2003 OTFA AGM

 

Variety Village

2:00 p.m.

November 15, 2003

 

 

Present: Albert Tschirhart (Chair), Denis Landry (Vice-Chair), David Watt (Treasurer), John Metcalfe, Marc Christie, Joe Sax, John Craig (staff), Roman Olszewski (staff).

 

Regrets: Kelly Harris

 

1. Welcome - Albert welcomed all to the meeting. The AGM had 25 votes register, while a quorum is 27 votes, so the meeting had to step down for 15 minutes and reconvene at 1:15 p.m., at which point those present constituted a quorum.

 

2. Parliamentary Procedures - on reconvening John C. advised of the procedures, of the voting strength of each club, voting structure, and requests for secret ballots.

 

John Craig announced voting powers.

 

3. MOTION: that the Motions of the Directors for 2002/2003 be ratified.

 

John Metcalfe, Board / Andy Burgess, Saugeen Track                                         Carried

 

MOTION: That the Minutes of the 2002 AGM be approved.

 

Andy Burgess, Saugeen Track / Colin Inglis, York UTC                                       Carried

 

4. Reports:

 

a) Chair - report as presented. The Association is moving forward; the office has new computer equipment and it is much more manageable with benefits to the membership. The Association needs development in three areas i) athlete competition model - a consistent series of competitions so there is an adequate program to all athletes and to offer an attractive package to new athletes  ii)  providing enhanced competitive opportunities for our athletes, and iii) membership (more to come on this as part of a later discussion).

 

b) Vice Chair - Denis Landry - Athletics Canada has a $450,000 debt which is reflected in dwindling services and less program money. There will be implications of this at the PSO level, including cuts in service.

 

Denis reported that he has been involved with the OTFA Board for over 30 years and hopes he has contributed in that period. He provided some history for the ongoing OTFA and AC activities. He reported he has undergone some major surgery over the past year and that he appears to have made a comfortable recovery.

 

c) Treasurer's Report - Dave Watt - Dave took the membership through both the budget and the Audited Financial Statements (AFS).

 

AFS - Dave talked about the government grant and the need for an ongoing surplus/members equity since we usually have to wait 8-9 months to get our government grant. The surplus helps carry the Association through our competitive and most active time of year until government funding is received.

 

Other highlights - David reviewed many budget items and talked briefly about the small amount we pay to AC as membership fees. This is a change from some past years when the OTFA contributed a significant amount to AC revenues.

 

ACTION: John C and David W. to look at the pros and cons of changing the OTFA fiscal year to late in the year - November? -  to see if there is some advantage in applying for more Ministry Project Money, which is an easier concept if we have a November fiscal year.

 

(Supplementary Note: The Ministry has not included Project Funding in the application for Funding for the fiscal year 2004-2005, so a change of the OTFA fiscal year would not make a difference to the success of our application).

 

MOTION: To accept the audited statement as presented.

 

David Watt, Board / Brett Lumley, Windsor Legion                                Carried

 

Draft Budget - David Watt discussed the budget with particular attention to Athletics Magazine revenue and expenditure.

 

John Craig gave a brief description of Fun In Athletics program.

 

Joe advised the members of the computer purchases for the office and equipment changes that were made in the past year. There is an additional $1,500 for upgrades and new software for the year. This will be an ongoing expense on a yearly basis as technology makes new advances and demands on the Association.

 

MOTION: To accept the OTFA Budget for 2004-2005.

 

David Watt, Board / Enrico Toscano, OOC                                              Carried

 

MOTION: That the OTFA appoint Turnbull, Thompson as the Association's auditors.

 

David Watt, Board / John Metcalfe, Board                                                Carried

 

d) General Operations Report:  Marc outlined the need for new computer equipment and a new office. This reduces time demands and resource requirements in the office and makes future initiatives, like on-line registration, a possibility.

 

e) Athlete - Coach Development Report: Joe expanded on the idea of on-line registration and on-line meet entries and the interest in doing more with less in the office. He also discussed other possible applications like on-line ranking lists etc, which would likely become the responsibility of the coaches and clubs.

 

f) Technical Development Report: John Metcalfe advised that he is stepping down from the Board, but that he enjoyed serving on the Board and hoped that he had made a good contribution. Albert publicly thanked John for his years of service and his valuable contribution to the OTFA.

 

Bill Stephens of the Phoenix Track Club asked some questions about OTFA insurance coverage and implications, and was advised that we are trying to get some answers and will provide answers as they become available. It is likely that, if all athletes who workout with a club are registered in some capacity with the OTFA, that clubs, like Phoenix, won't require extra insurance.

