From Your President:
Happy New Year to All!
As we enter into 2023, it’s great to have high expectations for ourselves. Cold winter nights are perfect for dreaming of the next trout season. It is also a time to perhaps learn some new skills. For example, you might want to enroll in our chapter’s fly-tying courses that start in February—with two different skill levels—one for beginners and one for intermediate tiers.
Or you may want to try your hand at building a new rod. Our November meeting with Tom Whittle and Barry Weaver demonstrating the ins and outs of rod building may have inspired you to try your own hand at it. Or you might just want to check out your old tackle and figure out what you need to pitch and what you need to obtain before the new season starts. It’s also a great time to catch up on reading, and there are loads of great books on the sport of angling.
For me, I start planning my summer destination fishing trip, reading online reports of promising places to go, and looking at lodging options. I always check out reviews of “hot flies” that worked last year and try my hand at tying some. Usually, I build a new rod each spring, sometimes for myself and sometimes for a friend or relative.
Winter is also the time for our chapter to review and critique its accomplishments from the past year and decide what changes are in order for the next year. We are preparing to write a new five-year strategic plan for the chapter. Our current plan expires at the end of our fiscal year (March 31), and we want to turn our chapter’s vision into a solid organizational business plan. A planning committee has been formed and will begin to meet in January.
Our Annual Meeting will be held on March 28. We will present our chapter budget, elect officers, and reveal our new five-year strategic plan. We will be seeking to appoint new committee chairs for several chapter committees – trout stocking, veteran’s program, youth programs, and others. The meeting will also feature a guest speaker. An email announcement will be sent to the membership in early March with details on the location, date, and time.
Finally, this is my last president’s letter. My time as chapter president, a wonderful experience, comes to an end with the March membership meeting. Chuck Swanderski has agreed to serve as chapter president. Chuck has been an active board member and officer long enough. Now it’s time for him to be president. He will do great work.
Best wishes.
