(Vancouver, BC) The BC Mètis Federation was founded as a nonprofit provincial Métis representative structure in June of 2011. The organization was launched by a team of dedicated Métis volunteers who were founding board members committed to rebuilding a new provincial Métis organization as a viable alternative to represent the interests of Métis communities and families throughout BC. Since June of 2011 the BC Mètis Federation has achieved a number of successful steps.
The next governance related item is to ensure the BC Mètis Federation board is properly elected by the members at the first BC Mètis Federation Annual General Meeting. The BC Mètis Federation has now announced their first official Annual General Meeting coming up on September 22nd, 2012 in Williams Lake, BC. The BC Mètis Federation also provided a nomination process for board positions in accordance with the society bylaws. There were four executive positions and ten at large positions available for nominations.
Today the BC Mètis Federation is pleased to announce the nominations for the board as follows:
1. Keith Henry – President (North Vancouver)
2. Daryl Piper – Vice President (Burnaby)
3. Joe Desjarlais – Secretary (North Vancouver)
4. Tim St. Denis – Treasurer (Delta)
5. At Large positions –
a. Ken Fisher (Surrey)
b. Lyle Letendre (Kelly Lake)
c. Maxine Lavallee (Langley)
d. Gloria Rendell (Prince Rupert)
e. Earlene Bitterman (Hudson Hope)
f. Rene Therrien (Terrace)
g. Wayne Lucier (Williams Lake)
h. Pat Pocha (Prince George)
i. Richard lucier Larsen (North Saanich)
j. Beverley Lambert (Surrey)
The BC Mètis Federation board nominations closed August 31st and in accordance with Article 8 of the bylaws, the nominations will be elected at the upcoming BC Mètis Federation Annual General Meeting September 22nd.
BC Métis Federation President Keith Henry stated, “I want to thank the nominated candidates for their efforts to support a rebuilding process with the BC Mètis Federation. I am especially pleased to see candidates nominated from many locations throughout BC.”
President Henry added, “I strongly encourage Mètis people to attend the upcoming AGM and witness proper Mètis governance in action. The BC Mètis Federation election process demonstrated that more Mètis individuals are interested in rebuilding Mètis governance than supporting an organization that is drowning in debt and has no hope for support for their communities. This same organization that cannot even have eleven board positions filled.”
President Henry concluded; “BC Metis Federation continues to provide hope for a better tomorrow and the interest continues to grow. We can and will continue rebuilding, free of debt, no backroom industry deals, and fully transparent Métis governance that place the needs of Métis communities and culture first. That is why more and more Mètis families are signing up and we see the strength in the nominated BC Mètis Federation board members. This new team brings vast Métis cultural and community building experience. The BC Mètis Federation team has several new members and everyone brings many skills. We will be showcasing the BC Mètis Federation vision to rebuild Métis governance which that identifies 75 action items to support effective community engagement to supporting socio-economic issues. This is definitely a team that will deliver results with a clear plan of action. I thank each one of them for their willingness to work with the BC Mètis Federation for the next two year term and I will be proud to continue to lead.”
Media Inquiries:
Keith Henry
President
BC Métis Federation
#300-3665 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R 5W2
Office 1-604-638-7220
Cell 1-778-388-5013
Email k.henry@bcmetis.com
You can now follow BC Métis Federation President Keith Henry on Twitter @KeithHenryMetis
Downloads:
[ilink url=”/wp-content/uploads/BCMF-Press-Release-September-7th-2012-Board-Nominations.pdf” style=”download”]Click here to download this press release in PDF format.[/ilink]
