April 29, 2004

May 13: Bylaws update -- click here

Dear SOSNA member,

With regret, I inform you that Angela Richardson has resigned from SOSNA. She served the community for many years and will be missed.

The rest of the board remains in place. At its April 28 meeting the board elected interim officers to replace those who wished to relinquish some or all of their board responsibilities. The interim officers include:

• Chair - Laura Blanchard
• Vice Chair - Theodore Michael Lee
• Corporate Secretary - Doerte Smith
• Recording Secretary - Richard Gliniak
• Treasurer - Sam Porter/Tony Moretti (transition in May)
• Controller - Marni Showell

Many of you also know that the board has been reviewing the SOSNA bylaws and has begun a revision process to institute changes in length of board term and term limits. Our funding agency, the Office of Housing and Community Development, has encouraged SOSNA to delay elections so that they can be carried out under the new bylaws. The SOSNA board joins the community in wanting this process to be completed and new elections held as quickly as possible.

I am pleased to be able to tell you that our bylaws committee chair, William Pearson, is working on a draft that incorporates the board's and OHCD’s recommended revisions. This draft will be posted on the web site prior to our May 12 general meeting, which will be held at St. Anthony Senior Center, 2319 Carpenter Street. It will also be available at the SOSNA office for those who prefer a paper copy.

We will invite the community to join in the conversation about bylaws both at the May 12 general meeting and in a subsequent working meeting of board members and interested SOSNA members. The goal is a final draft, which will then be posted on the web and available at the office during the first week in June, and presented to the community for acceptance at the June 9 meeting.

Assuming that the community adopts the bylaws on June 9, nominations for board positions will take place at the September 8 meeting and elections will be held at the October 13 meeting. I will step down as chair at the end of October, since the chairmanship of the organization is not where my talents or inclinations lie.

For years, SOSNA has worked to meet the changing needs of all residents in a changing community. All of us on the board are pledged to continue work toward that goal during this transition period and thank you for your support of SOSNA and its programs.

Laura Blanchard
Interim Chair

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SOSNA is the Neighborhood Advisory Committee for the area from South Street to Washington Avenue, Broad Street West to the Schuylkill River, funded by the Office of Housing and Community Development to provide citizen input into their redevelopment process in our community. SOSNA is a registered nonprofit corporation exempt from Federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Site contents copyright SOSNA except where indicated.