A Message from the Board Chairman of the CAA

[Guest guest]

From, Trussler : A Message from the Board Chairman of the CFIDS

Association

Since the CFIDS Association of America was founded in 1987, the

organization has been fortunate to have the services of many talented and

dedicated individuals who have been willing to serve as volunteers on the

Association's Board of Directors.

Over the past 17 years, 67 individuals have served on the CFIDS

Association's board, with most serving around three years. Even though all

nonprofit organizations that function with a board must become accustomed

to losing talented board members, it is always difficult to see them go.

This year has been no exception. The Association is pleased to thank four

resigning board members for their invaluable service to the organization and

to the fight to conquer chronic fatigue immune dysfunction syndrome (CFIDS).

Jon Sterling, who was the Association's board chairman until his resignation

in August, has been in the trenches fighting CFIDS for more than a decade. In

the past he has served as president and treasurer of the New Jersey Chronic

Fatigue Syndrome Association, as a support group leader in New Jersey, and

for the past five years as a board member of the CFIDS Association. When

Jon resigned, he made it clear to me that he continues to support the

Association and will be glad to help whenever needed.

Patti Schmidt has been another key figure in the fight against CFIDS. She has

been a support group leader, she created a listserv for CFIDS patients and

their families, and she served on the board of the CFIDS Association for

seven years. In her letter of resignation, Patti also indicated that she wishes

the Association and its board and staff the best in their continuing battle to

rid

the world of this devastating disease, and she has offered to help with

projects in the future.

Barbara Comerford is an attorney specializing in disability cases. Her

professional expertise and her personal experience with the illness have

given her important insights that she has generously shared with the

Association during her tenure.

Joe Lane, who resigned after 18 months on the board, is the director of the

Center for Assistive Technology at the State University of New York in Buffalo,

which provides research, training and service programs for the disabled.

While he will no longer serve on our board, he is still actively engaged in the

battle against CFIDS because of his wife's struggle with the illness.

I'm proud to have served with each of these individuals. I look forward to

turning to them for their wise counsel from time to time. In spite of our

sadness

at losing these four board members, there is nothing alarming about this turn

of events. It's common for board members to only serve between two to four

years, and the Association is justifiably proud of its record of smooth board

transitions when directors leave, and others come in. I've discovered in my

own seven years on the CFIDS Association board that every time a board

member retires or resigns, there is always someone willing to step up, roll up

his or her sleeves, and work very hard for our cause. I'm looking forward to the

new energy and ideas that incoming board members will bring to the

organization when elections are held in October.

The Association is very sound both in finances and leadership, and the entire

board is behind the Association and every member of the staff. We are firmly

committed to the Association's mission, and we have full confidence in the

plans for the coming year.

The CFIDS Association will be holding its annual election of new board

directors in October; then board officers will be elected in November. We will,

as always, report the results in Association publications.