As some of you already know, Lilla Sinanan resigned as the President of our National Board of Directors in July, 2000. On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Lilla for her years of service as a volunteer, and for her dedication to Laubach as its President. Fortunately, the organization is not losing Lilla's expertise - she has joined us in a paid capacity as the Director of Marketing. (See The Changing Faces of Laubach article.)

I was asked to take on the role of Interim President, and agreed to do so, knowing I could rely on strong support from my two fellow Executive Committee members, Unita Esau and Ellen Knickle. I thank them for their support, and look forward to continued support from all Board members as we continue the very important work of the organization.

It is with regret that I also announce the resignation of Elaine Beaulieu, our Director from Manitoba.

I wish to thank Elaine for her dedication and wish her well in her future endeavours. The National Board has gone through a number of major changes in the last few years, not the least of which has been changes in its personnel. We felt it was very important to provide leadership training to the Board members. How can we do what's best for the organization, if we ourselves need further training in leadership? We held a Board Training / Leadership Retreat in late July, where issues of communication, personality styles and working styles were addressed. All Board members felt this was an excellent session, and felt more cohesive as a group as a result. We are confident that this training will enable us to function more effectively in the future.

I have just returned from Ontario where I had the pleasure of attending two days of TREE meetings, and two days at the Laubach Literacy Ontario Provincial Conference. This was a wonderful affirmation of the things this organization really does "right". Listening to the Student, Tutor, Staff, Board, and Trainer Round Tables was inspiring. At the workshop called "Journey from the Past to the Future", I was awed to hear students speak out one after the other, as they followed the example set by students like Arnie Stewart, Dorothy Silver and Pennyann Tibbitts. These folks remind us why we are all here, and inspire us to continue working hard for a cause that is so important.

As always, I am interested in hearing from any member on any issue or concern. Please feel free to contact me by phone: 250-390-9254 or email: anniek@island.net