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Statement by Jurgen Braungardt, CFO:
Hello Everyone,
I owe it to the members that I explain my vote on the Board in such a grave action against the incoming President. I was the only dissenting voice, so the following points obviously reflect only my own perspective, and are not shared by the rest of the Board.
In my opinion, the recall is a political move that reflects the backlash against SaveCAMFT. Laura has done nothing that deserves a recall. She is a scapegoat for the SaveCAMFT movement.
The Board has successfully cornered itself with this move: If the Board fully explains to the members why they did this, it would have to explain what happened in dozens of hours of closed session meetings, and what actions were taken - again! - in secrecy. Obviously, the CAMFT Board did not learn enough lessons from the bylaws fiasco. It they don't disclose the background information, they ask the members to validate a flawed decision that tarnishes Laura's reputation and shows disregard for the membership. Without sufficient information, the members should vote to refute this recommendation.
Members should continue to demand more information about what has happened behind closed doors at CAMFT. One of our core values is transparency. The often-repeated principle for many of the Board's actions is a duty to uphold confidentiality, which gets used to hide many actions and documents that in my opinion the members are entitled to know. This is a member-driven non-profit organization, not a company with many trade secrets to protect. We, as members, should shine a light on the way CAMFT operates! The members have the power to hold the leadership accountable, and to change it if necessary. For instance, the members can call for a special meeting and make powerful decisions such as recalling individual board members, or even the entire Board.
The reasons they cite as to why the members should recall Laura are not sufficient grounds for removing a board member. Additionally, only six members voted in favor of it, which is not even a majority of the whole Board. Furthermore, in the official E-blast signed by Jodi Baldel and Leah Flagg-Wilson, they justify the recall motion by citing a bylaw paragraph that does not exist. So technically, the recall-announcement is not valid.
The members who supported the Save CAMFT movement should ask each and every one of their representatives how they voted on this issue, and why.
The Save CAMFT movement was a historic event in the history of CAMFT. It was created as a response to a crisis - the theft of our MFT trade association. The Board, with full participation of the ED, tried to change the nature of CAMFT, and create a generic masters-level mental health organization without notifying the members. The members overwhelmingly rejected this change. However, in the past year serious problems still exist within the organization. In order to change this, we need full transparency and accountability. The Save CAMFT movement needs to continue, because these goals have not been achieved. Vote to defeat this attempt to recall Laura and to silence the SaveCAMFT movement!
Jurgen Braungardt, LMFT, Ph.D., Chief Financial Officer, CAMFT. Braungardt@Gmail.com
Statement by Mary Riemersma:
To: Save CAMFT Participants and Others
From: Mary Riemersma, Prior CAMFT Executive Director 1985 to May 1, 2011:
I have read the email blast that CAMFT sent about the member vote to be taken on Laura Strom. I have been remotely aware of some of the Board's assertions against Laura since she was elected by the members. I am also aware of some of the Board’s decisions on other matters over the last four years. It is frankly shocking, appalling, and embarrassing. Even more shocking, appalling, and embarrassing is that while CAMFT has and will share any propaganda that the Board and staff desire, Laura Strom is given NO opportunity for rebuttal unless she personally pays for a separate email blast.
The reasons that are being given to encourage members to vote for her removal appear flimsy at best and generally without merit. This effort does resemble a witch-hunt and appears, to an outsider, to be Board Members digging deep to unearth excuses to unseat her. While these reasons for removal could be scrutinized at great length, I will try to be brief.
My thoughts about the reasons given to assert that she has allegedly engaged in conduct detrimental to the best interests of CAMFT and violated her duties as an officer of the CAMFT Board of Directors follow:
1. There are no issues with a Board Member speaking with an applicant for the Board and encouraging or discouraging him/her about pursuing the election. Such action may be considered responsible and not detrimental to CAMFT.
2. Asking a fellow Board Member for a favor, whether accepted or rejected, has no effect on CAMFT. This allegation is frankly laughable and I encourage members to read it carefully.
3. Making an imperfectly stated post to a listserve intended for a small number of CAMFT members, especially when it is swiftly clarified and corrected, should not be deemed as detrimental to the best interests of C MFT.
4. The supposed confidential = information that Laura Strom allegedly distributed to a few CAMFT members was not marked confidential and in fact should not have been considered confidential information. In actuality, it appears the real intent here is to squelch the dissemination of information that would demonstrate THE BOARD was not operating in CAMFT's best interests.
5. Board Members are permitted to be critical and may share concerns about staffing and management practices, especially when they believe there are major deficiencies that need to be corrected.
As a final note, the Board, by taking this action, apparently failed to consider how detrimental this process would be to CAMFT and the members it represents. Given that there are already serious trust issues between members, Board, and staff, this effort appears to widen that chasm rather than rebuild and reinforce the tarnished relationship that has grown over the past few years.
Mary Riemersma
Statement from the RE-CAMFT Board:
The Redwood Empire CAMFT Board urges you to vote to allow CAMFT President Laura Strom to remain in office, and to write the CAMFT Board to recommend they rescind the May 27, 2015 Resolution removing Laura from the Board. Write the CAMFT Board at this address: board@camft.org.
Sincerely,
The Board of Directors
Redwood Empire California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (RECAMFT.org)
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