Pride WA is off to a fresh start this week with six new committee members elected at the Annual General Meeting on Tuesday night.
Pride now has a full complement of male board members but is still looking to fill four spots reserved for women.
2007 Co-President Sharlene Dixon was automatically re-elected unopposed, along with new female member Lee Jacobs.
Newly elected to the committee were Andrew Baietta, Fruits in Suits founder and long time President Colin Beeck, Bevan Marwick, Charles Denham and Kieran Bycroft. The new members bring a broad range of skills to the committee, from management and IT experience to accountancy and sales.
2007 male Co-President Dean Cahill, who had served seven consecutive years on the Pride committee, was not re-elected.
2007 committee member Iosefo Tapusoa, who was re-elected automatically under Pride's rules, said he felt renewed hope and enthusiasm for pride with the influx of new blood.
"To be honest, I am feeling really excited about things now, I think Pride has a great future in front of it," Mr Tapusoa told GAYinWA.
"I'm looking forward to us getting to know each other and seeing what skills each person will be bringing to the committee."
Mr Tapusoa said he was sorry to see Mr Cahill go and described him as a hero for his lengthy commitment to Pride.
"To be on the committee for seven years is a feat in and of itself. You just have to commend the guy," he said.
"We hope Dean will continue to be involved. He has seven years' of knowledge and experience stored away that I'm sure will be of great value to the new committee."
Mr Cahill, Pride's longest serving committee member, told GAYinWA that he was going to have a break and take some time for himself before deciding what sort of involvement he would have with Pride in the future.
"I understand that the members have spoken and they think it's time for a change, but I'm not going to walk out on the committee," Mr Cahill said.
"I want Pride to survive and I'll be offering my services as much as I can because I have a lot of knowledge to impart after seven years. My heart and soul are still with the organisation and I want to see it continue on far into the future."
Mr Cahill wished the new committee well and urged it to put the problems of 2007 behind it and move forward.
Mr Tapusoa said the matter of recruiting female members to fill the four vacant women's positions would be a priority for the committee.
Comments (2)
Thanks written by Andrew Baietta, May 01, 2008 - 1:02:38 pm CDT
Thanks to everyone who voted. It was my first AGM experience on Tuesday night and it was great to see so many people with a lot of passion for Pride and what Pride means to the community.
It's going to be an exciting year and I'm looking forward to the many challenges ahead.
There is no doubt we have our work cut out for us, but I really believe we can make 2008 a success for Pride if we concentrate on what's important and keep the bigger picture in mind.
Bring it on!
committee members written by Jos Jensen, May 11, 2008 - 11:04:56 pm CDT
I'm interested in possibly becoming a committee member?
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written by Andrew Baietta, May 01, 2008 - 1:02:38 pm CDT
Thanks to everyone who voted. It was my first AGM experience on Tuesday night and it was great to see so many people with a lot of passion for Pride and what Pride means to the community.
It's going to be an exciting year and I'm looking forward to the many challenges ahead.
There is no doubt we have our work cut out for us, but I really believe we can make 2008 a success for Pride if we concentrate on what's important and keep the bigger picture in mind.
Bring it on!
written by Jos Jensen, May 11, 2008 - 11:04:56 pm CDT
I'm interested in possibly becoming a committee member?