Membership Letter
Greetings!
Thank you for your support of LOWDPOA in
2007. In July we held our first Summer Members Meeting in
Kenora. It was a great success with about 175 members
participating. A report from the LOWDPOA board, guest speakers
and information booths rounded out the program. The Summer
Meeting provided an opportunity to meet many of our members
who are unable to attend our Annual General Meeting in May.
The LOWDPOA booth at the Kenora Farmer’s Market provided us
with a relaxed atmosphere to visit with members and to let
others know of the benefits of joining LOWDPOA. If you were a
2007 member, you will have recently received the Members’
Survey. We hope you will take 15 minutes to fill it in. We
need your input to ensure that we are meeting your needs. An
active and engaged membership is the real strength of LOWDPOA
and allows us to be the primary voice of property owners in
the Lake of the Woods and surrounding areas. Your support is
appreciated.
Membership season is upon us.
Renew your membership now by filling
out the Membership Form (see reverse) and send it in by mail
or fax. Please introduce your extended family and friends to
LOWDPOA by buying a gift membership. If you were not a 2007
member please consider joining. Membership numbers are
important when we represent property owners’ interests to
governments on issues such as regulations, assessment and
taxation. As a benefit of membership, LOWDPOA members receive
the Lake of the Woods Area News magazine five times a
year. The Area News keeps you in touch with the area
and issues, and allows you to savour the colour of the region
through special features.
Highlights
from last year:
Tree Seedlings
Over 525,000 seedlings have been planted by
our members over the 13 years of this LOWDPOA program. Your
tree order for jack pine seedlings is included with your 2008
membership form. Jack pines are a hardy species and grow
quickly.
Members’ Seminars and Workshops
Hundreds of members participated in our
summer events during 2007, including workshops on lake
navigation, Docktalk and lake stewardship, the summer meeting,
water treatment, and cottage watch. We had a couple of events
again this year for kids, the Kids Day Camp and the Children’s
Water Festival. All of the events received rave reviews and
were well attended.
Taxation and Government Affairs
LOWDPOA continued to partner with
province-wide associations to lobby for tax reform. With our
partners, the Federation of Ontario Cottage Associations (FOCA)
and Waterfront Ratepayers After Fair Taxation (WRAFT), we
support a 5% cap on annual assessment increases. This has
become a key issue in this fall’s Ontario provincial election.
Environment
LOWDPOA has been active in protecting water
quality in the Lake of the Woods district for over 20 years.
Over 120 member-volunteers collect water quality samples each
year on 36 lakes and rivers in the area as part of the
Ministry of Environment’s Lake Partner Program. Docktalk, a
program to promote water stewardship, continued for the third
year. Presentations were made to 10 lake associations and
groups with over 450 people taking part. LOWDPOA’s environment
program will continue to reflect the importance that you place
on environment and water quality.
Please take a moment to join or renew your
membership in LOWDPOA. You might want to consider a gift
membership as a great way to introduce others to LOWDPOA and
the Area News magazine. Filling out the reverse side
of this page will initiate your 2008 membership, your seedling
order, and will ensure that you continue to receive the
Area News. It will provide us with vital location and tax
information so we can keep you informed about issues that
might affect you and your property. Please provide us with
your email address to help us keep you informed on issues. If
we have your email address it is on the form, please check its
accuracy and consider providing it to us if the space is
blank.
Sincerely
Sue Bruning,
President
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