New guy: Michael Taylor

[WrongfulLeaf]

Hello everyone, my name is Michael Taylor and I recently attended and ran in the "elections" at the flea market. Since I was largely out voted on the new by-laws, and did not receive a spot on the board I will go to the message board to answer a few questions I have. Please take into consideration that I am very new to this club as stated above and at the meeting, and I am nowhere close to a lawyer.

1. The elections that were held tonight were for a group of 9 people to be on a board, and from those 9 people THEY would select the appropriate person to run each of the positions available.
This seems very counter productive, why not have an election for each position that will be held? The reason being that people that have expertise in certain areas might or might not get elected to the board but would be a better fit for that position.

2. People can hold a position and also be on a course committee?
This seems like a huge conflict of interest, that would be like the president of the US still holding a position in the senate or being a governor of a state while in office. Yes the example I gave is on a larger scale but it still is a conflict of interest.

3. Course committee without a coordinator?
This is just asking for trouble! Being that if there isn't a leader, it will be a he said she said situation all the time. Granted I know that there are multiple people running courses now but there is also a coordinator that leads those people (or should).

I think that there is one more but I forgot already. I would love to be on a course committee or ever multiple ones but being that I am new I feel my voice will go unheard, because that is how these by-laws are built. I raised my hand around 5 times and was ignored and not chosen to speak so I remained silent about these issues. If I am overstepping myself please let me know but I have to at least throw these out there because I really think it would help the organization grow (with newer players). Don't get me wrong I love that fact that we are applying for a real non profit organization, but I didn't agree with the above flaws (as I see it) so I said voted against them. Thanks for reading

[kidmills]

club members are able to speak,the question is will anybody listen

[kchippie]

1.  We trust that people selected are smart enough to pick the right people for the job
2.  Again we trust that people that sign up for CC are going to put the clubs best interest forward and not just theirs.
3.  We already work under these provisions,  The CC knows who to trust and to help out.  Giving the course committee the opportunity to select a coordinator

We are a tight nit family.  We love KC disc golf.  For a new person it may be rough.  If you prove yourself as someone who really cares about KC disc golf stick in there and the votes will come.  Again it is all about trust, we all have ideas and they should all be heard but we must prove ourselves as viable interest.  The people that were voted in tonight didn't get there by luck.  They have proven their merit over and over.  I have been with the club for 5 years and still don't know what going on.  You all know what I mean.  Please don't take this as rude but,,,These guys know what they are doing.

[discglover]

Did you nominate yourself to be elected?
 I don't recall seeing your name on the wall or your purpose statement.

[Tom]

Did the new by-kaws pass, and who are the officers? Are the CC's named yet, or does that happen later? 

[discglover]

Tell us from Pres. on down.

[john theiss]

Michael,  in order for our club to continue to be a strong and successful club, we depend upon new blood.  It is our goal to get new folks involved.  Having co-captins or teams of course coordinators would be one of the first steps into getting your name out there, it would allow you to meet old and new club members, learn more about the game, and to get your name out there in several circles of golfers that might not be that involved with the club.  I think the co captians is one of the best new ideas we have had in awhile.  It keeps more folks accountable and gives individuals a sense ownership and responsibility.  Being in charge of a course can feel like a large burden and sharing that responsibility  is needed in order to avoid burn out.  Other great ways to get involved are by volunteering for work days and by volunteering to help run events.  Hit up the work days and give back.  So here is an example of a newer member giving back. Van is relatively new to the club, however, in the last year or more, he has been all over the place volunteering his time.  Van has now become a face that more folks know becuase he is putting himself out there.  He is gaining the respect and of his peers and is building himself in the club for a leadership position.  It takes time Michael.  We want new ideas and new blood.  I can copy and paste for you to read in the private board section where i am expressing how i feel about new blood and how important it is to get outsiders opinions.  However, i have been wrong with certain people becuase i gave them the benefit of the doubt and believed in them too much and i really did not know them as a person.

It can be intimadating when folks seem to know everyone, but for many of us disc golf is not our only bond.  The KCFDC also gives so many of us a social outlet to meet and establish great friendships.  Michael, do not get discouraged.  Last night was a huge night for the KCFDC and certain members have more seniority and their voices will be heard first.  Its not that the leadership is not willing to listen but just trying to accomplish our agenda last night.  Thanks for sharing your ideas. Feel free to come to our meetings as they are open to the public.

