On January 22, 2015, the long awaited and much anticipated AGM (Annual General Meeting) of the CRCA and Chestermere Agricultural Society was held. Originally scheduled to be held in December, it was postponed due to two board members of the CRCA having deaths in the family and it was then rescheduled.
Over the course of the last several months, there has been no shortage of rumours, accusations, opinions and stuff far from the truth making its way through the city and social media. It was the hopes of many that the AGM would finally provide some clarity on all aspects of the situation and get a plan created for the moving forward of the Chestermere Rec Centre that is so important to our community.
In almost a David vs. Goliath situation, at first glance, this meeting could very well have been seen as that. As the main hall filled with close to 200 passionate residents, several representatives of Rocky View County and yes, even some members of the Chestermere RCMP – the three members of the CRCA board and Mr. Kelsey Johnson who was invited to chair the meeting, were the sole occupants at the front table.
President of the CRCA Board, Brian Stamler, had this to say about how he felt the meeting went, “I definitely feel better. I was very impressed by Kelsey Johnson, who acted as Chairman, and the manner in which he allowed feelings to be expressed, questions to be answered and overall kept the meeting very professional. The biggest plus that I saw was that about 150 people came out to discuss their organization. They care!! And I stress “their organization” because the CRCA does not belong to Rocky View County or the City of Chestermere, the facility is owned by the members. For the most part there was great respect shown by all parties who wanted to share their thoughts and to get their questions answered. I believe the membership have a little better understanding of the Board’s challenges over the past 13 months.”
Although time spent in conflict is rarely productive, the problems going on between the CRCA and Rocky View County did make Chestermere residents and CRCA membership holders, stop and educate themselves on the situation. To read the bylaws and do their homework – and then drove them to attend this pivotal meeting.
At the very start of the meeting, it was obvious that attendees were there for the greater good. However dramatic, passionate and sometimes heated it may have seemed, residents were there to protect and save their rec centre. It had been the original purpose of this meeting to nominate and elect a new board. However, it was quickly suggested that instead of going that route, that an election committee be organized instead. Doing this would allow for voting members to get to learn about those wishing to put their name forward for a board seat.
“I think the election committee is a great idea. This will allow for the member’s to be better informed and provide better background information about who they want to lead the organization going forward. It was also great to see a number of people step up to serve on that committee”, said Stamler.
