A proposal

[MCL]

Without placing any judgement on Tim and June's decision to quit as Chair, I do feel that the decision to halt the elections is unwise.

If the polls were allowed to continue, under the auspices of "admin", then the so-elected comittee could then elect a new chair from amongst their number. This would save valuable time. To terminate the current polls could be seen as being disrespectful to those who have already attained the required consent of the membership

So, T&J, may I respectfully and gently request that the polls continue? You may not wish to continue in your elected position, but there are others who have also been elected, who may wish to take up their mandate.


Also, I do hope June recovers speedily. One of the reasons I have done no caching over the August-September months is because I too have been quite ill and it's not nice.

[NattyBooshka]

I'd second that... we need an active committee as soon as possible.

Not sure whether they or us should elect a chairman from their numbers... either way it needs to be done ASAP.

[Chris n Maria]

First things first: I am sure we all wish June well and hope for a speedy recovery and Im sure Tim has much more to worry about now then petty squables over the placing of tupperware.

To be honest I hadn't read the offending threads for quite a while as I saw the part where T&J said that things were going on in the background and I thought it best to leave it to them for a while - after all that was what they were elected for and we knew they were good at. It was certainly the reason I nominated them and voted for them, not because they had some 'right' to the position having been founder members of GAGB, but rather they really were the best and most talented people to represent us. I am sure many are sadenned by their decision, as I am, as it looked for a while that we were on the verge of a new dawn, with petty squabbles behind us. Ho hum.

To agree with MCL I think it would be wise to allow elections to continue and create a representative voice for GAGB members. The sooner the better! The 2 (soon to be 3) existing members could carry on administering things and once all the elections are complete elect a chairman between them.

I know the GAGB servers are hosted by T&J so wether they want to continue to allow this is up to them.

Yet another sad day on the forums. :(
Chris

[John Stead]

I totally agree with MCL and endorse what NattyBooshka and Chris n Maria have said. If GAGB is to have any credibility the elections should proceed and the completed committee should elect a chairman. If it could be done I would also propose NattyBooshka to fill the vacancy (on the committee) caused by Tim & June's resignation.
Lest it be thought this is an anti TJ posting, I too would like to add my sympathy to Tim and June and wish June a speedy recovery.

[NattyBooshka]

Originally posted by jstead@Oct 3 2003, 09:23 AM
If it could be done I would also propose NattyBooshka to fill the vacancy (on the committee) caused by Tim & June's resignation.
I'm glad it can't be done... and I would decline it anyway.

I feel that my actions on here, however intended, have caused upset and I do not wish to add to that.

[Ashandes]

As a member I would like to see the GAGB continue and don't see any reason why it shouldn't. If the GAGB is to have any chance of long term survival surely it must be robust enough to survive committe members resigning.

However, I do think that those who choose to represent us should be able to deal with the "petty squabbles" and "ingrates" (not implying that the New Forest issues are petty, or that NattyBooshka are ingrates ;) ) The ability to deal with this kind of stuff is a vital one for anyone choosing the mantle of leadership.

I'm sorry to here that June is unwell, I hope she gets better soon. I'm glad they have decided to leave these forums up and hope they will continue to support the GAGB even if they don't feel they ca'tn continue as committe members. I know I am grateful for all the work they have done on behalf of Geocaching in this country.

[Tim and June]

Originally posted by MCL@Oct 3 2003, 01:26 AM
So, T&J, may I respectfully and gently request that the polls continue? You may not wish to continue in your elected position, but there are others who have also been elected, who may wish to take up their mandate.

We agree that you are right. In the heat of the moment, we could not have cared if the GAGB collapsed into oblivion. Before anyone thinks differently, the site going down was not deliberate and it was restored as soon as possible.

The elections will continue, for the committee.

There is one quandry however, Pharisee was the runner up for the chair, so I guess the position should be offered to him first.

Apologies for allowing my heart rule over my head, but that does not mean we will change our mind about our resignation.

