By Greg Baker – July 2023
There is so very much to discuss in this month’s President’s Column, so let’s get to it:
LACA Annual Meeting
The LACA annual meeting will be held at Dominion Energy’s North Anna Visitor Center on July 29th. We have two representatives of DEQ as our guest speakers. Sarah Sivers and Tish Robertson will give our members an update on the study regarding Harmful Algal Blooms on Lake Anna and the Shenandoah River. You may recall LACA urged our members to support this initiative by the Virginia Legislature. We are very excited to learn how the study is proceeding.
We will discuss the results of the biennial survey that we just completed and the most updated views of our members. Our water quality chair, Harry Looney will give an update on the status of Kick the HAB…AGAIN! and our efforts to mitigate HAB on Lake Anna. These are just a few of the items on our agenda, I hope you will join us! Doors open at 9:00AM and the meeting will begin at 9:30AM. Our committee chairs will be available prior to the meeting to answer questions and explain what each committee does. Light refreshments will be provided.
Space is limited and you must register to attend the meeting. You may do so through this link. All members in good standing (dues paid) are invited. If there are two members of your household that would like to attend, both must register separately. If you need help on how to add a second member of your household to your LACA membership, you can refer to an article that I wrote in 2021 about adding a “bundle member”. I hope you will be able to join us in person, but if not, we will also be hosting up to 100 members via Zoom to join remotely.
Kick the HAB…AGAIN!
I have written on several occasions about our trial efforts towards mitigation and remediation surrounding HAB on Lake Anna. The government affairs firm that we retained with your financial support is continuing their efforts to have funds allocated by the state of Virginia to specifically address HAB through ACTIONS, and not further study. Unfortunately, the legislature has not been able to come together and pass an updated budget. That means that to date, our efforts for $1MM in funding for this coming fiscal year is still on hold. We are still optimistic that the Governor will call a special session in mid to late July with the intent on finalizing the budget process. We may need your help in a letter writing campaign. If so, we will get an E-Gram out to our members.
In the interim, the LACA volunteers are working hard on three trials for this summer. Please come to the annual meeting to learn more about the efforts. These efforts are funded through the Kick the HAB…AGAIN! campaign. To date, we have only raised $24,000 of our $50,000 budget. For us to continue this effort, we will need your financial support. Please help by making a tax-deductible donation to Kick the HAB…AGAIN! If we do not reach our fundraising goal, we will have no choice but to cut back on some of our mitigation and remediation trails later in the summer.
We will also be hosting several fundraising efforts. These will include Lake Anna Restaurant Dine Arounds as well as a Golf Tournament at Cutalong. Please be on the lookout for future announcements.
Kick the HAB…AGAIN! Golf Tournament
At Cutalong Golf Club
Please join us at the beautiful Cutalong Golf Club for a day of golf and HAB awareness. Cutalong Golf Club was recently named as one of the Top 10 private golf clubs in the state of Virginia as well as one of the top new courses in America. This is your opportunity to play Cutalong even if you are not a member and more importantly, a way for you to support LACA’s efforts to fight HAB on Lake Anna.
The cost of a foursome is $500 and will include lunch, drinks, and prizes for the winners of the tournament. All profits from the tournament will go to the Kick the HAB…AGAIN! program. Please gather up your friends and come out to play Cutalong. You may register here. If you are interested in playing, but do not have a team, please reach out to Sue Biondi and she will work with Cutalong to find a team for you to join.
In addition to playing in the event, please consider one of the following sponsorship opportunities.
Title Sponsor: Cost $5000 – The title sponsor will receive two complimentary foursome entries into the tournament, signage at the sign in tables and your name and logo on our program.
Food or Beverage Sponsor: Cost $1500 – The food or beverage sponsors will each receive one complimentary foursome entry into the tournament, recognition in the program and your name and logo included in the lunch boxes.
Hole Sponsor: Cost $200 – For each hole sponsor, you will have a 14” x 18” sign displayed at the tee box with your name and logo.
Please reach out to Sue Biondi if you have any questions about sponsorships or would like to support the tournament by being a sponsor.
Webmaster Needed
LACA is in desperate need of a volunteer to help maintain our website with current and useful information. You may remember that we upgraded our website several years back and have gotten fabulous feedback for the huge improvements to the website. However, to stay relevant in search engines, we need to keep our website updated with new and accurate information. The inner workings of the website are relatively easy to learn, and no website design background is needed. If you can use Microsoft Word effectively, you will pick up the inner workings of the website very easily. Please consider chipping in and helping your neighbors at Lake Anna by volunteering to be the LACA webmaster. If you are interested or have any questions, please email me at greg.baker@lakeannavirginia.org
LACA Board Elections
This is the time of year for LACA board elections. Be on the lookout for the electronic ballots. Even though most of the posts are not contested, please show your support for your LACA volunteers by voting. Your voting is greatly appreciated!
greg.baker@lakeannavirginia.org
