Hi everyone, I (Kathryn Lawson) have been asked to serve as the nominating committee for the annual officer elections coming up at our monthly meeting this Saturday (11/5).
Our current slate is:
President: Raychel Upright
Vice President: Barbara Day
Treasurer: Michael Barber
Recording Secretary: Susan Peterson
Corresponding Secretary: Mark Kaprow
Directors (2): Rob Cook, Carol Shin, and John Satterlee
If anyone would like to be added to the slate, you can contact me to be added, or make a nomination during the meeting right before the election. Please remember that you need to be present at the meeting in order to vote, as per our bylaws (https://www.pvas.com/_files/ugd/463e20_827c1d9b26e54ac3a5c7ca351294d9d0.pdf).
Hi Fellow Club Members,
I'm very sorry not to be with you today. Most of you will have heard by now that I broke my right foot and ankle and shattered my left kneecap. Surgeries were performed on both legs 5 weeks ago. I was hospitalized for the better part of a week and was just released from Rehab this week. It will be a couple more weeks before I can assume a standing position on my own, a couple more months before I can walk unassisted, and a few months before I can start walking up and down stairs.
The official story is that I obtained these injuries heli-skiing in Argentina, or perhaps running with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain. Haven't made up my mind between the two.
All of this means that I missed the Catfish Convention and then handed off the reins as club President to our trusty VP Raychel (Red) Upright for the remainder of my term. It's been an honor and privilege to serve as President, and I thank the club for giving me that opportunity. As you see from the Slate of Candidates, I am not in a position to serve the club as an officer or director. Hopefully I can return to meetings in June. Until then, I will very much miss the club and the comradery.
All of my fish tanks have been drained and shut down 😓. Dale Edwards, owner of Londontowne Tropicals in Edgewater, MD and his partner Adam came to my house on a day when the store was closed and emptied all of my tanks of fish, plants and water. That was something north of 20 tanks including a 180g, 125g, and 120g. It was a big job that took two men > 6 hours. I wept on and off all day in Rehab knowing that my fish were leaving but consoled that they were being well cared for. Afterwards, when I asked Dale what form of payment he preferred, he insisted that he and Adam had done this as a service to a fellow fishkeeper. I wept some more. How can I possibly repay them for their kindness? I'm at a loss.
If you haven't been to Londontowne Tropicals yet, it's definitely worth a field trip. They have a great selection of fish from the widely available to truly unique (think anableps, etc.). The store is about 5 minutes south of Annapolis, and easy to find off of Route 50. This is exactly the sort of local business fishkeepers like to support. You can watch the shop tour video PVAS made at the beginning of the pandemic here.
OK, enough with the maudlin. I will heal, I will walk again, and I will have fish and attend PVAS meetings again. Here's looking forward to that. See you all next year.
Sincerely, Patchin