April 2012
Dennis Grenier
Dear Fellow ATBA Members,
The Spring Breeders’ Festival is just around the corner! On behalf of the entire Board of Directors, I warmly invite you to attend our Annual Membership Meeting and Awards Dinner on Friday, April 27, 2012. Then on Saturday, April 28, 2012, I hope to see you all for an exciting day of racing, showcasing the best AZ-Breds competing at Turf Paradise. Please, bring your friends and family and enjoy great food and fun entertainment with like-minded breeders, owners, trainers and racing fans.
Following many requests from the membership, this year’s Award Dinner will feature a Silent Auction with more than 20 select items that await your spirited bidding: From restaurant vouchers to designer jewelry; from equine art to a sightseeing flight in a private jet and lunch in Sedona; from vet services to a round of golf on two different courses; from tickets for a Cardinals game to stallion seasons – there will be something you just can’t do without! All bids will start at bargain prices, don’t miss out! For a daily updated list of items, please click here.
With this in mind I want to express my very special appreciation to the loyal sponsors of the Breeders’ Festival, and to all donors of auction items for their generous support. Without our donors and sponsors we could not make this happen – Thank-You! I also want to applaud the entire Breeders’ Festival Committee under the Chairmanship of Wende Macumber for putting our annual flagship event together.
During the Membership Meeting and Awards Dinner you will also have the opportunity to meet in person with the four new Board members whom you have elected: John Campo III, Shawn Haggstrom, Bill Matthews and Jan Osborn. We as an organization are blessed to have such an active group of highly motivated individuals who are willing to volunteer their time in an effort to improve the ATBA and facilitate positive change in the industry.
Among the newly elected Board members, John Campo will lead the task of updating our By-Laws, a job long overdue for which he is uniquely qualified as an attorney who has practiced law in Arizona for over 50 years. Jan Osborn with her expertise in controlling will serve on the Budget Committee and will help identify savings and efficiencies to sustain last year’s return of the ATBA to solid financial footing.
For most of you, our new website has become the go-to online source for news and valuable information about breeding and racing in Arizona. The Board wants to share the praise this website has received from industry leaders and members alike, and vows to maintain this high level of service to you. Responsible for keeping the website up-to-date is Paula Prather, who also has started a lively Facebook community to interact directly with you. And she is the point of contact for all your suggestions and online advertising needs, just email paula@atba.net.
Finally, I want to extend my deepest gratitude to Dr. Ron Allen for 20 years of serving this organization and representing ATBA in many negotiations with industry stakeholders and other interest groups. Dr. Allen recently resigned from the Board of Directors to focus his entire attention on his new position as Associate Dean at the College of Agriculture and Life Science at the University of Arizona in Tucson.
After more than 10 years as Board member, Peggy Hopwood also resigned. She deserves our heartfelt thanks for tireless fundraising efforts and making the past Breeders’ Festivals under her direction a great success. Thanks also to Dr. Dorothée Kieckhefer, who was instrumental in bringing about ATBA’s new website. She too resigned from the Board yet will continue to serve on the Communications and Sales Committees.
Looking forward to seeing you all at the Breeders’ Festival! Sincerely,
Dennis Grenier, President president@atba.net