COMensarations
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
The 2008 Mile High AG
A message from National.
Got an e-mail message from Russ Bakke, Chairman of American Mensa Limited, about the proposed 2008 AG in Denver.
Here’s the text of the e-mail.....
Dear Members of Denver Mensa:
I hope that this email helps to straighten out any misinformation about the 2008 Annual Gathering of American Mensa.
Last October, in anticipation of looking at Denver as a potential AG site, a number of calls were placed to the (then) Loc Sec of Denver Mensa, and messages were also left on answering machines when possible. Emails were also sent to the four Colorado groups, asking for a show of interest/support for an all-Colorado effort. The organizing team received two responses from Denver and Boulder. Neither of the two responding groups believed it had enough active members to undertake a Local Group AG bid, but there were no objections to holding the event in Denver. It was my understanding that this matter was discussed at a Denver ExComm meeting.
A consortium committee was then formed. (Note: a consortium bid is backed by AML, and the treasury of the Local Group is not impacted. The responsibility for success rests solely on the shoulders of AML.) At the time this Denver consortium bid was presented, there were no other bids on the table for review.
From the AMC minutes of December 2005:
18. Moved Site Selection Committee to accept the bid of the Denver Consortium to host the 2008 Annual Gathering on July 2-6, 2008, subject to receipt of a Hotel Contract and a Host Contract acceptable to the Executive Committee.
Approved 20-0-0-1 (Chairman not voting) ASIE 2005-093Tony and Kim Jackowski were named as co-chairs; both are highly regarded Mensa volunteers with a wealth of AG experience. A (very favorable) hotel contract was received from the Adam’s Mark Hotel, and I signed it on behalf of AML within my capacity as Chairman during the last week of December 2005.
On Thursday, July 13, Tony sent an email to current LocSec Mario DeBenedittis which read in part, “As you may be aware, Denver will be the host of the 2008 Annual Gathering at the Adams Mark Hotel...” It would have been clearer had he said “the city of Denver,” but I am convinced that his intent was not to purposely mislead.
On Saturday July 15, Mario sent an email response to Tony with copies to others. His choice of phrasing within that response, distributed to the Local Group’s Yahoo! list, was inappropriate. I received strong complaints from members on his distribution list. It is my understanding the Mario resigned as LocSec shortly thereafter, and Gary Shapiro has temporarily assumed the position of LocSec of Denver Mensa pending an ExComm meeting on July 24, where they will vote to accept his resignation.
I have been in communication with those involved in the 2008 Denver Consortium Bid and reviewed copies of many pieces of correspondence from both before and after the bid was accepted. One of the more interesting things made clear during the presentation of this bid package was that there were many volunteer positions that were intentionally left open so that any Colorado Mensans who wished to join the AG effort would be assured a role. Denver was chosen because it offered an excellent hotel contract, a great climate, convenient and affordable travel accessibility, many local attractions, a wide variety of speakers, and is located in an area of the U.S. that has not had a recent AG.
Kim Jackowski has given assurances that she and Tony would not only be amenable to offers of help from Colorado Mensans, but would be thrilled at any and all assistance. An Annual Gathering requires a huge volunteer effort, and members from throughout the U.S. have always risen to the challenge.
The bid, as accepted, is backed by the AMC. On behalf of myself and of AML, I regret that any Denver members misunderstood the process of this bid, and I wish to offer assurances that I have full confidence in the effort underway. I expect the 2008 Mile High Annual Gathering to be a wonderful experience for all attendees and a rewarding experience to all those who choose to help in the process.
Should any questions arise, or if there is any way that I can personally assist you in keeping the lines of communication open, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Once again, I appreciate your involvement.
--Russ
I don’t have much to say about this, just yet. I’ve not thoroughly digested it. But, feel free to comment yourself on this missive.
Next entry: Major Media Goof Previous entry: Global Warming, Anyone?