We will ask the contacts we have made if they mind us passing their details on to whomever takes over.

Many thanks to all those who supported us in the past, we are sorry to let you all down now :(

[Chris n Maria]

Originally posted by Tim and June@Oct 3 2003, 11:29 AM
Many thanks to all those who supported us in the past, we are sorry to let you all down now.


I for one dont think you let us down and like many others think you have done us proud over the years.

Glad to see the elections continuing.

Chris

[Brenin Tegeingl]

Originally posted by Tim and June@Oct 3 2003, 11:29 AM



There is one quandary however, Pharisee was the runner up for the chair, so I guess the position should be offered to him first.

Apologies for allowing my heart rule over my head, but that does not mean we will change our mind about our resignation.

We will ask the contacts we have made if they mind us passing their details on to whomever takes over.


I for one agree that Pharisee should be offered the post of chairman! My thoughts and best wishes are with Tim and June, as one who looks after a partner with a long term illness, I know even a short term illness affecting one partner can debilitate both partners. So I wish June a speedy recovery, and thank both of them for all they have done for the geocaching community.
Dave- Mancunian Pyrocacher.

[Pharisee]

Originally posted by Mancunian+Oct 3 2003, 01:51 PM--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Mancunian @ Oct 3 2003, 01:51 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin--Tim and June@Oct 3 2003, 11:29 AM



There is one quandary however, Pharisee was the runner up for the chair, so I guess the position should be offered to him first.

Apologies for allowing my heart rule over my head, but that does not mean we will change our mind about our resignation.

We will ask the contacts we have made if they mind us passing their details on to whomever takes over.


I for one agree that Pharisee should be offered the post of chairman&#33; My thoughts and best wishes are with Tim and June, as one who looks after a partner with a long term illness, I know even a short term illness affecting one partner can debilitate both partners. So I wish June a speedy recovery, and thank both of them for all they have done for the geocaching community.
Dave- Mancunian Pyrocacher. [/b][/quote]
First let me wish June a speedy recovery from whatever ails her. I truly hope you’re ‘back on your feet’ again soon.

Guys, I stood for the Chairman’s position in the true and certain knowledge that I wouldn’t win. Somebody had to stand against T&J to make sure that there were no ‘well they were the only ones standing’ remarks afterwards. No one else seemed prepared to do so I did. I was absolutely staggered when I received more than one vote (mine). It was also with some reluctance and one or two ‘persuasive’ emails that I allowed my nomination to carried forward into the committee poll. There were one or two worrying moments there when I thought I might actually get elected. After the first round, I withdrew my nomination. It wasn’t ‘sour grapes’ because I hadn’t won or anything like that. T&J and one or two others knew the real reason and it has absolutely nothing to do with geocaching or the people concerned in it. The truth of the matter is that my wife and I have just separated after some fourteen years of marriage and right now, I just don’t think I could give the GAGB or any other organisation for that matter, the time, the attention or the dedication it needs. Sorry but that’s the way is, for now.

[The Wombles]

:( Firstly, I am very sad that T&J have decided to throw in the towel. They have played a major part in bringing the Association to this point and have undertaken much work behind the scenes. This particular episode has shown once again that there is a need for the purpose of the GAGB even if GAGB itself is unable to progress at the rate which everyone would like at this stage.

I hope T&J can still be persauded to change their minds. If we can&#39;t persaude T&J to stay on then we&#39;ll need to find another Chair in due course, but let&#39;s not rush into speculation about this and allow T&J time for a reflective decision. If they can&#39;t be persauded back by the planned end of the committee election then the elected committee will have to discuss how to proceed.

Whatever happens as a result of this debate, it is essential that the elections continue so that the GAGB can start to operate as a properly formed organisation. I would ask everyone who is interested in the success of GAGB to wait for the election of a committee before throwing any more bricks to avoid the danger of a Still Birth.

