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2008 Elections Ballot

Last Updated

3/7/2008 Added Brent Lothrop
2/27/2008 - Added Frank Eichman & Steve Burns and confirmed location
2/21/2008 - Original posting

The election of officers for the Lakeville Hockey Association Board of Directors is held annually the second week of March. This year's meeting will be held at Kenwood Trail Middle School, Wednesday March 12th starting at 6:30 PM. Candidate speeches will be limited to allow voting to be open approximately 7:30 PM to 8:00 PM. We are now accepting candidate information for the even year elected positions.

The following positions are open for 2008 election; Treasurer, Association Head Coach, PeeWee Director, VP of Operations, Registrar, Bantam Director, Jr. Gold Director, Girls Director, and VP of Administration / District 8 Representative. Please click on "Board Elections" under �Policies� on the left side of the home page for position details.

If you are interested in running for one of these positions, please indicate which position and provide a brief summary statement that contains your full name, background, number of children in the LHA, accomplishments, goals, and/or plans for the next two years. Please submit this information to Bill Monahan (lhaprezelect@frontiernet.net) and copy Gary Podraza (garypodraza@charter.net). Your information will then be posted below for our LHA members to review.

LHA members have until midnight March 7th to declare their candidacy. After March 7th any open positions are filled by appointment by the President and confirmation by the Board.

Positions with Candidates up for Election:

Treasurer

Name	*TBD*
Background
# Children in LHA
Accomplishments
Term Goals \ Plans

Association Head Coach

Name	*TBD*
Background
# Children in LHA
Accomplishments
Term Goals \ Plans

PeeWee Director

Name	*TBD*
Background
# Children in LHA
Accomplishments
Term Goals \ Plans

VP of Operations

Name	*TBD*
Background
# Children in LHA
Accomplishments
Term Goals \ Plans

Registrar

Name	*TBD*
Background
# Children in LHA
Accomplishments
Term Goals \ Plans

Bantam Director

Name	*Frank Eichman*
Background	Played up to the High School level in Canada. Grew up in Edmonton during the Gretzky years. Moved to Minnesota 11 years ago. Coached with the LHA and in the AAA League for the last 9 years. LHA Bantam/Jr. Gold Level Director for the last two years.
# Children in LHA	Connor just finished his second year as a Peewee and will move to Bantams this fall.
Accomplishments	My objectives when I joined the LHA Board were to make it transparent and accountable and to push Lakeville Hockey Association to be a great hockey development opportunity for all its members. My goals for Bantams were to build develop a program that was seamlessly integrated with the high schools and to make the tryout evaluation process as unbiased and fair as possible for every singe participant. Ask any current member of the Board about my approach to LHA general operations and they�ll tell you that I have consistently championed and voted the �transparency and accountability� mantra. In this regard, the Board has made significant strides and I count that as one of my accomplishments. In terms of the Bantam Level specifically, I take pride in playing a significant role in the evolution of our tryout process. It is now fairer, less biased, and places more kids at the right level, than it did when I started. I credit one of the concepts that I�ve been pushing since Day 1, the selection of non-parent A coaches and evaluators, as one of the main reasons for this process improvement. In terms of the Jr. Gold Level, I have been active in developing the U16 (boys) program; we have been very close during the last two years to fielding a team in this league.
Term Goals \ Plans	My goals for the LHA as a whole are to continue to work closely with our membership and Board Members to build a strong developmental program for all our members no matter what skill level or age group. My goals for the Bantam Level are to work closely with the High School programs to integrate the programs wherever possible. Take a look across the state and you�ll see the more seamless programs are, across the association and high school, the more overall success they are achieving. Does this make LHA a �feeder� program for our high schools? I want to make it so, for the kids that strive for that. For those who don�t, LHA should also be a positive developmental step and life experience, building their love for the great game of hockey. We�ve made significant strides but more work needs to be done in reaching that goal. In terms of �A� Coach and Tryout Evaluator selection, I will continue to push for non-parent involvement in this crucial role. If we can show the LHA how well it can work at the Bantam Level, I believe other levels will follow. My long term goal is to serve two more years as Bantam Level Director and then move back to the coaching ranks, as a non parent Squirt or Peewee Coach.

Jr. Gold

Name

Steve Burns

Background

I have been involved with the LHA for the past fifteen years; including three terms on the board (as the Squirt, Bantam, & Jr. Gold director), I helped coach for three years, I was a team manager for two years, and am a parent of two boys that played at every level of LHA.

# Children in LHA

0, 2 that have gone through the association

Accomplishments

Most of the things I consider accomplishment are things that made hockey more fun and safer for our kids. They included working with others to have an outdoor tournament for the Squirts and to play at Mariucci, to bring in teams to play in a tournament with our then In-House teams, the Jr. Gold Alumni & Senior Night, and to encourage kids to wear neck guards. My biggest accomplishment came this year, when I heard a Jr. Gold player say that this was the most fun he has ever had playing hockey. As a director I have tried try to make the coach�s job easier, to have good communication with the parents, and to work as hard for the C players as I do for the A players. I invite you to come watch a game as our current Jr. Gold team makes a run for a state title. Ask these coaches, parents, and players if they like the direction the Jr. Gold program is going.

Term Goals \ Plans

To get as many high school boys playing hockey and enjoying it as possible, by having as many teams as possible. The key to doing this is, I believe, is to promote the Jr. Gold program and to have good coaches & team managers.

Girls Director

Name

TBD

Background

# Children in LHA

Accomplishments

Term Goals \ Plans

VP of Administration / MN Hockey District 8 representative

Name

Brent Lothrop

Background

I grew up in Lakeville and went through the LHA youth hockey program from Mites through High School. After high school, I played 4 years at the University of Notre Dame. I have two boys that are currently playing Mites in LHA and have been involved in both coaching at the Mite Level for the past 3 years and contributing as a level director this year.

# Children in LHA

2 Boys � Mite Prep and Mite

Accomplishments

The two accomplishments that I am most proud of are playing Division 1 Hockey at the University of Notre Dame and my business that I built from the ground up ten years ago. Many of the life lessons that I learned while playing hockey such as hard work, persistence and the organizational skills to manage the demands of schoolwork and hockey, are assets that I will bring to the LHA board. Furthermore, my company focuses on business process automation. In short, we identify inefficiencies within organizations and their business processes and use technology to automate those processes. My management experience and my area of professional expertise coupled with my hockey background will enable me to step in and make an immediate impact.

Term Goals \ Plans

My goals for this position would be focus on the communications and technology areas within LHA. Specifically, I would like to create additional resources for parents that are new to LHA to make sure all their questions answered before and during the season. Additionally, parents and coaches often time have questions and they simply don�t know where to go to get answers. My goal is to make enhancements to the website to include search capabilities, a frequently asked questions section, etc. I believe there needs to be greater accountability for the equipment that LHA owns as this represents a significant expense to the association. My goal is to create better system for checking out equipment that can be tracked and monitored so that LHA has a better grasp of what is checked out and there is accountability to ensure that all equipment is returned. Finally, I intend to represent Lakeville at the Section 8 meetings in a professional manner representing the interests of LHA and all members of the association.