John

[Beat Hummel]

and I am nowhere close to a lawyer.

I don't see what your proximity to a lawyer has anything to do with this Michael? But for the record, are you within walking distance?  I was sorry to see you didn't receive that board member spot.  I wrote your name in on my absentee ballot.  Your campaign bus tour was epic. I do not know how you didn't become one of the November Nine yesterday with all those fliers i posted for you all over the city. I call for a re-count?!?!??!?  Vote for Michael "New Guy" Taylor, fixing flawed documents one whiny post at a time

Thanks for reading

You're welcome?




I guess i should mix in a compliment after reading my slightly derogatory post. So here goes:  I DO like your militia-esque machine gun toting avatar.

[tavish]

Michael,

I hope people will listen to what you have to say and not dump all over it defending the club's position. I think John's response was exactly right on and I hope that your enthusiasm for the sport isn't shaken by your perception of the meeting last night. I think it is important for the longer-standing club members to consider that we aren't coming across as open and inviting as we would like to be and that we make a much bigger effort to encourage new voices. (The reality is, we are all pretty sick of our own voices sometimes!)

It takes a lot to speak your mind to a group like this and I appreciate your willingness to do so.  I truly believe in the plan for course care by committee from here forward (your CC question) and I think you will see this process evolve into more of a course community project - especially if your enthusiasm last night was any indication.  It is that kind of energy that will grow this sport in our community.

The bylaws changes, while controversial, provide us with the opportunity for a much broader outreach and scope of focus. Expanding what we do is going to require more and more volunteer hours from more and more club members so a huge goal is to make people feel more included in what we are doing.  I feel like we are in a good place to start.  I would advise anyone who wants to know what is going on with our direction to attend a board meeting. If you have something you would like to address to board about, ask for some time on the agenda, and I guarantee you will be heard. Our first meeting is this Thursday. I am very excited to see what ideas and direction this group will bring for our upcoming year and the future of our club.

[WrongfulLeaf]

Thanks for all that commented, and going into last night's meeting I had no intention of running for the board. That being said, I did receive more votes than expected and got a lot of positive feedback from players after the voting time. But I didn't expect to win because I realize that it is a popularity contest and I could only see 5+ people that I knew well enough that would vote for me. But I will put myself out there for helping my home course. This is really a side note to why I posted this whiny thread, I still don't see why the elected officials for our club are not elected to a position instead of a general board. If someone would make a great Technology Officer they should run for that position and list their experience in that field, because this is a specialty office. It is not that I don't trust that those 9 people will pick the best person out of the group for the job, but those jobs at hand are very specialized in their roles. I have not seen a successful business or organization ran this way, and that is the reason it was my #1 reason I proudly stood (almost alone) up against the new bylaws.

Did the new by-kaws pass, and who are the officers? Are the CC's named yet, or does that happen later? 

Yes they did pass, and I do not know everyone's names that were elected and I didn't write them down. By my assumption there are no longer CC's, their is now a committee instead of CC's. They had a sign up sheet for the courses people who wanted to be on the committee.

Tell us from Pres. on down.

I have no idea what position each person on the board will receive, this was a major reason for the first post.

I don't see what your proximity to a lawyer has anything to do with this Michael? Your campaign bus tour was epic. I do not know how you didn't become one of the November Nine yesterday with all those fliers i posted for you all over the city.

Thanks for reading

You're welcome?

I guess i should mix in a compliment after reading my slightly derogatory post. So here goes:  I DO like your militia-esque machine gun toting avatar.

The lawyer comment was because I know that Jack and company put alot of time into the new bylaws and I appreciate that but I don't know the rules of what all that entails. And yes my Ford Festiva is EPIC! I also appreciate all your efforts in posting fliers at every course in KC but I don't think anyone will see them til this morning since my campaign was so short Finally, I felt that it was a very long read and one that not many would appreciate so I put the thanks in out of courtesy. I am a very polite person in person also.

