IF YOU enjoy Foster’s annual show and want it to continue in future years, your energy is needed to carry out follow-up action on new ideas chosen by the current Foster and District Agricultural Show Society to keep the annual Show responsive and attractive into 2011 and beyond.
A recent meeting of the Show Committee prioritised a list of changes and new concepts arising from a mixture of the recently com- piled community survey responses and proposals brainstormed by committee members.
However with the current executive positions being vacated at the Show Society’s Annual General Meeting on Tuesday July 20 (at Foster’s Exchange Hotel, with dinner at 6.30pm and meeting start at 7.30pm), the ideas will not germinate and the show will literally not ‘go on’ if new people do not step up into committee positions.
The Show’s current President David Vuillermin and Secretary Katy Henley are definitely not taking on their respective roles again and have given plenty of warning of their firm decisions in this regard.
“Outgoing committee executive members will provide advice and support for incoming people, and also plan to stay on as general committee members, and we have ideas for delegating responsibility for some duties so that the workload is spread between more people,” Katy advised.
“The new committee will also be able to look at canvassed options for purchase of show-manage- ment computer software that would make the Secretary’s job in particular easier to handle.”
She continued,“The ideas we have adopted and prioritised for future shows range from relatively simple things such as a covered area near the entry gate with seating for drop off and pick up of people with limited mobility, through to collaboration with other community organisations and suggestions for grants that can be applied for.
“This means that new people coming onto the Committee will have positive directions to work towards as they settle in.
”From her experience as Secretary, Katy also believes that changes to when the committee meets and prepares for the show (off-season as well as pre-show season) and alterations to the structure of the committee could be beneficial.“Perhaps fewer core committee members but sup- port from a series of active sub-committees could be an option,” she suggested.
“We have already decided on some operational changes such as dividing off some of the duties that were previously allocated to the Secretary, for example ordering and sorting of ribbons, and preparation of the Show Schedule.”Katy said she is prepared to stay on as the Show’s web site manager and an offer has been received for taking and distributing Show meeting minutes.
“Quite a few of our volunteers have been doing their tasks for a long time and some are also getting on in years, so we would really appreciate a flow of younger generations onto the committee, the subcommittees, at working bees (especially) and on Show day itself to keep this cherished event alive into the future,” she observed.
“Please don’t take Foster Show for granted – if tasks are divided up and people are committed to meeting attendance, new ideas, improvements and action, the show will flourish.
“If not, the Show will cease as it has in many other districts even though the many attendees and participants value it highly and the event benefits Foster, the interest areas promoted by the Show and rural activity in South Gippsland,” Katy concluded.
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