|
This has been an unusual year for the TWHBEA. Many
challenges were presented that altered the way
business is normally done. The hiring of a new
Executive Director, the DNA conversion, the long
overdue reconcilement of assets and liabilities,
evaluating and correcting our insurance coverage,
the NWHA lawsuit, the launch of the HIO Sanctioning
Plan, the election, and the budgeted revenue
shortfall clearly impacted this year’s operations.
However, in the face of all these challenges, we
still accomplished many of the goals that our
International Board of Directors had given us for
2007. Since commitments were made early in the
budget cycle, they could not be reversed when the
budgeted revenues did not materialize. Programs
like the Best of America by Horseback, the Walk This
Way Tour, the What-a-Horse sponsorship, and many
others continued as planned.
This budget shortfall and the legal expense
associated with a lawsuit have negatively impacted
our financial position. We made expense and staff
adjustments where we could and this enabled us to
stop the cash drain from operations, but we are
still subject to the legal fees associated with the
lawsuit. Our plan for 2008 is exciting and should
really play a role in revitalizing the interest in
our horse. As I looked at our goals and the cash
required to implement them, I became increasingly
concerned that we needed contingency funds and
further expense reductions.
To this end, I decided that the staff under the
leadership of Ms. Kristi Lane would be more than
qualified to accomplish the strategy for 2008. I
was also concerned that should our budgeted revenues
for 2008 be less than planned or the legal expenses
come in higher than planned, the Executive Committee
would not be in a position to cancel my contract due
to the cost associated with the cancellation
provisions. Therefore, I presented them with my
concerns and proposed that I not sign the extended
contract, and that I end the current one at the end
of December. The Committee unanimously accepted
this offer.
I have really enjoyed my role and my involvement
with the many volunteers who are behind the TWHBEA
operations. We have, in effect, many lifetimes of
knowledge and experience involved. There is so much
we can learn from each other. The success of this
breed is the result of the generosity and
determination of members and enthusiasts who,
despite the many demands on their time and
resources, give back to this industry. They do this
because of their love for the Tennessee Walking
Horse. Over the past year, I have come to learn
about the wide range of opinions we have for the
TWHBEA. There exists strong opinions, and there are
many things we don’t see eye to eye on. But there
is one thing that we can all agree on: A healthy
and growing industry is good for all of us.
Recently, there have been a lot of false and
misleading accusations and political maneuverings
that have not added value to our industry’s image.
These actions create an air of mistrust. I was
informed yesterday that two former employees of our
association were calling our International Board
members with incorrect information. If this is
true, then I am disappointed.
I also read that the Celebration recently hosted
equine leaders. Interestingly, the industry HIOs,
the TWHBEA, the WHOA and the WHTA were not invited.
Isn’t it time to unify this industry for the benefit
of our horse? Hopefully, after this Saturday’s
election, our industry counterparts will work
together with the TWHBEA toward restoring a healthy
and growing industry.
Again, thank you for including me in the TWH family,
and I wish each of you the best for this holiday
season. |