[jack]

Hello everyone, my name is Michael Taylor and I recently attended and ran in the "elections" at the flea market. Since I was largely out voted on the new by-laws, and did not receive a spot on the board I will go to the message board to answer a few questions I have. Please take into consideration that I am very new to this club as stated above and at the meeting, and I am nowhere close to a lawyer.

Michael thanks so much for posting.  Gives a chance for others to make comments that enjoy being vocal about disc golf, not just those that sit on the board.  You in no way need to be a lawyer, infact in most minds in here by not being a lawyer, we value your opinion more! 

1. The elections that were held tonight were for a group of 9 people to be on a board, and from those 9 people THEY would select the appropriate person to run each of the positions available.
This seems very counter productive, why not have an election for each position that will be held? The reason being that people that have expertise in certain areas might or might not get elected to the board but would be a better fit for that position.

It is not counterproductive.  In doing this it allows the 9 board member to discuss at their first meeting what positions will be held, and they can make a decision amongst themselves in order to assure that they are valid.  Also in these instances with an all vounteer organization you will rely on everyone to help out.  We have over the past 25yrs done as you indicated, the reasoning behind changing this process was more of a standardization of how a mjority of boards are selected.  Generally the board decides the position.  That being said there is absolutely nothing wrong with anyone so choosing to run on the board to give information on how they feel they would be best served on the board.  As Rhonda indicated last night her expertise and how she would like ot help the board out.   Unfortunately she did not win selection, hopefully though ( I will speak up) whomever the newly assigned Chief Technology Officer will reach out to her and ask for assistance in our desire to move forward accordingly to help the club.

2. People can hold a position and also be on a course committee?
This seems like a huge conflict of interest, that would be like the president of the US still holding a position in the senate or being a governor of a state while in office. Yes the example I gave is on a larger scale but it still is a conflict of interest.

These people have no vote on the board, only board members may vote, so your stance of this discussion is not applicable in our situation.  Keep in mind that in our Senate that the Vice President can be vote 51 to break a tie.  Now this is still not applicable with regards to your topic as a quorum by definition will consistently be an odd number so unless a board member abstains from a vote there will always be a majority to win decisions from the board.  This therefoere is not a conflict of interest in any way shape or form.

3. Course committee without a coordinator?
This is just asking for trouble! Being that if there isn't a leader, it will be a he said she said situation all the time. Granted I know that there are multiple people running courses now but there is also a coordinator that leads those people (or should).

There will always be a leader in anyway shape or form, as the leaders rise to the occassion to make themselves known.  If there are 2 leaders in a course, then great.  This shouldn't be any problem at all as anyone can attend the Board meetings, and are encouraged to do so.  So if there is a conflict with people on the course, my hope is that they would both approach the Board and indicate what the issues are that are causing the strife, and in turn be able to come up with a resolution to the problem.  It is afterall Disc Golf, we are not talking about personal property, or a company business.  You shuold be involved with Disc Golf locally under the realization that it takes an entire community to keep us afloat.  Not one person in the KCFDC has ever done anything alone.  It takes our entire community.  You as a newer member yourself are a perfect example of what you can do to get noticed. 

I think that there is one more but I forgot already. I would love to be on a course committee or ever multiple ones but being that I am new I feel my voice will go unheard, because that is how these by-laws are built. I raised my hand around 5 times and was ignored and not chosen to speak so I remained silent about these issues. If I am overstepping myself please let me know but I have to at least throw these out there because I really think it would help the organization grow (with newer players). Don't get me wrong I love that fact that we are applying for a real non profit organization, but I didn't agree with the above flaws (as I see it) so I said voted against them. Thanks for reading

As the primary speaker of the by-laws conversation last night, and you sitting closer to me than anyone else, I can attest that I saw you raise your hand on one occassion.  I went to the back of the room for a question, then planned on getting back to you but you didnt raise your hand again.  At one point I even heard Ben and you talking, and Ben indicated to you to go ahead and ask, I heard you mutter, thats ok, and as such I didnt call on you as your hand was no longer raised, and others were asking for the floor.  I could not give you the floor without you asking for it.  Suffice it to say, had you riased your hands 5x, I can assure you I would have called on you.  Others raised their hands multiple times, and were called on.  So if you did in fact riase your hands that many times, I am sorry for not calling you to the floors attention.

