I was first elected to the HI-C-PM Region Board in June 2006 and a year later I was elected as Vice Chair of the Board. In 2009 I was elected Chair of the Board and also served as Chair on the CEO Relationship Committee. We have a strong, dedicated hostel people on your Board and I am privileged to work with them. The experiences I have had while serving in these positions have been very rewarding.
Many years ago I was an active member of HI and spent a year traveling in Europe, staying in a variety of rudimentary hostels. As I grew older, I thought of HI as an association for young people, but five years ago my wife and I took a tentative step back into the hostelling world when we stayed several times in the newly-renovated hostel in Nelson, BC.
Following our retirement in June 2005, we went on a four month backpacking trip to Thailand, Australia and New Zealand and we stayed almost exclusively in YHA hostels. Due to our age, we wondered how we would be accepted. These hostels were new or renovated, clean, quiet, well-located and safe. For the most part we were able to stay in double or twin rooms that gave us privacy. We cooked, ate and swapped stories with travelers and had a wonderful time. We met people from all age groups and our concerns about being accepted due to age were unfounded.
My goal in joining the HI Board of Directors is to find ways to broaden the hostel appeal to Canadians of all ages with an emphasis on the 50+age group.
I have stayed in a number of hostels throughout Canada in recent years and on each visit I am impressed with the interesting people I meet from all over the world. Hostelling to me is much more than an inexpensive accommodation and this is reinforced each time I stay at a hostel.
Along with my duties on your Board over the last year, I worked closely with the National Board in creating a ‘Difference We Make’ document which highlights the social and cultural values we believe hostelling enhances in all of our lives.
I have the required knowledge and experience to continue contributing to our Board: Bachelor of Commerce from UBC and an MBA from the University of Oregon; General Manager of a medical supplies company for 10 years; Recent Board memberships include Tyrol Ski and Mountain Club, Strata Council Member and President.
I look forward to continuing my work with the Directors for Hostelling International Pacific Mountain Region and sharing my vision for its direction.