 

g) Staff Reports: Director of Marketing and Administration: John Craig talked briefly about the finances associated with Athletics Magazine. The Association may realize some small losses with the Magazine this year, but this position is much better than previous years. He also publicly thanked the OTFA staff for it's hard work.

 

Director of Technical Services: Roman asked Michele Coburn of Toronto Olympic Club to provide an update on the National Cross Country Championships at the end of November. Roman then updated the members on the Step-Up to Excellence program and the CBET program, which will replace the NCCP Coaching program. He advised there is no update on CBET and time is running short to make the changes necessary for implementation. There is some dependence here on Athletics Canada, but getting information from them on the progress of this initiative is difficult.

 

h) Northwestern Ontario Report accepted as presented by George Walters.

 

i) Report from the Ontario Official's Council: Enrico advised that the OOC did not want responsibility to sign off on equipment at OTFA competitions. This was in response to a need to assess equipment prior to the commencement of OTFA Championship competitions so that events were not delayed, disrupted and cancelled due to poor equipment.

 

OOC also does not want to implement the Screening Program for Officials at this point. They will use the OTFA Offence Declaration form instead. They are looking for direction from NOC with respect to officials who chose not to sign the Offence Declaration form but who wish to continue to officiate at National and International meets. The Officials, therefore are not prepared to start the program in 2004 unless they get answers from NOC and AC soon.

 

Enrico further advised that the OOC would like to run two competitions on the OTFA's behalf in 2004: the OTFA Indoor Allcomers # 1 on January 25 at York U.,  and the National Qualifier # 1 on June 12-13.

 

Roman discussed the introduction of several new Membership Categories, giving consideration to the reasons for introducing new opportunities for membership and the implications. Generally, the interest is to make life easier for athletes who wish to compete on a seasonal basis. This applies specifically to athletes on scholarship in the US who wish to return to Canada and compete during the summer, but don't realize a benefit from a full membership.

 

MOTION: to accept the new membership categories as presented.

 

Michele Coburn, Toronto Olympic Club / Colin Inglis of York U.                       Carried

 

MOTION: to accept the Volunteer Screening Program as presented

 

Andy Burgess, Saugeen Track / Stafford Whalen, Gladstone                             Carried

 

(the motion was accepted as presented with the understanding that there would be a grace period so that coaches could actually have the Police Record Check done without impeding the registration of their athletes).

 

j) Membership: Albert made a presentation on membership and the need for growth. He suggested that while we aren't doing anything wrong, in this respect we just aren't doing anything.

 

Don't want to change our role or direction, or take on anything new. But we want to enhance what we do.

 

Albert talked about House League Track and Field - recreational track and field has to be our future. All other sports are doing this, but our membership continues to be elite focused. We need to get kids involved on a regular basis in some physical activity, and track and field may be the answer. Test programs have met excellent results.

 

This is a program that the clubs can get involved with by using parents or other volunteers who are not already coaching at the elite level. This enhances the club program, attracts lots of new athletes and members, and does not increase the burden on the existing coaches.

 

Clubs can also make money this way. A fee of, say, $80 for a 12 week house league track and field program is in keeping with other sports, and people seem prepared to enroll their kids in this type of activity - it is local, cheap, active and year round.

 

Even if kids don't stay in the sport, we are educating kids and parents about our sport and possibly making future fans.

 

Carl Georogevski suggests a committee be formed to look at the different available programs, extract the best from each and present a program back to the OTFA Board by June.

 

Brett Lumley thought it was a great idea but was concerned that this might take up some more of the existing coach's time. But this doesn't have to be the way things work out if parents get involved, just as parents coach house league hockey and soccer.

 

MOTION: to pursue the development of a House League Model for the OTFA.

 

Joe Sax, Mississauga /  Denise Neilson, Oakville Legion                        Carried

 

5. New Business:

 

Marc Arsenault - suggested we look into the proposed York Region Sports School, which may include an indoor and outdoor track. He suggested the OTFA look into this to see if we can play a role or provide some support. Both Marc Christie and Susan Mayhue are already part of the facilities committee on this project which is helping to provide guidance in this area. They will keep the OTFA up to date.

 

6. Elections:  A slate of nominees was presented to the Assembly. There were no nominations from the floor.

 

Presented slate:       Mike Illingworth

                              Denis Landry

                              Albert Tschirhart

                              Marc Christie

 

MOTION: To accept the slate as presented

 

Enrico Toscano, OOC / Stafford Whalen, Gladstone               by Acclamation

 

Adjournment - 4:21 p.m.

 

Brett Lumley

 

NOTE: The AGM was preceded by the Ontario Official's Council AGM, and a light lunch at which some awards were presented.  There was also some informal discussion, prior to the meeting, about insurance costs and check-in procedures at Championship competitions.