President’s Message
Gary Fader
And so, another era in the history of the Woodworkers Guild of Georgia begins with a new president and a new Board of Directors. I am pleased to report that all Board positions are filled and the talent and dedication of every Board member is quite impressive. That’s not to say each Guild member should simply defer to the Board for all ideas and activities. We are all interested in your continuous input and feedback, and take every suggestion seriously.
I feel very honored at being selected to head up the Guild for the coming year. I’ve been a member since 2012, and served as your programs co-chairman, treasurer, and vice president. I’m an engineer by education and have served in various management positions within the nuclear power industry. I got started in woodworking in 7th grade wood shop and some years later, my first major project was making furniture for my two sons from pine boards and 2 by 4s. I’m pleased to say that this furniture has been passed down to my grandsons. Work commitments took priority for many years, but as I approached retirement my termite tendencies took on a renewed interest. I finished out a basement shop, with nearly all tools on wheels because of space limitations. So now I focus on making various toys, boxes, clocks, and some furniture. As you might have heard, I’m partial to power tools, and have jokingly said that even my hand planes have motors on them.
I think many things about the Guild are going well, for example: we continue to get positive feedback on the programs presented at our meetings and attendance is consistently good, we have improved the camera coverage of the presentations, our main seminars have benefited from excellent presenters, our newsletter is published on time each month with very high quality, and our patron sponsors have been most supportive. So, will you see any changes in the future? Maybe, as I wrestle with issues that I think need attention. Here’s my short list of concerns:
• Our Board position descriptions are about 5 years old and many do not reflect current practices. This makes it difficult for a new Board member to know their job. (These are currently under revision.)
• Our membership is aging and declining. We need to reach out to a broad spectrum of potential members so our programs can continue and benefit others.
• Our community involvement, specially regarding charitable projects has not been an area of focus. Although somewhat addressed last year by making 100 toys for children in Scottish Rite Hospital and making tables for returning veterans, we could do much more and have a great time doing it.
• Our Scholarship program is hardly used, although it makes up a large portion of our annual budget. What’s up with that?
• Our policy on Membership Privileges specifies that we have a mentoring program, but it’s not well defined or implemented. Should we do more in this area?
• Our website has come a long way in development, but still could be better and more useful.
That’s probably enough to chew on for awhile, although my full list has other items. As I said above, let me and the Board members know your thoughts and suggestions on these issues, and if asked to participate in solutions, I hope you’ll be supportive.