Election of officers, 2012 — nominations open
ABOUT THE ELECTION
When: The Chapter will hold board elections at our general meeting on Thursday January 26, 2012.
Positions to be elected: President, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer (These are the four elected officers on the chapter's board of directors. Other non-elected board members are appointed as described below.)
Term of service: Those elected will serve for two years, to January 2014
Eligibility for nomination: Anyone who is a current financial CNPS member, and who is affiliated with the San Gabriel Mountains Chapter.
Candidates: The candidates proposed by the nominating committee are:
President: Orchid Black
Vice-president: Mickey Long
Treasurer: Graham Bothwell
Secretary: Shelly Magier
See below for bigraphical information of these candidates.
How to nominate a candidate: The slate of candidates is not limited to the above names. To nominate an additional candidate, please send email to Terry Keller (tkeller@riohondo.edu). Nominations may also be made in person, up to and during the election meeting on January 26, 2012. Note: If you nominate someone other than yourself, please secure their consent in advance. The acceptance of nominations is at the discretion of the nominating committee.
Voting: Voting at the election meeting will be by show of hands. Those eligible to vote include current financial CNPS members affiliated with the San Gabriel Mountains Chapter who are present at the election meeting.
DESCRIPTION OF ELECTED POSITIONS
The duties/activities of the four elected officers are as follows:
President:
- Conduct board meetings
- Conduct general meetings
- Answer or delegate the answer to inquiries from the public, the CNPS state office, other public agencies, and environmental groups
- Represent the chapter to the public
- Provide guidance and focus
- Write occasionally for the newsletter
- Write an Annual Report each year
- Appoint, with elected board approval, chairs of committees and/or non-elected board members as needed to conduct the work of the chapter
Secretary:
- Take minutes of the actions of all meetings of the chapter board and distribute them to the board members before the next meeting
- Other relevant duties as may be assigned by the chapter board
Vice-president:
- Exercise the functions of the president during the absence of the president
- Serve as general support to the chapter president
- Other related duties as may be assigned by the chapter board
Treasurer:
- Keep and maintain adequate and correct accounts of the transactions of the chapter
- Deposit all monies in the name and to the credit of the chapter with such depositories as may be designated by the chapter board
- Report to the board an account of all monetary transactions and of the financial condition of the chapter
- Make reimbursements to members for expenses as agreed upon by the chapter board
- Maintain and submit to the state CNPS treasurer a complete inventory, as well as statements covering all transactions necessary to establish CNPS responsibility for California sales taxes and all other reports required by the state finance committee
- Maintain and conform with standing rules for treasurer activities
- Develop and maintain a budge for the chapter
NON-ELECTED BOARD POSITIONS
In addition to the above four elected positions, the chapter's board of directors includes a number of non-elected positions. These are appointed by the president with the concurrence of the elected board members. The number and nature of appointed board members may vary from time to time as needs change. At this time the appointed positions are:
Horticulture
Conservation
Rare plants
Hospitality
Membership and member services
Plant walks
Field trips
Newsletter editor
Newsletter distribution
Web site
Appointed board members may also include members-at-large. Multiple persons or a committee may be appointed to each position.
A list of all board members, both elected and appointed, is included in every issue of the chapter's newsletter, The Paintbrush. They are also listed on the Our Chapter page of this web site.
BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION ABOUT CANDIDATES
Orchid Black (candidate for president), is our Chapter Council Representative, and roamed barefoot through coastal sage scrub as a child. She became interested in California native horticulture through The Theodore Payne Foundation and later became a member of CNPS San Gabriel Mountains Chapter. She leads plant walks for the chapter and advises on native plants at the chapter plant sale. She became Program Chair for the chapter in 2003 and Chapter Council delegate in 2008. She is a member of the Strategic Alliance which has written the proposed Oak Woodland Management Plan for Los Angeles County. Orchid is a garden designer whose practice focuses on California native plants. Several of her gardens have been featured on the Theodore Payne Garden Tour. With the Friends of Washington Park, she has been active in the design and restoration of Washington Park in Pasadena, originally designed by Theodore Payne. She teaches Sustainable Garden Practice for UCLA Extension, and gives lectures and workshops on native horticulture throughout Southern California.
Mickey Long (Candidate for vice-president) retired from his position as Natural Areas Administrator over 19 Natural Areas and Wildflower Sanctuaries for the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation, based at Eaton Canyon Nature Center and worked in the Nature Centers system 39 years. He obtained his degree in Zoology from California State University Los Angeles and taught college environmental biology and human ecology courses and currently teaches bird identification, botany and ecology classes for the Nature Centers. Mickey's research interests are in ornithology, herpetology and botany. He continues to perform field biological assessments for environmental documents and serves on the County Regional Planning Department Significant Ecological Areas Technical Advisory Committee. He also is a Rare Plant Chair for the California Native Plant Society, San Gabriel Mountains Chapter, an Advisor for the Arroyos and Foothills Conservancy, and past President of the Pasadena Audubon Society.
Graham Bothwell (candidate for treasurer) has been treasurer of the chapter for the past six years. He also administers the chapter’s web site, and provides technical support for the chapter’s newsletter. He is a participant in the Lily Spring Area Study, a major chapter project studying flowering plants in the high country of the San Gabriel Mountains.
Shelly Magier (candidate for secretary) has been the chapter's secretary for the past five years.
