The
LAKE CHAPALA SOCIETY
News
December 2012 CHILDREN’S ART CONTEST WINNERS ANNOUNCED
e
e
h e e e
C
e
L
CHILDREN”S ART HOLIDAY CARDS NOW AVAILABLE The catalogue for the 2012 Holiday Cards is available in the Patio Sales area. This year, the catalogue can also be downloaded from the LCS web site. The last page lets you download an order form that you can print, fill out, and drop off at the LCS office. You’ll see that we’ve added several new cards for 2012, as well as keeping some of your old favorites from the kids still in the program. As always, proceeds from each card sold go to the child artist. If you experience any problems with the online catalogue or order form, please email Garry Musgrave at gmusgrave@conceptron. com.
‘Tis the Season’ — We Need Your Help! This December, while we’re all busy cooking, decorating, celebrating and buying gifts, let’s think about what we can give back to this beautiful community we live in. The gift of education is one of the most important and long-lasting gifts of all. The LCS Student Aid Program has, over the years, provided financial assistance to more than 300 deserving Mexican students. In 2012, we helped 35 students attend TEC and University studies. In 2013, we’d like to add an additional 10 students to the program. With your help, we can achieve this goal. Simply go to LCS’s home page (LakeChapalaSociety.com) and click on the “Donate” button to pay with PayPal or your credit card. If you prefer to donate in cash, please stop by the office and tell them your money is for the Student Aid Program. Any amount will help. For more information about the Student Aid Program, contact program manager J. Gibson at: galmgibson@hotmail.com. Happy holidays to all.
www.lakechapalasociety.com
The annual Children’s Art Contest first and second prize winners will grace the cover of the LCS Directory and the membership listing pages once again. This year, the $500 pesos first prize was awarded to Juan Francisco Mireles Luvian, whose work will appear on the cover. Second prize winner Oscar Orlando Ibarra Lopez, whose work will appear on the membership list, received $300 pesos. Oscar also received honorable mention in the Feria Maestros del Arte contest in August. Third prize winner, Cintia Yadira Granado Contreras, received $200 pesos. Cintia was also the third prize winner last year. Marianne Carlson (President of the Feria Maestros del Arte); Deena Hafker (President, Ajijic Society of the Arts); and legacy artist Antonio Cardenas served as judges. Many thanks to the volunteers who work weekly to keep the free Saturday morning program going, and special appreciation to the Ajijic Society of the Arts and Feria Maestros del Arte for their ongoing support.
FROM THE DIRECTORS DESK
For the past two years committees have been busy conducting surveys, formulating and approving policy, and making excellent progress. Each year our internal Audit Committee, this year chaired by Ken Caldwell, conduct financial and program audits. The results are always thoroughly discussed and constructive changes are administered as a result. One of the Program Committees biggest tasks is program evaluation. Policies passed last year have been implemented poco a poco so far. 2013 will see the full implementation of the procedures now approved. Though different programs are being evaluated in different ways, each program requires a baseline process. What members and other LCS users will notice, is a sign in sheet for programs delivered at LCS. Preliminary results from a community survey just performed under the guidance of Prof. David Truly has reveled some unsettling results. LCS has an identity crisis! The door-to-door survey, targeting Mexican families, indicates the families know about and appreciate what we do, but they don’t know that it is the LCS doing it! We continue implementing program evaluation and intend to share the results with you. A follow-up survey is already being prepared thanks to the work of the ad-hoc Community Programs Evaluation Committee, chaired by John Keeling. Please recognize that your assistance is highly valued. For LCS to improve its programs and prepare for the future, we need everyone’s help. Promoting LCS’ work throughout the community is one way to help. Signing into our programs is another. Thanks to our volunteers, we’re doing good work, and we hope to improve!
Saw you in the Ojo 73