VOTING IS NOW OPEN (Active ALDHA Members Only)
VOTE HEREBIOS:
Mary Julian
Hi, my name is Mary (Pinkie) and I’ve been an active member of ALDHA this year. In 2023, I heard of the organization from a friend during the start of a thru hike of the Appalachian tail. Although I left the AT in Maine, I fell in love with hiker culture. When I attended the Southern Ruck in January, I was drawn to the community that ALDHA nurtures. Since then, I volunteered at the AT Gateways booth, ALDHA Cares, and have started helping with the website. On August 3, I finally completed my hike of the Appalachian Trail.
Kristi McLeod
Dr. Kristi McLeod is a professor of sociology at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. She is a member of ALDHA and has presented at The Gathering in the past. Her dissertation in 2010 was on the hiking subculture on the AT. Rutgers University Press published this as a book in 2016 titled “Walking on the Wild Side: Long-Distance Hiking on the Appalachian Trail.” She’s hiked over 1800 miles of the AT and completed a thru-hike of the PCT in 2022. Her current research project is about “wild” generosity or trail angels, trail magic, and other acts of kindness on America’s long-distance hiking trails.
Jeff Prater
Jeff Prater is a SOBO thru hiker from 2022. He is a life long educator currently working as a Collection Development and OER Librarian at NVCC. He is an advisor to the Outdoor Project, which introduces young adults to backpacking and the outdoors.
ALDHA Election Process:
Our bylaws require us to adhere to certain stipulations assuring an orderly and transparent election process.
To facilitate the election process, the board has established an Elections Committee which is responsible for developing and overseeing the implementation of policies and procedures of the annual election of members of the ALDHA Board, leadership and composition, Board guidelines and conflicts of interest.
A slate of nominees will be selected by our elections committee, then approved by the full Board, and finally voted on by the ALDHA membership via electronic and mail in balloting in September with results announced at The Gathering in October.
***The office of Coordinator will be available in October of 2025. While not up for election this year, it is critically important to identify interested candidates early so they can work with the current Coordinator during the last year of their term. If you, or someone you know, are interested in the Coordinator office, please let us know!***
Section 6.4 Assistant Coordinator. In the absence of the Coordinator or in the event of the death, inability or refusal to act, the Assistant Coordinator shall perform the duties of the Coordinator and when doing so, shall have all the powers of and be subject to all the restrictions upon the Coordinator. The Assistant Coordinator shall perform such other duties as from time to time may be assigned to him or her by the Coordinator or the Board of Directors.
Section 6.6 Membership Secretary. The Membership Secretary shall keep the membership list of the corporation, shall record applications for membership, payment of dues, renewal of membership and expiration of membership, shall keep up to date the address and telephone numbers of the members in a directory and shall make the directory available to the members, and shall perform all duties incident with the office of Membership Secretary and such other duties as from time to time may be assigned to him or her by the Coordinator or the Board of Directors. The Membership Secretary shall deliver a written statement on the current status of the membership at every meeting of the Board of Directors and at the annual member meeting.
Section 6.7 Treasurer. The Treasurer shall have charge and custody of and be responsible for all funds and other financial instruments and financial records of the Corporation, receive and give receipts for disbursements, and deposit all monies in the name of the Corporation in such banks and other financial institutions as shall be selected in accordance with these Bylaws. The Treasurer shall perform all duties incident to the office of Treasurer and such other duties as from time to time may be assigned to him or her by the Coordinator or the Board of Directors.
Duties and Responsibilities for All Board Members:
1. All board members must agree to and sign a conflict of interest statement.
2. Board members are expected to help carry the load of managing the day-to-day business of ALDHA. We are a working board and it is not uncommon for board members to wear multiple “hats.”
3. Board members are expected to attend the Gathering, in-person board meetings, and monthly electronic meetings. Board members are encouraged, when possible and feasible, to attend trail functions such as the ATKO, Trail Days and local trail festivals.
4. Board members are expected to conduct themselves in accordance with the ALDHA bylaws and motions passed by the both past and present boards.
5. Board members are required to adhere to the ALDHA Communications Policy.
If you are interested or want to nominate another member please be sure they are interested. Nominees will be expected to submit a brief biography and a statement of why they want to serve on the board.
Accepting a nomination and subsequent election to the board gives you the ability to affect the future of ALDHA. The pay is lousy (none), there is always plenty of work but you can’t beat the camaraderie. If you love ALDHA and the hiking community, please give serious consideration to joining the board.
ALDHA Elections:
Ballots will be formatted by the Election Coordinator and posted on the website.
Snail mail ballots and nominee bios will be sent to non email members.
One ballot will be sent per membership.
Electronic voting will be via the website.
Elections close September 30th. Ballots received after this date will not be counted.
Posting of Results:
The website will tally electronic ballots and paper ballots will be tallied and verified by the Election Coordinator and/or the Recording Secretary.
Results will be announced at the Gathering.
Results will be posted on the website, in the Blaze and the Winter Newsletter.
Calendar Overview:
August 1st – nominations open
August 21st – nominations close
September 1st – both electronic and snail mail ballots (for members without email) will be made available.
September 30th – elections close.
October 9th – election results announced at the Gathering annual meeting.
