Jan 2005

North Carolina Rifle & Pistol Association

Established 1938. Affiliated with NRA and CMP

January 2005 - New Year’s Changes

Happy New Year to you all! By the time you read this, we will be into the beginning of 2005, with all the promise and possibility that a new year brings. In 2005 we will see President Bush inaugurated for his 2^nd term. We’ll see changes in his cabinet, and we’ll see the usual suspects attempting any and every which way they can to limit our freedoms and take away our guns. Some things never change.

We’ve had some changes in the NCRPA as well. As I told you in our last issue, Walt Walter, who has been a strong leader within this association for many years, will step down and enjoy a well-deserved break. We wish Walt the best, and we hope he will continue to grace us with his wisdom and support for many years to come.

Other changes require some explanations. We had our annual NCRPA elections, and I am pleased to congratulate the winners and returning officers and board members. I want to thank our voting members, who showed their confidence in me by re-electing me to another term as NCRPA President.

Unfortunately, between the time the election process began and the counting of the votes, some events transpired that required us to make some changes in the NCRPA Officers roster. As some of you know, I am employed in the computer industry, which faced a tremendous challenge while our economy struggled. The economy is picking up, but the computer industry is still dealing with those challenges, and is going through massive changes and upheavals. Since 2002, my employer has eliminated tens of thousands of jobs. I have kept my job, but I, like my remaining colleagues, have been forced to take up the workload of the laid-off workers. This has turned my job into two jobs, with commensurate demands on my time.

This change instilled in me the resolve to change my career path, so I decided to return to school and focus on a non-computer degree. This means that on top of my more-than-full-time job, I also became a full-time college student, along with being a husband, and the leader of a large association that requires significant attention. As you can probably see, I have been a bit overloaded!

I became very concerned that my time constraints would cause me to neglect my duties as President. I believe that it would be unfair to the association, and a violation of the trust you have placed in me, to fail in my obligations to NCRPA, so I brought my concerns to the Board at the NCRPA Annual meeting in December 2004.

The Board discussed the issue and came to a determination that we hope will serve NCRPA well, and continue to deliver the leadership the organization deserves. To make a long story short, the Board allowed me to step down from the Presidency, and our Vice President, David McFarling, ascended to the Presidency. The Board has not allowed me to exit from a position of responsibility though – after allowing me to step down, they appointed me to fill the now-vacant role of Vice President.

Thus, the name change for this column – since I am now the Vice President, the column is the Executive Column instead of the President’s Column. I am truly sorry that I cannot continue in that role for the time being, as you had asked of me. I will not default on my obligations though - the Board requires me to continue authoring this column, and to continue to serve as an NCRPA spokesman. I will continue to support this Association to the best of my abilities, and I am grateful to the Board, and especially to David McFarling, that I have been allowed to continue to serve as an Officer. I am sure the membership will give David the same level of tremendous support you have given me while I served as your President.

Thank you again, and I look forward to the New Year and all its opportunities!