Humane Society to meet tonight
Published 12:03 am Tuesday, November 15, 2011
NATCHEZ — Three members of board of directors who have served the Natchez-Adams County Humane Society for decades amid the blood, sweat and puppy pee will step down from their positions tonight and usher in a new beginning for the group.
At tonight’s annual NACHS membership meeting, which starts at 6 at the Natchez Convention Center in the Natchez Room, members will elect three new board members to replace vice president Nan Garrison, shelter director Pat Cox and treasurer Anne Vaughan.
Some NACHS members criticized the nonprofit this year, among other reasons, for failing to rotate members off the board when their terms expired.
Bill Furlow, who signed on as a mediator between those who supported the board and those who wanted to see changes, said NACHS received approximately 12 nominations to replace three existing members of the nine-member board.
“When we issued the call for folks to submit their names, I had no idea what to expect, and I was very pleasantly surprised at both the number and the caliber of people who came forward,” Furlow said.
“It really showed the depth of support for the Humane Society.”
Tony Byrne, one of the most vocal critics who worked with Furlow and others to resolve issues at NACHS, said tonight’s meeting will accomplish exactly what he and others who shared his view wanted.
“We asked that (the annual meeting) be an open meeting and the board be more open than it had been, and that’s exactly what this meeting is about,” Byrne said.
Board members have said they stopped having elections and hosting annual membership meeting because the meetings were poorly attended.
Furlow said NACHS has approximately 300 members, and new members are invited to attend the meeting.
Annual membership dues are $15 for a single membership and $20 for a family membership.
Controversy between some members and the board of directors stemmed from the board’s decision to abandon plans to build a new, bigger shelter on donated land in favor of a scaled-down version on Liberty Road near the current location.
Other issues were hashed out, including member terms, bylaws and the role of a member of the board of directors.
Critics said while they appreciated the difficult and time-consuming volunteer work certain members put into NACHS at all hours of the day and night, a board member’s role was not the same as the role of a volunteer.
“The humane society needs board members, and it needs volunteers; and those are not necessarily the same people,” Furlow has said.
Also at the meeting, Garrison, Cox and Vaughan will be recognized for their service.
“The three members going off the board have dedicated their lives to the humane society, and I hope people come thank them,” Byrne said.
If the thought of sad-eyed puppies and kitties doesn’t make attending worth members time, light refreshments and a cash bar should do the trick.