President's Message

As this is my first Eliot newsletter article, let me tell you a little about myself. I live in Nanaimo, BC with my wife Beth McLin. We have three children and two grandchildren, all of whom have attended camp at some point. Beth and I have been coming every year since 2001 when Lynn Sabourin informed us in no uncertain terms that we must attend for the sake of us and our children. We are so glad we did!

A for-profit company can look at its bottom line to see if it is profitable. It can consider the percentage return on assets and its share price to evaluate how it is doing. Members of a non-profit board need to consider other factors. What should they be?

The Eliot Board supervises the business side of our Eliot camps and we have done those tasks quite well in recent years -- filling our camps, paying our bills, and getting positive evaluations from a high percentage of campers. We can credit our outstanding staff and the quality and dedication of our board members for those accomplishments. Our good relationship with Seabeck Conference Center, our primary host facility, is also an important factor.

As I write this, I realize that this will be my last correspondence as your Eliot President. These past few years have seen some noteworthy happenings, but more importantly, those hundreds of things – big and little - that happen and take place before, during, and after each camp, are some of what make our Eliot connections so special.