A 'first' going smoothly for the Southeast District for Sport, Culture, and Recreation. Their virtual Annual General Meeting was held Thursday night via ZOOM.

Executive Director Joni Hagen said they were a bit nervous at first, but it went over well.

"We were happy with the results, and we just made sure that the attendees, the delegates, at the meeting were aware of the voting procedures prior to, and it worked very well, and went very smoothly," she shared.

The board voted in some new directors.

"We were pleased to announce the appointment of three new members to the volunteer Board of Directors," Hagen said. "So we have Ryan Vale of Whitewood, Tyler Hillstead of Weyburn, and Morgan Jones of Weyburn and they will join the rest of the 10-member board for the 2020/2021 year."

The board also includes Krista Klemmer of Weyburn, Danielle Hoffman of Stoughton, Kristeen Cherpin of Radville, Sheila Guenther of Estevan, Joanne O'Sullivan of Kipling, Mark Barnes of Oxbow, and Brian Chmarney of Pilot Butte.

"We have a real diverse board this year. they come from all over the southeast. We have a few recreation directors on the board We also have people with arts and culture backgrounds, and we have people from the sport world," she added. "We're really excited to have such a diverse demographic on our board."

Accomplishments celebrated over the past year included a 40 per cent increase in workshop participants compared to the previous year.

"This was very much a result of our mini workshop cafe," Hagen explained. "We offer condensed, shorter versions of workshops and we bring those for free right to the community for sport, culture and recreation organizations and because they're barrier-free and they're so accessible, that really bumps up our numbers for workshops."

A 39 per cent increase in newsletter subscriptions, she noted, was the result of a survey indicating it was the preferred method of communication for the organization's members.

Another highlight mentioned was the impact of the GROW Your Community Grant administered by the District, which supported 56 programs throughout the south east with $45,000 allocated in total. 

Community Development Consultant Tara-Leigh Heslip was recognized for five years with the organization during the AGM, and Hagen was celebrated for 10 years of service.

She said each year has been different from the next.

"The trends and issues that are taking place in the community, there's always something new in terms of sport, culture, and recreation," she shared. "That's what makes this job really exciting is that it's always ever-changing. You get to meet so many different people from different background."

"We serve over 75 municipalities in the southeast, so you get to develop some really great relationships and meet people in every community in the southeast," Hagen noted. "So it's a pretty exciting organization to work for, but it's always changing, it's never the same."

"I personally would like to thank the Board of Directors for their support for the past year," Hagen said.

"These are volunteer board members, and it takes time and commitment, and we need these volunteers for our organization to be successful."