Regional Council Message

Greetings to all members,

It is hard to believe how fast time has flown by since the Regional Assembly in March of this year. The Regional Council has been very busy undergoing a lot of new training to help lead the Branches into the future. In June of 2009 eight members of the Regional Council attended the International Assembly in Halifax, Nova Scotia, we received updates and new ideas on how to help the Branches continue to grow. We also got to participate in two different Community Involvement Events, the first was a Build a Bear event, where we were able to create a variety of stuffed animals to be given to children in the local Halifax area, the second event was a Playground Build for a local school. Before the playground build happened this school of 330 students only had four swings and a broken down basketball area to play with. When we left the school at 5:00 pm that day we left behind the following, a completely repainted sign at the front of the school, six soccer nets, planters and seating areas for the students, we built an outside educational class room, fixed and repainted the basketball court and backboards, paint hop-scotch areas, decorated the school fence with pictures from the students, moved two semi loads of mulch into the new playground area that had slides and swings and climbing tubes, swinging bridges and more. Over 275 Regional Council officers and spouses participated in leaving behind something that will not be forgotten soon and it was safe to say we each got something special out of this event.

In September of 2009 we went to Las Vegas, Nevada to receive comprehensive training in the New and Improved Liaison Program. Many of the Branches have already had multiple contacts with their new Liaison. Your new Liaison will be attending your election and installations as they occur in the upcoming months. Some of the Branches have already had their elections, I want to congratulate the outgoing officers and thank them for their time and effort, I know they will continue to be a source of information and guidance. I would also like to welcome the new Branch Officers and congratulate you and give you all the support you need from the Regional Council.

As you now know there is a new funding program for the Branches, it will become very important for the Branches to work with the Regional Council and their Liaison to ensure that the proper and timely funding of the Branch events happens. We have a lot of new staff members that are available to assist you and the Regional Council to make sure that your Branch begins to grow and prosper under this new plan. I had discussed this plan with all the Branch Presidents either when I visited your Branch or on a conference call with the Branch Presidents, as always I am here to listen to your problems and issues and help direct those issues to the proper Staff member for an answer.

In April of 2010 we will have a comprehensive training session for all Branch Officers. We will be breaking down into individual groups based on your office for specialized training. We will have group sessions for the purpose of training you on these new plans so that you can rejuvenate your Branch making it stronger, bigger and more prosperous. This is the beginning of the new Foresters, and we want your Branches to be part of it.

Our next Regional Council Meeting is November 21-22, 2009 in Columbus Indiana. We will be confirming the date for the Branch Officers Training session. Any Foresters members are invited to attend the Regional Council Meeting.

Mark A. Elias - Tri State Regional Council President