The GTA Brews Board of Directors consists of 5 seats, each elected by the members for a 2 year term. Our current Board of Directors (Eric Cousineau, Bear Alberico, Jim Bruce, David Larocque, Rob Towle) were installed at incorporation in December 2019, and are now at the end of their terms.
Our Founding President, Eric Cousineau, has opted not to seek re-election as President this term, and will instead seek election as an At-Large Director. See his message to members here.
Board Positions
President
The President is an Executive Director, Chair of the Board, and has general supervision over all affairs of the club. Along with the rest of Board, they are responsible for setting the vision/direction/priorities of the organization, and making sure things get done.
Vice-President
The Vice-President is an Executive Director, Vice-Chair of the Board, and is responsible for assisting the President in managing the club.
Treasurer
The Treasurer is an Executive Director, and responsible for managing the finances and transactions of the club. They also make sure that the club complies with our annual filing requirement as a non-profit corporation.
At-Large Directors (Two Seats)
The Board also consists of two non-Executive At-Large Directors. These individuals are full Board members that participate in setting the vision/direction/priorities of the organization. They may have other duties as designated by the Board.
Election Process
The next Board of Directors shall be elected by the voting members represented at the GTA Brews AGM on Feb 21st.
Any member in good standing may self-nominate by emailing the required information to directors@gtabrews.ca by 11:59 PM on Friday Feb 12th. Each application should include; which position you are running for, a headshot photo, and a candidate statement of up to 150 words describing why you are running.
Starting Feb 4th (Edited. was 1st), candidate statements and headshots will be added to this post, in the order they are received.
In the event that an Executive Director position is contested, members will vote during the AGM using our digital voting process described below. All uncontested positions will be ratified automatically during the AGM. Any unsuccessful candidate for an Executive Director position may opt to enter the ballot for the two At-Large Directors, if they so choose.
Candidate Statements for Board Election
Note: Outgoing At-Large Director Rob Towle has recently moved out of the GTA and has opted to not seek re-election to promote local board representation. Please join us in thanking him for his years of service to the club!
President
David Larocque
Hi everyone! Many of you may already know me through my involvement in the club bulk buys, but if not hello! I've been a member of the club since 2013 and it's been a sight to see it grow over the years. I've had the privilege of being part of the club's leadership for many years now and I'm proud of what we've built. If elected I hope to continue our clubs momentum in competitions, monthly meetings and services for our members (club bulk buys, local discounts). As President I would want to hear from all members about what we do well, where we can improve and what new offerings we can provide. To that end my first goal as President would be launching a club wide survey and reporting back to the membership on the findings. Thank you for considering my bid for president, and stay home + safe!
Vice-President
Bear Alberico
If you’ve been involved in any club activity, then we’ve certainly crossed paths. As your vice president for the past few years, I’ve rarely missed a monthly meeting and have had a hand in every Bulk Buy, Cask Days, Barrel Fills, Learn 2 Brew, BrewSlam and Competition Shipping to name a few. My top three achievements include: streamlining Bulk Buys (ordering and pickup), organizing Competition Shipping and bringing John Palmer to BrewSlam 2019.
My goals for the future of the club are to find even more activities and services that add value to being a paid member. I’m also constantly looking for ways to make every aspect of our club activities fun and inclusive for everyone.
When I’m not brewing or at work, you’ll likely find me on my sailboat or playing a few games of speed chess at a local craft brewery. I look forward to sharing a homebrew with you at a future event and to thank you for your vote.
Treasurer
Jim Bruce
I started homebrewing in 2013 and joined GTA Brews shortly after. I learned a lot from club members and hope to pass that knowledge on to new members. I have volunteered at many club events, including BrewSlam (Cellar Master for four competitions), Cask Days, Learn2Brew and various grain and hop pickup days. I began working as Treasurer four years ago. My next goal is to set up and provide better financial statements to our members so that we can operate the club in a transparent manner.
GTA Brews is a great club, and I look forward to sharing some good beer with all of you when we can return to regular in-person events.
At-Large Directors (Two Seats)
Eric Cousineau
As I step down from almost 8 years as President of the club (outgoing message), I'm running to keep a seat on the Board as At-Large Director. I believe my experience, knowledge, and abilities are still needed on the Board. It's important to me that the club continues to fire on all cylinders as we move to empower more club members getting involved in organizing the events, services, and competitions that we love so much. Even though I won't be President anymore, I'm still planning to continue as Organizer of GTA Brews competitions, including Brew Slam! This means I'm not going anywhere, just taking one step back while I have a young family. Thank you all for your support and encouragement over the years! I'm looking forward to when we can share a homebrew at a club meeting again! Cheers!
Mark Hubbard
If we’ve never met at a club meeting or other event, I’m Mark. I’ve been a GTA Brews member since 2017, and a club officer since 2018. I do all of GTA Brews’ social media, ensuring you’re reminded of all the happenings within the club. I’ve volunteered at many club events, and am always down to chat about recipes, mixed fermentation beers, my strange love of bottle conditioning, etc! I’ve got a good awareness of the homebrew world outside of the club, and feel my perspective and input could be of help to the Board of Directors to push this wonderful club forward! Thank you for considering me as an At-Large Director, and I look forward to the day we can share homebrews at in-person meetings again!
Digital Voting Process
In the event that an elected position is contested, our Elections officer (Kathy Yan-Li) will post the link to a Google Form in the Zoom meeting chat. Members will fill out this form to cast their vote. Kathy will validate the votes against the membership list, then announce the winners live during the meeting.
Under normal times, we would be holding an in-person meeting, and using paper ballots to keep votes anonymous. However since we are holding this meeting virtually, we have devised this voting process to ensure no member is aware of how anyone voted. Kathy is Director of the Canadian Homebrewers Association, and a non-member of GTA Brews. We wanted to select a non-member that we trust for this role to ensure fairness. She will keep any election results confidential, and no one else will be aware how anyone voted.