By Andrew Dutfield and Steve Oetting
What is more fun than a barrel of monkeys? The MWG Annual General Meeting, of course!
You might not have expected it, but this year’s AGM was a lot of fun, held on October 18 at the Bill and Helen Norrie Library. To start off with, our good-natured and always entertaining Chair/President, David Williamson, was in terrific form. We were all heartily welcomed with a few humorous stories of living in Northern Manitoba and having to traverse halfway across our province to attend Guild meetings. Members were invited to enjoy fresh coffee and a wide array of tasty treats while we pondered and discussed important Guild issues.
It was lively meeting, with a real attempt to share our past year’s activities and achievements with members. Reports were offered by Committee Chairs and Program leaders, giving the members present the opportunity to meet the faces behind the names of our volunteers who commit to the Guild and its programming and management.
David opened the meeting by reading our Land Acknowledgement Statement in both Cree and English. Following that, we approved the Minutes of the 19th of October 2024 AGM.
The President’s Report followed, outlining a number of significant achievements of the past year while stepping through the standard procedures of the AGM. Some of the highlights include:
- This past year we acquired three new directors, bringing our total number of directors to 13. The three new directors are Lisa Bukoski, Brenna Dixon and Luke Dondo. The Governance document allows for up to 15 directors, so that we still have room to acquire two more directors.
- It was a successful year financially, with increased revenues coming from memberships, grants and donations. Andy Dutfield presented the financial statements for the year ending July 1, 2025, which were subsequently accepted.
- We now have four Critique Circles fully operational now, two for prose, one for poetry, and one for our BIPOC community. The Guild is looking for ways to add even more Critique Circle events this year due to its immense popularity.
- We have assigned two Vice-Chairs to assist our Chair with the many responsibilities that come with that role, including Tami Reynolds and Lisa Bukoski. The nominations of all three new directors were accepted.
- All of our existing programs and contests continue to flourish, those including the Youth Program, the Sheldon Oberman Mentorship Program, the “Dave” Contest and the Rabindranath Tagore Poetry Competition, the Beta-Reader Program, and the North Point Douglas Creative Arts Hub Program.
- This year the DEI Committee completed new Land Acknowledgment Statement, Inclusivity Statement and our Respectful Environment policies.
- This year our Governance Manual has had significant adjustments and improvements thanks to a considerable effort by Tami Reynolds, Marlene Schellenberg and Beth Watters.
One important element of this year’s AGM was the call for more volunteers. The MWG is a 100% volunteer-run organization, so we are always in need of folks who have some time to contribute and who enjoy working with other volunteers on a wide range of MWG committees. Each Committee Chairperson was invited up to provide a quick review of their area of responsibilities, including all of the enticing benefits of participating. If any MWG member would like to join one of our committees, or simply inquire into the volunteer opportunities that are available, you can send an email to and someone will be pleased to answer all your questions.
The current Board of Directors includes David Williamson, Chair, Tami Reynolds, Vice Chair, Lisa Bukowski, Vice Chair, Beth Watters, Treasurer, Marlene Schellenberg, Secretary, Andrew Dutfield, Past Chair, and Directors-At-Large Jake Reichert, Lori Gaudet, Kamal Malaker, Roxane Anderson, Steve Oetting, Luke Dondo, and Brenna Dixon.
The MWG Annual General Meeting closed on a wonderfully happy note, when the MWG extended a Honorary Lifetime Membership to Sharon Hamilton. Sharon served as our Chair/President for the past two years and has served on numerous committees. She has been the heart and soul of the management team behind “The Dave” Writing Contest while also assisting with fund-raising, membership, program development, and of course, hosting the annual Membership Party for the past two years. Sharon will continue to provide her support in the years to come and we congratulate her on her lifetime membership in the MWG.