an update on suits at the meeting, and will probably want some input on suits and caps from all of you. For some reason, I have the meeting at 6:15 PM. Did I just write it down wrong?
Marlene On 3/1/2015 11:12 PM, RENEE OSTERGREN wrote:
Well stated, Lisa. Maybe one additional thing to add at the league level is around the city meet. That reminds me, I’ve communicated to Trish and she is going to share her notes with me to add to a binder. This next meeting cam up quickly - Heidi, do you want to try to touch base regarding timelines prior to Wednesday night? My apologies that Feb. got away from me.Renée Ostergren ~ enjoy the now ~On Mar 1, 2015, at 10:16 PM, Lisa Hubert <lisabhubert@xxxxxxxxx <mailto:lisabhubert@xxxxxxxxx>> wrote:I agree with your thoughts below, Heidi:1) We need you at Collindale this year rather than you being spread thin with league issues 2) A neutral person (i.e. Amy!) should take the reins. You're right that Collindale carries a past reputation. If we step back and look at what is needed at the league level, I come up with the following:1. A structured way to schedule meets 2. A way to communicate with all participating teams 3. A chain of command, sort of speak, to suggest and approve changesIs a formal board with by-laws necessary to accomplish this, or can it be simple?I am good with meeting this Wednesday at my house, 6:30. Sorry for the choppy thoughts! :) LisaOn Mar 1, 2015, at 10:29 AM, Andy and Heidi Mechtenberg <mechtenberg@xxxxxxxxxxx <mailto:mechtenberg@xxxxxxxxxxx>> wrote:Just a quick check to make sure everyone is still ok with meeting Wednesday at Lisa’s at 6:30. I will work on an agenda so if you have something you need on there – please let me know. A few conversations have happened in the last few days regarding more organization at the League level. It’s not much – in fact it’s proving really hard to overcome the inertia – but it’s a teeny start! Kyle from Willow Springs actually asked if I could get the ball rolling since his perception is that Amy is dragging her feet. (Why do I sound like the voice of reason? This really baffles me!) While it’s flattering, I have two very big concerns. 1. My first loyalty is the Collindale Team. I don’t feel like the work is done here and certainly not while we are two board members short. Additionally, my involvement with swimming will at most be 3 more years – more likely just 2. I cannot do both so need to ask myself and you all, what is in the best interest of the Collindale Swim team for the long term? 2.A board member from Collindale may not be the best leadership voice for the league right now. Under the Gentry’s, Collindale was maybe perceived as an aggressively competitive team. This may not have always been appreciated by other teams – I just don’t know. Some may have even been a little pleased with our “fall from grace”. Memories are long and I’m not sure enough time has passed for people to take direction from a Collindale representative. I come from the old guard Collindale, though was never vocal before now. However, is Amy pools the appropriate person we should all be looking to take direction from? Probably not. (Oddly, she has asked Kyle not to send out any more league-wide e-mails with is opinion since essentially he is her employee and thus could be perceived as the opinion of Splash Pools) I am really trying to encourage (push, shove) Janie Wagstaff to take on the role and take the initiative. I don’t know her well enough to know if this is her style. I still see her holding back. Her priority is more along the lines of officiating, but it does seem like teams are ready for a better method for scheduling meets first. I am trying to encourage to her start where she can gain the most traction first, then move on to better things. Anyway, I don’t want to take up much time at our meeting Wednesday with this, so I thought I would get some input from you through e-mail first. Your thoughts would be most, most helpful.-Heidi