[paul.blitz]

Originally posted by The Wombles@Oct 3 2003, 07:57 PM
:( Firstly, I am very sad that T&J have decided to throw in the towel. They have played a major part in bringing the Association to this point and have undertaken much work behind the scenes. This particular episode has shown once again that there is a need for the purpose of the GAGB even if GAGB itself is unable to progress at the rate which everyone would like at this stage.

I hope T&J can still be persauded to change their minds. If we can&#39;t persaude T&J to stay on then we&#39;ll need to find another Chair in due course, but let&#39;s not rush into speculation about this and allow T&J time for a reflective decision. If they can&#39;t be persauded back by the planned end of the committee election then the elected committee will have to discuss how to proceed.

Whatever happens as a result of this debate, it is essential that the elections continue so that the GAGB can start to operate as a properly formed organisation. I would ask everyone who is interested in the success of GAGB to wait for the election of a committee before throwing any more bricks to avoid the danger of a Still Birth.
I am not at all surprised that Tim & June have decided to step down: they have had to suffer so much ****. If its not one thing, then its another&#33; It doesn&#39;t seem to matter what they do, SOMEONE will decide to "take offense" in some way".

Personally, I would encourage Tim & June to NOT reconsider the position of Chairman. They need to have a break, and it will do us (ie the rest of GAGB) a lot of good to have to find someone else to lead the association.

Then, after they have had a good rest from the flak, maybe they will actually WANT to return to the GAGB in some way (or maybe not...)

I&#39;m rather surprised that some GAGB members haven&#39;t found, accidentally or otherwise, that they have problems logging into the site :unsure:

I will admit that I havn&#39;t been doing a lot of caching recently. At times I DO wonder why I continue, and I also question whether I REALLY want to be on the GAGB committee (and thus take the **** that wil inevitably go with the post). Well, I will be continuing caching, although maybe not as much as before, and I will still stand for election to the committee. Caching has made me appreciate our countryside a lot more, and I want others to have that same experience, and the only way I can help that is to help organise caching in the UK.


paul

[Ashandes]

Originally posted by paul.blitz@Oct 3 2003, 08:57 PM
I am not at all surprised that Tim & June have decided to step down: they have had to suffer so much ****. If its not one thing, then its another&#33; It doesn&#39;t seem to matter what they do, SOMEONE will decide to "take offense" in some way".

As someone who was happy to sign up as a member of the GAGB this is the attitude that is really concerning me at the moment.

*Any* decision that the GAGB committe makes is going to please some people and not please others. This hobby/sport is made up of a wide range of personalities and people who hold very different views of Geocaching. There will probably be dissent with every single decision that is made, because we are not all, will never be and should never be of one mind.

This is not a nescessarily a bad thing. But it is something that a committee must be prepared to deal with. I&#39;m very wary of the implication that any dissent is going to be characterised as taking offense for the sake of taking offense. Even worse I&#39;m wary the member of an organisation where disagreeing and stating my disagreement is characterised as "****" the committe has to deal with. I would hope that as an member my opinion was held in higher esteem that that.

I do realise that there was a lot of **** being slung back and forth while the GAGB was intially being discussed and set up. But I thought that had died down a fair bit.

NattyBooshka have been supportive members of the GAGB. This was obviously an emotive issue for them and maybe the pushed it a little more than they should have. Right or wrong they have apologised several times. But them objecting to the way a certain issue is being handled does not make them "ingrates", there opinion should not be looked at as "****" and "crap" the committee has t endure and put up with.

I don&#39;t know if there is other "****" and "crap" Tim and June and any others on the committe have to deal with or if all these posts are specifically making reference to NattyBooshka&#39;s stance on the new forest. If there is I think someone should say so, so people aren&#39;t given the impression that all this is directed at them, which is the feeling I get at the moment. If this is the case I&#39;m really not liking the way that some on the committe (or in the running to be on it) are chacterising the opinions of the members who elected them.

This is something I&#39;m really hoping someone can reassure me on. Because I would like to see an organisation like the GAGB survive and flourish.

edit: because I screwed up the quoting.... twice&#33;