Members and Volunteers...thank you. With your assistance we achieved many of our 2008 goals. We completed several projects and, thanks to your contribution of dues and time volunteered, we ended the year with a break-even budget. Our objective to improve the facilities will continue to be discussed with members and we plan to use this year to survey our members in order to assess your interests and ensure these are in alignment with any conceptual long-term plans.

I would like to extend my thanks to last year's Board members for their support and dedication to our community, Mickey Merkel, Lesley Pendleton, Tom McDonald, George Kaffezakis, Todd Coker, Eileen Barnes, Sue Carlson and Phil Gilbert. These individuals and many others in our city made 2008 a very memorable year for the Berkeley Lake Homeowners Association (BLHA).

For those who were unable to attend the 2009 Annual Meeting, the Board of Directors presented information on proposed projects. Along with the current activities enjoyed at the beach, we are planning to construct a bocce ball court and an area for horseshoes. So there is no reason for not going to the beach this year – it's only five minutes away. The presentation (.pdf file) will be available on the BLHA website http://berkeleylake.org under Organization / Minutes / 2009. We welcome your input and want to hear from all our members.

This year we have several former and new members joining the Board to assume responsibility for our homeowner association and its management of the lake. Please thank them for volunteering and acknowledge their contribution. Dudley Simpson is a returning Board member who will be assisting with Lake Maintenance. His past experience in this area along with his interests in fishing and overall lake management is welcomed. Chris Kimberley has joined as Treasurer to manage the financials. You will often see Chris walking his dog around the lake. Chip McDaniel has rejoined the Board to manage Membership and Boat Registration activities and judging by our 2009 member listing, we are off to a good start. Julie Stine has expanded her role to be responsible for Security and as with most of Board positions which often involves our spouses, we thank Tevis in advance. Rick Loper will be offering up our BLHA Merchandise during our regular events. You can also view many of these items on-line at our website. Do not hesitate to email him to place an order. Scott Lee is returning to the Board as well this year. However with all the activities that Kay and Scott are involved in, we never thought he actually left. He just stopped coming to the monthly meetings. One of Scott's roles will be chairing the Events Committee and as most volunteers soon realize, this committee does have fun. If you are interested in becoming involved in BLHA activities, this committee offers a good opportunity to meet your neighbors.

Eileen Barnes will continue to manage Reflections, our quarterly newsletter, which is mailed to all city residents. In conjunction with this role, Rebecca Dumas joins the Communications Committee to manage activities with our community advertisers whose ads and local patronage help fund our community newsletter. Please remember to support their businesses, as it contributes to strengthen our neighborhood. Any resident can submit articles or provide editorial comments. Direct these to the Reflections email address on the BLHA website. Just a reminder that the Reflections newsletter is available in color on our website where you can download a .pdf file, print a color copy, or view and share with friends and family.

Sue Carlson will continue as Secretary managing meeting minutes which document the various topics discussed in BLHA monthly meetings. These and past minutes are available on the BLHA website. Todd Coker will continue to manage Grounds Maintenance and will be working closely with Charles Carroll to get the beach area ready for a new season of fun in the sun. George Sipe has graciously accepted the role as "Web Master" and will be enhancing our website to offer a number of new capabilities. Remember to bookmark http://berkeleylake. org, as it will continue to be a source of community information on BLHA's events along with other useful links and membership information. Walter Anderson (City Councilman) serves as the liaison to our homeowner association to keep the Board informed on City initiatives in addition to updating the City on BLHA interests and positions on community matters.

In closing, here are a few items of interest as we start off a new year at Berkeley Lake.

• BLHA Volunteers: We have designated two Saturdays (Feb 21 and Mar 21) where we will to meet to get some general cleanup and landscaping activities completed prior to the opening of the beach.
• Lake Safety: Inspect watercrafts to ensure all equipment is operational and safety devices are on board. Membership "rules & regulations" are posted on the website for your reference.
• BLHA Membership Fees are due March 31. Late payment fees will come into effect after this date.

Please enjoy the lake and start "Building Memories for Today & Tomorrow."