• President's Message, January 2016

    Hope everyone enjoyed the holidays and was able to spend time with friends and family. Here in the Pacific Northwest, the weather made it impossible to get together. In fact, as I write this it has been snowing and sleeting. Just in the month of December our mountains were dumped on with over 100 inches of snow, closing many roadways. But, I shouldn't complain. We are in a severe drought. So, the extra snow should help.

    2015 was a fairly eventful year. Resolving some legal issues and getting our non-profit tax status back were a couple of the more important items our new board members tackled. It was also a year to expand our horizons by attending the Aquatic Experience show in November for the first time and initiating the gene study for the latest potential gene, known today as the Bulgarian Green gene as named by Raiko Slavkov.

    In 2016 we will be looking at hosting an updated photo contest, identifying potential avenues where we can expand and reach out to potential new members. Stay tuned for announcements!

    TAS Committees - We are seeking members to volunteer to help out on many of our committees. Without membership involvement our organization is unable to succeed. Please consider helping out, even if in a small way. Most committee commitments take 1-2 hours per month on average.


    • Standards Committee - the key group that helps manage and oversee The Angelfish Society's primary goal, to set standards and help document and identify new genes. Regardless of having genetics knowledge, if you are willing to help and to learn, please contact Leslie James to be considered for filling the empty seat on this committee.

      Current projects include updating the Phenotype Library and working with breeders who have the Bulgarian Green gene to ensure proper documentation for the gene study.
    • Newsletter Committee - Have any experience putting together a newsletter or in editing articles for spelling and grammar? Then, please consider volunteering to join the team that will publish our quarterly newsletter.
    • Bylaws Committee - Meets as needed, not every month. This team helps to identify potential oversights, makes periodic reviews of New York state and federal laws to ensure we are compliant with our non-profit charter. If interested please contact Jackie O'Neil.
    • Website Committee - Anyone with experience with Moderating a vBulletin forum who is willing to log in and help our members and guests with questions as well as helping to manage spam attacks could greatly help us out. If you are willing to volunteer, we will provide some basic training on how to use the tools if unfamiliar with them.
    • Board of Directors Secretary - Our Secretary resigned at our last meeting. Willie Santiago was much help in the role of Secretary, and we thank him for his time and efforts over the past couple of years. The Secretary position is critical to our organization. The primary responsibilities are to email the membership when appropriate, such as sending out the meeting notices or updates regarding voting polls or any other events as needed. And the monthly obligation is to attend both the Board of Directors and the General Membership meetings and to post meeting notes in our forum. During my time as Secretary I'd say the time commitment averages up to 4 hours a month. Anyone interested please contact me for consideration, even if to handle just the email inbox or to tackle the meeting notes. Any help would be most appreciated.



    I am looking forward to what 2016 has in store for The Angelfish Society. It is only with our membership involvement that this organization can thrive!