I have attended many annual meetings, but never one where the president took such pain in disclosing as little as possible to the public as the one Paul Barrett ran for the GCHS recently. Had Shawn Grass run a meeting like this, he would have been crucified on the front page of The Monroe Times.
GCHS is an organization that depends on donations, but there were no written financial statements, treasurer's report, business plan or a concrete report on the progress on a new shelter. There was no report on animals! After all, this is a humane society. I would have liked to know how many animals come to the shelter needing veterinary care, and are they getting what they need. How many dogs and cats die at the shelter from natural causes as opposed the euthanasia? How many animals would come under the new label "stress?" Where was the report on follow-up visits on outside adoptions and on all those cats left to fend for themselves on local farms? Are there any follow-up calls on adoptions? After all, these were very controversial issues at one point. As the board was confronted, it became obvious that the board members, 11 of them, had very little knowledge of the animals. Maybe it is easier to order "euthanasia" if you don't know the faces of the animals!
That some of the board members behaved like in junior high (a triumphant war cry when the election results were announced. and the numerous trips to the bar) may be forgiven as lack of common sense and a certain amount of arrogance, but a serious matter is the alleged tampering with ballots. There are, as far as I know, still seven ballots missing. There also was favoritism shown when some relatives and friends were allowed to vote absentee. Strangely enough, one woman on the board felt so worried about the alleged tampering with ballots that she had her attorney send out intimidating letters threatening a lawsuit if her name was mentioned in connection with the election.
From the amount of people attending this meeting, it is obvious that this election was important and every vote mattered.
There were many changes to the bylaws that were expected to be accepted by the membership without questions. Luckily, this did not happen. A point of interest: The mandatory audit so important to non-profit organizations was to be taken out due to high cost. However, none on the board knew the cost! So what was behind that maneuver?
The most disturbing thing about this board is the gag rule it has imposed on its members. If anybody discloses any of the deep dark secrets discussed at their meetings, that person is kicked off the board. For Paul Barrett's information, this is not allowed according to the bylaws. An elected member cannot be dismissed except by the membership. This kind of gag rule is unworthy of any organization in an open society and if it continues it should be challenged in court.
If this board had any decency, they would all resign so we could start all over with some people who care about animals and don't need to rule through intimidation and secrecy. Maybe we could find some people who actually want to work for the animals!
- Gunhild Marcher is a former member of the Green County Humane Society board.
GCHS is an organization that depends on donations, but there were no written financial statements, treasurer's report, business plan or a concrete report on the progress on a new shelter. There was no report on animals! After all, this is a humane society. I would have liked to know how many animals come to the shelter needing veterinary care, and are they getting what they need. How many dogs and cats die at the shelter from natural causes as opposed the euthanasia? How many animals would come under the new label "stress?" Where was the report on follow-up visits on outside adoptions and on all those cats left to fend for themselves on local farms? Are there any follow-up calls on adoptions? After all, these were very controversial issues at one point. As the board was confronted, it became obvious that the board members, 11 of them, had very little knowledge of the animals. Maybe it is easier to order "euthanasia" if you don't know the faces of the animals!
That some of the board members behaved like in junior high (a triumphant war cry when the election results were announced. and the numerous trips to the bar) may be forgiven as lack of common sense and a certain amount of arrogance, but a serious matter is the alleged tampering with ballots. There are, as far as I know, still seven ballots missing. There also was favoritism shown when some relatives and friends were allowed to vote absentee. Strangely enough, one woman on the board felt so worried about the alleged tampering with ballots that she had her attorney send out intimidating letters threatening a lawsuit if her name was mentioned in connection with the election.
From the amount of people attending this meeting, it is obvious that this election was important and every vote mattered.
There were many changes to the bylaws that were expected to be accepted by the membership without questions. Luckily, this did not happen. A point of interest: The mandatory audit so important to non-profit organizations was to be taken out due to high cost. However, none on the board knew the cost! So what was behind that maneuver?
The most disturbing thing about this board is the gag rule it has imposed on its members. If anybody discloses any of the deep dark secrets discussed at their meetings, that person is kicked off the board. For Paul Barrett's information, this is not allowed according to the bylaws. An elected member cannot be dismissed except by the membership. This kind of gag rule is unworthy of any organization in an open society and if it continues it should be challenged in court.
If this board had any decency, they would all resign so we could start all over with some people who care about animals and don't need to rule through intimidation and secrecy. Maybe we could find some people who actually want to work for the animals!
- Gunhild Marcher is a former member of the Green County Humane Society board.
