The New Year is an excellent time to reflect, reassess priorities, and look to the future. What a wonderful year 2012 was for MRTA and MRTF. A BIG THANK YOU goes to MRTA members and the fundraising activities of Local Units across the state. Your financial support came from the mailing label campaign, silent auction, and the year end ASK letters. The BUILDING LOAN was paid for and the MORTGAGE WAS BURNED in record time.

The MRTF Board of Directors met for the annual meeting at the MRTA/MRTF office on December 11, 2012. Officers were elected for 2013. (President—Walt Cochran, Vice-President—Maggie Elder, Secretary—Ruby Vincent, and Treasurer—Jim Kreider) The MRTF Board and the entire MRTA membership would like to express appreciation and thanks to two members leaving the MRTF Board. The two members are Bill Wasson and Garland Hamilton. Both served the Foundation and Association well and will be missed. New members joining the MRTF Board are former MRTA President Jan Powers and Jim Orr. Jan is from Warrensburg and Jim is from Monett.

I cannot overstate the excitement I feel about the MRTF Board of Directors. The enthusiasm, energy, ideas expressed, all suggest a bright future for MRTF. As stated in an earlier Newsletter, the Foundation will now be solely responsible for fundraising. It is time to SHIFT GEARS in determining how the money raised is spent. We are in the process of updating the MRTF Brochure and the MRTF Website. Response to the end of year ASK letters has been very promising. Plans are being made to launch the mailing label campaign in the spring. Discussion is under way for the Silent Auction at the Annual Fall Meeting in September. We want to get information out to the Local Units in the Spring so they will have time to prepare for the Auction. Jan Powers and Veronica Hambacker will co-chair the Silent Auction. The goal will be to make enough from the Silent Auction to provide one round of fourteen (14) classroom grants of five hundred (500) dollars each.

The MRTF Board would like to express a big THANK YOU to the fourteen MRTA Regional Vice Presidents. They did a SUPER JOB of forming committees, screening the grant applications for their region, and making the final selection of each regional winner. The turn around time in the process was excellent. Checks have been cut and presentations made in all fourteen regions. I am very pleased to announce the MRTF Board voted to DOUBLE the number of classroom grants for 2013. This would increase the number of grants from fourteen (14) to twenty eight (28) five hundred dollar ($500) grants, allowing two grants for each region.

The MRT Foundation Board will continue with familiar fundraisers as well as looking at any new and worthwhile fundraisers that might surface. I will be in contact with Regional Vice Presidents to encourage them to come up with a fundraising activity at Regional Meetings in 2013 to help support the Foundation.

Speaking for the MRTF Board, “THANK YOU” MRTA members and Local Units for your past generosity to MRTF fundraising activities. Please continue your support to make tax deductible contributions to one of MRTF’s fund choices in the future: MRTF Classroom Grants Fund, Endowment Fund, and Building Maintenance & Improvement Fund.

The MRTF Board of Directors would like to extend to everyone the very best wishes for a HAPPY AND HEALTHY 2013.