NEOC on Facebook
NEOC on TwitterNEOC's Members Meeting will be held on June 9, 2024, at 12:00 PM, at Houghton's Pond, Milton, MA. Current NEOC members will vote to fill four seats on the Board of Directors for a two-year term, and one seat for a one-year term.
At this time there are five candidates for those positions. Other candidates may be nominated before the election. This article will be updated as additional candidates are nominated.
If you are interested in being a candidate in this election. please contact the 2024 Nominations Committee at
Voting
Any current NEOC member who is 18 years or older may vote. A Family membership is entitled to two votes.
If you can not attend the Members Meeting to vote in person, any NEOC member may be appointed as your proxy. Your proxy voter must attend the meeting with your signed proxy form to cast your vote. Follow the instructions on the form.
If you have questions about voting by proxy, contact
Below are the candidate statements received to date.
Orienteering Bios of Candidates for Election to the NEOC Board of Directors
Channon Ames (incumbent)
I love teaching beginners and introducing new people to orienteering. Over the past several years I have helped to run the Spring Introduction to Orienteering Event where we pair volunteer instructors with beginner orienteers to teach the basics and get people started in orienteering. Whether you have found the controls in the fastest time, or learned a new skill and accomplished a goal along the way, the values of orienteering are for everyone.
I have been fortunate to work with the Youth Mapping Program to get several maps created for Newton Parks and Recreation and collaborated with Eagle Scout candidates to install permanent courses in some of Newton Parks. I’ve also collaborated with the YMCA to run an introduction and Bring Your Own Map event at one of their properties, and have presented to local Recreation departments about the benefits of creating orienteering courses in local parks.
My passion, professional experience collaborating with a variety of organizations, love for volunteering, and desire to introduce beginners to orienteering are all things I feel I can bring to the board of NEOC.
Terry Costello
I have had a lifelong love for maps and exploration. I entered into the orienteering community in a roundabout way—by taking my middle school students in our Adventure Club to NEOC events. Since working with students to take on white and yellow courses, I have been hooked, and have gradually become more and more involved with the sport. After starting as a complete beginner, I have gained experience at both NEOC events and meets around the country. This past year, I have continued to introduce students to orienteering and have also volunteered to help adult beginners learn the basics. For the past three years, I have been a course setter for a sprint event, and I am excited to set a longer course in fall 2024. I bring not only excitement for the sport, but also strong organizational skills and a willingness to learn. In the future, I hope to continue to work with both students and adults new to orienteering so that they can develop a level of confidence, grow their skills, and participate at a level that they find challenging and exciting.
Kristin Hall (incumbent)
I started orienteering as a child in the late 1970s, and have been a NEOC member for much of my life. I have experienced orienteering as a child, a teen, an internationally competitive athlete, a recreational participant, a parent, coach, middle school teacher, and volunteer. These diverse experiences motivate me to consider ideas, questions, challenges, and possibilities from multiple perspectives, so that we can make decisions and plans that benefit all of us.
During my first two years on the Board of Directors, I have worked on the events team, organized a club training weekend, the fall points series, and served as event director for the New England Championships. I have also been part of the Board's efforts to work to build strong relationships with local land managers. I am also working to explore potential venues for future NREs, and I am working with other members of the events team to update our Event Director's Handbook.
In the future, I want to continue to collaborate with other board members and volunteers to plan for more training opportunities in conjunction with our regularly scheduled in-person and BYOM events; to organize another major national competition; to continue to support a robust schedule of local events' and to help out wherever the club's need is greatest.
David Landrigan (incumbent)
I am very grateful to have been invited and encouraged to Orienteer and engage with this great community of people. My first encounter was over 40 years ago, of the Scout merit badge variety. Then in much more recent times our daughter Priya and I were exploring the CRLS building for her to get the lay of the land prior to starting her Freshman year, and we encountered Michael Commons. He spoke to us briefly and then pronounced we definitely should Orienteer. Not long after I met Barb Bryant, also at CRLS for Vilppu at the time, and along with daughters Anaka & Priya we did indeed wholeheartedly, map and compass in hand, set out Orienteering and engaging with the surrounding and supporting community. One of the CRLS O-team members said that he felt supported but not pressured to develop and manifest his potential, and that with Orienteering he could really see the connection of getting out what he puts in. I am in the reverse: keenly aware of all that has come out of it for myself, family, student athletes and many others. I am looking to continue to "put in" to support that for all of us; especially for groups and communities who we may reach less often or not at all.
I have been a member of the NEOC Board since 2021, As other background, I am the current CRLS Orienteering Coach; have worked and volunteered extensively, including as a former Board member, with Navigation Games, with related youth work and coaching; and am a former board member of Cambridge Youth Lacrosse.
Karen Yeowell (incumbent)
I was first introduced to orienteering in the mid-1990’s in North Carolina, but then got distracted by life, and re-discovered the sport when we moved to Massachusetts in 2009. As a Girl Scout Leader for 10 years and Venture Crew Advisor for 5, I became involved with NEOC through the Scout-O. I particularly enjoy seeing young people’s confidence grow as they become more and more adept at navigating through the woods, finally able to gleefully ignore the common admonishments to “stay together,” “stay on the trail,” and “don’t wander around the woods in the dark.” The Night-O course now offered as part of the Scout-O consistently ranks as one of the highlights of our scouting year.
In addition to working with youth, I would also like to actively encourage more outreach to promote gender, racial and cultural diversity in orienteering.
