Annual Report
An Annual Report is supposed to be a synopsis of the various activities of the Guild during the past year. So, exactly what have we done this past year? Just look at the annual reports from each committee member and it is easy to see what our accomplishments have been: a sold-out Standards meeting; the successful and timely publication of newsletters, journals, and both membership and study opportunity directories; a healthy financial status; numerous workshops and programs at the Chapter level; and exhibitions, particularly PaperBound, whose traveling schedule continues into 1997; increased exposure on the Internet, enhanced international recognition, and more. This is what we do, and we do it well.
But it is perhaps not so much what we did but how we did it that needs mentioning. The words and descriptions come easy, but to do all of this, and do it well, requires an enormous amount of work, time and sacrifice by dozens of members who volunteer their time and energy to helping 'run' GBW. Not a single volunteer, not one Executive Committee member, no one involved in the day to day operation or any of the special events receives any compensation other than the satisfaction of having helped the Guild be what it is.
So, as we look back at what the Guild, and therefore its volunteers and members have accomplished this past year, let us not forget the contributions of those who have made all of this possible. When a publication miraculously appears in your mailbox, remember the days, weeks and perhaps months that it took someone to put it together. When you attend a workshop, realize that more than a few volunteers helped organize it. Many projects and goals were achieved this past year, but it is not "The Guild" which has done all this: it is you, the member, the volunteer, who has made GBW what it is.
Karen Crisalli, President