The first changes began at the May 7, 2000, General Membership Meeting held at the Victory Villa Community Center in Baltimore, when we welcomed several new members as your elected representatives to the Board of Directors. The newest Directors elected to a two-year term to run through 2002 are Diane Abood, Rod Anderson, Wanda Hsiung, and Rich Wilson.  Incumbents re-elected for the same term of office were Jake Barkdoll, JoBeth Killough, and Sue Wainio-Oato. My sincerest thanks to all members who took the time to attend the meeting and vote in the election.

     For the incumbents who chose not to run for an additional term of office, my sincerest thanks for all the time and input you gave during your term. A special thanks to Jeff Maynard who served two terms but, more importantly, spent an unbelievable amount of time and energy as the Communications Chair for four long years. In that role, Jeff was responsible for the Webpage, the Handbook, and the Digs. I do not think anyone gave more of himself during his term than Jeff. The Board and the Region will miss you!

     Diane Abood has been elected by the Board of Directors to continue Jeff’s work as the Communications Chair. For those of you who know Diane, this is the perfect job for her! Other changes in Committee appointments include Rod Anderson as the Nominations/Elections Chair and JoBeth Killough as Eligibility Chair. Laurie Mulford takes over the Secretary’s position from JoBeth. For a complete listing of the Board of Directors and Committee and Staff Appointments, see the listing at the end of the Digs. As always, you may contact anyone on this list with your concerns or questions.

     Another change involves the 2000-2001 budget. The change is that we are pleased to announce there will be no team or individual registration fee increases for the 2000-2001 season!  I am sure most of you have no idea how your fees are spent or how the Board decides whether or not to increase fees, so, in our continued efforts to improve communications with you, a future edition of the Digs will explain the budget process in greater detail.

     Additional changes for this season will be discussed in other articles in this issue. Most of the changes are administrative in nature. For instance, we have combined the coordinator positions for the Women’s AA and A Divisions while other changes involve new rules.

     On another note, I would like to personally thank Jake Barkdoll, Julie Briggs, and others who created the most successful membership survey that I can recall in recent history. Jake summarizes his initial findings in his article on Page 6. The Strategic Planning Committee will be meeting in the months ahead to address your ideas and concerns. My thanks to all who took the time to respond. Your input really does matter!

     Finally, on Pages 14-15, I would like to introduce you to the Adult Division Coordinators and the Tournament Scheduling Chair. These are the individuals who determine when and where you play. In future issues, we will explain their roles and responsibilities and the procedures used to determine what teams get into a tournament, how they are seeded, and other issues that were raised in the membership survey.