Due to a technical error, which is being worked on, some members have not received a letter inviting them to this years AGM (these were posted out at the same time as the Christmas Fayre invitations). The GAL committee would like to apologise for this and if you are one of those people, please accept this as your official invite:

September 2011
Dear GAL Member

2011 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING  

The management committee of the Greyhound Awareness League would like to thank you for your support throughout the past year. Despite the current economic climate, GAL has had a successful year. Thanks must go to the many volunteers and supporters for this success. With the time for us to fulfil our constitutional obligations fast approaching, I should like to invite you to attend GAL’s Annual General Meeting. The AGM is open to all current fully paid-up members. The AGM begins at 11am on Sunday 30st October 2011 and will be held in:

The Kingspark Hotel
250 Mill Street
Rutherglen
G73 2LX

Full members of the organisation are entitled to nominate others as officers or members of the management committee. (Those nominated to serve on the management committee must also be full members.)

Instructions for nominations are as follows:
The GAL management committee is made up of 4 Honorary Members and a number of Representative Members. The 4 Honorary positions are Convenor, Vice-Convenor, Treasurer and Secretary.

If you wish to nominate a person or persons into one of these honorary or representative positions, please write to the address below indicating who you would like to nominate and into what position. Please note you cannot nominate yourself and also please make sure you have the full permission of the person you wish to nominate before submitting a nomination for them.  Those being nominated onto the committee do not necessarily have to be present at the AGM.

In the event of two or more people being nominated into a single position, a vote will be held at the AGM in which all present may participate to decide who gains the position. It is expected that any representative member will take a full and active role in the GAL management committee for a period of 12 months and also undertake one or more specific roles within the charity (for example Events Co-ordinator, Membership Co-ordinator, etc).

Nominations must be submitted in writing at least 3 days prior to the AGM.

We look forward to seeing you at the Kingspark Hotel.

The Greyhound Awareness League Committee

(nominations to be sent to: 14 Appin Terrace, Perth, PH1 2LS)

I hate to be pedantic but is the committee not obliged to invite all its members by writing to the AGM at least 21 days before the meeting under the constitution? What happens to the members who have responded by letter to the original invite?
Is that null and void? Will their nominations still be regarded and who is validating them?
Marie

I got my AGM invite and my Christmas show invite in the same envelope about two weeks ago if that helps any!

Neither Alex nor myself received invites to either the Christmas Show or the AGM. Thought it was just another example of total disregard for the grass root membership!!!

Sorry to hear you haven’t received yours Allison - the labels for the invites were printed on September 10th - and the letters all posted out shortly after as far as I am aware.

I printed the labels with my own fair hands and yours was definitely there. Marie yours was too but obviously with the wrong address…

As for disregard of the membership, I’m sorry you feel that way and can only assure you, and all of our members, that it is absolutely not the case and we rely on the support not just of you all, but of everyone who touches the charity and helps GAL to continue rescuing and rehoming greyhounds and lurchers - whether it’s by attending events, helping out or donating at can collections, popping posters up in your local shops or even just letting anyone you know about how awesome greyhounds are as pets!

GAL is made up only of volunteers, including myself, and I will be the first person to put my hands up and say that I am not the best person for the Membership Coordinator role and only stepped in as there was nobody else who was able to update the database at the time. Hand on heart I know that I’ve not had time to do all the things I wanted - start an enewsletter etc - but I’ve kept on top of what I could to the best that I could. Following the AGM I’m hoping to help GAL in other ways more in line with my work and skillset.

Hopefully in the coming months we wil also have even more support on board to keep the charity not just going but thriving, and helping as many hounds to find their forever homes as we can.

Kate

Marie, also - those who have received the original letter in time (as everyone should have but unfortunately didnay) and responded will have their nominations collated with the ones from other outlets -  here / Facebook - and will still be counted.

cheers.

Hi Kate,

Wasn’t having a ‘personal dig’ just feeling a bit disgruntled that the whole ‘modus operandi’ of GAL appears to have changed in the last 12 months without any recourse to the opinions of the basic membership, who as you pointed out are fundamental to the continued running of the charity.
We hear nothing of what is going on, have no access to basic minutes on a regular basis (once a year at the AGM really isn’t enough to update the membership - especially if you want to keep them on board), the public face of GAL would appear to have moved from the FORUM to Facebook without so much as an indication that this is the case. 
I am particularly puzzled to stumble across ‘rehomings’ on Facebook of dogs I have never heard of and which have never appeared as ‘available dogs’ on the GAL FORUM. Who are these dogs, where to they come from, where do they go, who assesses them, how do people even find out they exist?????  Is there a reason for this ‘secrecy’?  I am dedicated to promoting greyhound welfare and GAL in particular wherever I can and I make a point of directing people to the GAL website for information and to see available dogs - how stupid do I feel when it is the same few dogs on there
constantly yet apparently there are loads more available - ( somewhere?????).

