The Nominations Committee met Saturday September 17th and made the recommendations for Directors, Officers, and the Nominating Committee presented for the Connecticut Chapter of the American Chestnut Foundation for election in year 2005.
These Nominees will be voted on at the Annual Meeting or by Absentee Ballot available at http://cttacf.org/images/CT-TACF 2005 AbsenteeBallot.pdf. The minutes of the Committee is available as an attachment (see download below). Standing for Relection are Rod Longley and Garret Smith. Both have served multiple terms on the Board of Directors. In addition to those standing for reelection, we have four new members joining the Board.
Dr. Philip Arnold, Dr. David Bingham, Dr. Robert Gregg and Mr. Jim Gage are standing for election for two year terms. Their profiles are below. Officers recommended by the Nominating Committee are President: Bill Adamsen, Vice President: Philip Arnold, Treasurer: Jim Gage, Secretary: Pat van de Kamp.
The new Nominating Committee (to serve in the year 2006) has been named as Marshal case, Bill Adamsen, Philip Arnold, Rod Longley and Pat van de Kamp.
| Our New Director Nominees | |
 |
Dr. David Bingham is a retired physician from Norwich who specialized in OBGYN. His Grandfather, Hiram Bingham, was Governor, US Senator, and as “discoverer” of Machu Pichu and is reputed to have served as Steven Spielberg's model for “Indiana Jones.” David ran for election to Congress in 1994 focusing on both fiscal and social responsibility to assure a sound environment. He has been active with the Sierra Club, NARAL, Audubon Society, the national League of Conservation Voters and the Salem Planning and Zoning commission, where he is working to develop the town's Conservation and Develop Plan. His most recent emphasis has been with The Nature Conservancy and the Salem Land Trust to ensure land preservation. David is a member of long standing in TACF (15 years+) and is working to develop a plantation of American Chestnut on his property in Salem. |
 |
Dr. Philip Arnold was a Board Certified Physician for 38 years specializing in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, retired in 2004. He received a BA from Yale University and M.D. from Tufts. Philip is active as a Director of the Woodbridge Land Trust and as a member of the American Chestnut Foundation. He feels a synergy between the goals of the organizations, and is committed to the goals of restoration of a resistant American Chestnut. The Woodbridge Land Trust has planned their 2006 orchard including securing long term lease on land from the Town of Woodbridge. They have mother trees bagged and pollinated and hope to have some seed nuts this fall. Dr. Arnold has agreed to serve as Vice-President of the CT-TACF, and on the Nominating Committee for 2006. |
 |
Mr. Jim Gage is a Director and the Treasurer of the Northern Connecticut Land Trust and was a preserve monitor for The Nature Conservancy (Poquetanuck Cove) for approximately 8 years. A member of long-standing in the American Chestnut Foundation (9 years), Jim brings the strength of his partnership with one of the most active Land Trusts in the State. He has been Director of the Northern Connecticut Land Trust (NCLT) for approximately 8 years, Treasurer for approximately 6 years. He also served on the Ellington Conservation Commission for 3 years, and was Director and Treasurer of the Scantic River Watershed Association for 3 years. Jim retired from Pratt & Whitney Division of United Technologies in 1993. Jim Gage has agreed to serve as Treasurer of the CT-TACF for 2006. |
 |
Dr. Robert Gregg is a Director of the Woodbridge Land Trust and was instrumental in the acquisition of land for theTrust?s chestnut plantation. He has been a member since 2001 of the CT Chapter of the American Chestnut Foundation. Born in Dundee, Michigan, he received his MS and PhD in Chemistry from the University of Michigan. He joined what was to become Uniroyal, where he worked in various research and production capacities until his retirement in 1984. Throughout his career Dr. Gregg has been named as inventor on several patents, and authored or co-authored a number of scientific papers. He was a pioneer in establishing the mechanism of free radical polymerization now used to make billions of pounds a year of polymers. He was the inventor of the first commercial spandex and devised the rubber to wire adhesion system for steel-belted radial tires that keeps the rubber on the tire and off the side of the road. |