On a personal note Michael, I was one of your votes and Rhonda as well.  I would have loved to have seen you on the Board as both of you would have new energy that I feel is essential to the livelihood of the KCFDC.  I am hopeful that you will reach out to the new board and let them know that you have desires to help out more.  I hope that you are not alone in this line of thinking, and that others that share this enthusiasm with the desire to help the KCFDC will make it known.

Tavish is right in that light, we may not all appear to be approachable, but those that continue to help and show interest in helping are typically the ones that get noticed.

The board members for the 2010-2011 are as follow: http://kcfdc.org/forum/index.php?topic=5705.0
Jack Lowe
Tavish Sanders
Dick Parker
Chris Timko
Jim Sherwood
John Theiss
Jen Brockman
Drew Neitzel
Dan Weinert

We are planning on meeting on Thursday night November 11, the location to be determined.  At that point we will vote the officers positions and will let the membership know through the website.

Michael, please do not take this as an indication that your questions are not valid, I for one bet that many at the meeting may have not be comfortable asking questions.   Although I do not like that, I have realization that some people are not comfortable with asking these questions in public, as such I truly do thank you for pointed questions.  I am hopeful that my responses alleviate some of your concerns, if not please let me know, I will do my best to answer any questions in particular with regards to the 501c3.  I first started to ask general membership for this status in 2004 I believe, and we are now getting to be very close to that status.  It will enable the club to grow larger.  In fact if next year you feel as though there needs to be more board members, you can of course raise it for a vote at the general membership meeting and upon passage you may have 7, 9, 11, or 13 board members.  I personally felt that 9 was a great starting point, as such why I included it for the first year of the by-laws.

They did pass 43-2 last night.  We are working towards this goal, and I for one thank you for your comments and more importantly your ability to stand up in front of essentially a group of strangers is tough.  I liked your topic and your reasoning for wanting to join the board, why I voted for you, unfortunately others didnt feel that way. 

I do look forward to hopefully working with you in the future very soon though.  It could start with an Ice Bowl as far as I am concerned.  With over 400 people we need more people to help than many realize.  Please reach out to the board to help with the events.

Again thanks for your comments, as you can tell, long winded doesnt bother me! 

[hyzerponix]

Michael, I respect where you're coming from, and though I don't agree with most of your thoughts when it comes to the changes the club has made, I do recognize that it took guts to both run for a position and then to voice these comments here.

You said it yourself at the meeting last night-- you've only been playing for about a year. While there are certainly roles within the club for brand new players, I don't see a position on the board as being one of those roles. As was said, give it time. Show up and bust ass at all the course work days you can. Come to leagues. If you truly aspire for a leadership position within the club, put in the work and others will notice your level of dedication. That's when you'll be considered for a leadership position.

I'll also say to be careful what you wish for, as there can be lots of stress and drama that goes along with being on the EC. If you should ever achieve your desired position on the board, don't be surprised if you leave a meeting or two wanting to rip your hair out.

Congrats to everyone who ran and were elected last night. Looking forward to working on the Cliff Drivers Committee!

[discglover]

Did anyone ask K-Mont if he was interested in running for a spot?
I happended to think and I ask  THIS ONE NOW!!

[jack]

kevin lives in Sedalia now, and the years of service that he has given to the club are more than enough testament to his dedication to the club.  As Rick indicated last night Kevin has been the MVP of our club for years, though he is not interested in a position at this time on the Board.

Guess you didnt hear tha comment from Rick last night while he was thanking Kevin for years of service to the club.

Its ok...

[Kevin Montgomery]

Did anyone ask K-Mont if he was interested in running for a spot?
I happended to think and I ask  THIS ONE NOW!!

I was asked early on and was not interested at this time. Perhaps sometime in the future. I have plenty to do elsewhere these days and will continue to help with the website and at major events. But thanks for asking.

And thanks for the kind words yesterday at the meeting Rick. I wish I could have been there but had a tree to cut up in my yard that couldn't wait. I'll be around. If anyone wants to see what I've been working on give me a call and come out to Sedalia. The short 9 hole course is looking good and full of ace runs. I'll be scoping out holes for expansion this winter with plans to add another 9 holes come spring.