NHPA 4^th VP COMMENTS

Greetings to All

    As most of you know, the NHPA Executive Council holds a winter board meeting in January of each year. All major issues are discussed and many decisions are made concerning the future direction of the NHPA. I know there are a lot of folks out there who sometimes need a "prod" to express their concerns or opinions. If you have any concerns or questions that you think should be discussed at the winter meeting, contact me with them asap, as the meeting agenda will be finalized soon.

    A Note from Tina Hawkins:
The NHPA is seeking photos of junior pitchers that can be used on promotional materials.  If you have digital images of juniors in action (pitching, awards ceremonies, hanging out having fun, etc..) please email to tinahawk@msn.com.

I would like to welcome a new Regional Director to the group. Sara Otto has been selected as the new RD for Minnesota. She is also the current editor of our newsletter, the Ringer Digest. Sara is quite handy at graphics and such and has put together a pamphlet for tournament directors and mailed one to each TD in MN. I thought it was very nicely done and would like to share it with all of you RD's as an example of some good work. It is designed to be folded in thirds and handed out or mailed. The pamphlet can be viewed at this link:
   http://www.minnesotahorseshoes.com/docs/RD_Brochure.pdf
This is the time of year that all RD's must establish the tournament schedules for 2011, and the information in this pamphlet is full of great information. I know that many of you already have a good method of gathering your tournament info and creating your schedules, but some of you might find this pamphlet helpful.

Another topic I need to touch on with ya'll is about nominations for awards. Many of our members may not know that nominations for NHPA Achievement Awards, and even the Arch Stokes Award, can be submitted by any member of the NHPA in good standing. The award winners are voted on by the executive council, so please be complete with the accomplishments and reasoning for the nomination. The forms for these nominations are posted on the NHPA website in the "NHPA Member" section. I have also attached the forms to this email for your convenience and for your files.

As always, if there are any questions you need answered, contact me and if I cannot answer you, I will promptly get you in touch with someone who can.

thanks
Jerry LaBrosse
NHPA 4th VP, Charter Communications