I daresay there will be ‘reasons’ for every decision that has been taken and every change of direction and policy that has been actioned in the past year but those in ‘power’ need to realise that they are answerable to the membership and to disregard them on a regular basis is not a wise move.  People only retain an interest if the are kept aware of what is going on!

Cheers
Allison

Allison,

From a technical point of view I don’t think there was a shift of the public face of GAL away from the forum.  The fact is in this day and age, GAL had to have a Facebook page to keep it’s web presence strong.  And, being that Facebook is a fair bit more popular than this forum, there’s bound to be more buzz around it.  Facebook has killed off many private forums before, and will continue to do so.  Although I still think we get enough action here to keep it busy!

The website is still updated regularly with the available dogs.  Of course, depending on schedules there may be a delay, but I’m sure that’s the same with any site run by volunteers.

Ian

thanks allison, och I know it wasn’t personal but you know how it can be sometimes, I’ve just been on a course all weekend with work so feeling a bit fragile lol

In terms of the minutes - these are available on request to see in person at any time, we just can’t have them up on the web etc or posted out due to the confidential info on it for incoming dogs etc…

I know we’ve been really lucky in the past few months - I think - in that we’ve had dogs who have come in to us, then gone very quickly to homes - before even reaching the website. I know it’s not great for those looking on the site, but it’s meant that more dogs have been homed as a result as we can react more quickly to demand and hounds can get to their forever homes in less time..if that makes sense!

In addition to going through foster homes, some dogs from kennels have quickly found homes, following feedback from trainers, assessment from colleagues there and GAL volunteers through walks and short term fostering, too. We’ve also had some dogs who have already been in a home but their current owners had come to GAL for help (for various reasons, family situations etc unfortunately - again this is confidential understandably). It’s just been that the timing of these has often led to these hounds slotting perfectly into an already homechecked applicant’s home…again bypassing the website unfortunately, but meaning that they don’t need to go to kennels or moved about any more than they have to be, which is best for the hounds I think.

Hope this makes sense and i’m sure if i’ve missed anything or got this wrong someone will be able to help or point out where I’ve got it wrong…!

on another note I know what you mean re the Facebook, I think it might be a sign of the times unfortunately as Ian says - but you’re right in that the site and here is an important way of keeping in touch for those not on the social media, so need to get a more structured procedure in place for this, too.

Hi Ian,

Totally get your point re the popularity of Facebook - I personally would be lost without it - but I also know plenty of people who wouldn’t touch it with a barge pole. Some find it too intrusive and some find the whole idea of ‘social networking’ a bit naff - now many of these folks are young, intelligent professionals so it’s not an age thing ( e.g. old fogies like me!).
The point I am trying to make is that the same information that is available on Facebook should also be available on the GAL forum - it should be a case of ‘as well as’ rather than ‘instead of’.  If this isn’t possible could there at least be a note on the forum to the effect of ” See our Facebook Page for further information” ?  That way people then make a choice of whether or not they access the FB page and if they don’t then they are aware that they may not have all the relevant information!
I realise the FB logo appears on the GAL website but think people need to be advised if the FB page has more information available.

Cheers
Allison

Hi Kate,

Thanks for taking the time to reply in such detail. Hope the work pressure eases soon.

Cheers
Allison

I don’t think I received an invite to the Christmas Fayre - am in a bit of a “kitchen mess” at the moment, so I could be mistaken.  However, I definitely didn’t receive AGM info.

Denise

PS re the Facebook thing;I know quite a few people in all age groups who do not register with Facebook as a matter of principle - don’t want to follow the crowd - so it’s not age specific as much as one might think.

Hi Denise

I posted out the invites to the Christmas Fayre and AGM together using the address labels supplied by Kate, GAL’s membership coordinator.

I sincerely hope you did receive your invite to both, as you have been a loyal GAL supporter for many years.

Hope to see you soon.

Hi can someone clarify something for me please,my invite arrived in the post re the AGM, since then there has been a change to the committee and it was posted on the forum and fb to send any nominations to Perth is this still the case or do they have to go to Joan who is the new secretary in which case can an address be made available?

Thanking you

Lorna

Can someone please clarify to whom any nominations have to be sent to since the recent changes in the committee? It’s just that it was posted for an address in Perth prior to Joan taking over as secretary however if they have to be posted to Joan can an address be made available?

Hope this works as it’s the 2nd post 1st one came up as error in posting

Thanks

Lorna

OOPS! The gemlins have been oot again in the techy universe