The AERC board of directors has assigned the Past Presidents Committee the task of developing the roadmap for creation of the AERC's long-range plan. This plan will define the mid- and long-term goals of AERC and the methods by which AERC can attain these goals.

The board of directors holds meetings each month by teleconference. The next in-person meeting of the board, however, is Thursday evening during the annual convention, which will be held March 17-19, 2005, at the Nugget in Sparks, Nevada. The second half of the in-person board meeting will be allocated to beginning the formal long-range planning process.

The board of directors meeting, as are all AERC meetings at the convention, is open to all AERC members. Moreover, if there are any AERC members that have experience with formal long-range planning and also the desire to assist the board with this process, then please contact either myself or the chair of the Past Presidents Committee, Jim Remillard.

A formal long-range plan will assist the board and the staff to more consistently direct and administer the organization. In the past two years, AERC has initiated several multi-year projects. These include those in the trails, research, and welfare of the horse. Each of these will require multi-year commitments to get fully up and running smoothly.

While only 18 months old, the Trails Grants Committee, under the chairmanship of Mike Jaffe and the guidance of Roger Taylor, has been doing an exemplary job of frugally parlaying funds into wide-ranging projects across the nation. They have done this by partnering and matching funds with a multitude of other organizations ranging from local endurance groups all the way to bureaus of the federal government.

Defining a plan of how AERC can best build bridges, both figuratively and literally, is one of the cornerstones for the long-range plan. We all know providing safe, fair, consistent endurance rides is paramount, but make sure your directors know what else you feel is also important. Please let your directors know what you feel should be in AERC's long-range plan.