13/11/2023
Good morning everyone, I hope everyone had a great weekend and is ready for another week. I have spent my morning reading through the results of the survey that was sent out and I'm seeing a few things that I'd like to address. But first I want to thank every single person who has taken the time to provide feedback, whether you think we've asked the right questions or not, it is incredibly helpful.
The first thing I'd like to address is the cost complaint. Many of you had complaints about the raffle fundraiser this year, and we agree. This year things were more disorganized than usual and we are already working on how to make the entire thing work better. Most people want to maintain the fundraiser the way it is, and it's our biggest fundraiser of the year, so we are already hard at work figuring out how to make communication better. Next season will be less confusing, and, hopefully, everyone will be on the same page from Day 1.
Which leads to where all this money goes. We are a non-profit organization, meaning we can make no profit off the program. Our board is all volunteer-based, just like everything else. Each dollar you give us goes right back into the program, everything from the fields we practice and play on, to new gear for tackle and flag, to paying for the referees at games. As a parent I understand it can feel frustrating to not see where the money is going, often the money is going to things you never see directly but benefit each and every athlete who comes through the program.
Lastly, I would like to address the complaints about the scheduling. Particularly from those in flag. TVYFL handles all scheduling, we give them our field availability and they make the schedule around that. If other teams fail to show up, particularly if they aren't part of our organization, there is little CYF can do other than issue complaints to TVYFL. So if a team fails to show, hopefully your coach is issuing complaints with TVYFL, or the registrar for CYF, to see what happened. All scheduling is communicated with them directly. The schedule is different every year, and we do understand that long travel times are a huge time commitment, but we don't find out the schedule for the season until everyone else. We can't say how far you might have to travel in any given season, but know that travel may be expected regardless of tackle or flag, because we play teams from Hillsboro to St. Helens, to Salem.
We as a board take seriously our responsibility to do our best for this program. Like all of you, our children play, or have played, football here. Also like all of you, our time is limited and we are doing our very best to see problems, address them, and fix them where possible. Some of you have had great ideas, and we encourage you to volunteer for the board yourself. Bring your ideas, big or small, and let's keep working to make this program as great as it can be. Thank you, again, for your time in responding and providing feedback. It makes a difference!
