Dear GSA Members,

As we hit the halfway mark of the season, I'm thrilled to reflect on the incredible journey we've had so far. Let's take a moment to celebrate the achievements and acknowledge the efforts that have made the Geraldton Softball Association thrive this season.

First and foremost, a standing ovation to the dedicated members of the board. Their tireless work and unwavering commitment over the past few months have been nothing short of phenomenal. Behind the scenes, they've implemented numerous initiatives to enhance our organisation's functionality, ensuring that the GSA operates at its absolute best. While not all actions may be visible, each one contributes to the positive experience we aim to provide for our members. I hope that what you do get to see from their actions, instils faith that we are working to ensure the GSA is bloody amazing association to be a member of!

A massive shout-out to our outstanding clubs! It is very important in an organisation to have all parts working in unison and I strongly believe this is what we have currently between the board and our clubs. This positive relationship is creating a harmonious environment that enriches your softball experience. Your support significantly eases our responsibilities, and we're grateful for the collaboration that makes the GSA truly exceptional.

How fantastic was it to be able to watch one of our own perform on the international stage this past November! What an incredible achievement it was for Jy Thurston to don the Green & Gold and represent Australia at the world under 18 championships in Mexico. I personally loved being able to get up and watch Jy and his teammates take on the world each day. I also enjoyed keeping up to date with his family's adventures and from what I can see, they were the loudest and proudest at the event. If only I had another six hours our free time to go through all of Leanne's 3264 photos on Facebook.

While I'm discussing representative softball, we have six of our own participating at the various upcoming national championships. Jy will be joined by Jack Garland and Liam Meharry, representing WA in the under 23 national championships. We also have the opportunity to cheer on Jack Etherton and Owen Scantana in the Black and Gold during the under 16 competition. In the under 18 carnival, South Australia have picked themselves up a gem in Eli Etherton who gets the opportunity to play once again at a National Level. Go get em Lads!

In collaboration with Softball WA, we recently hosted a weekend filled with learning and upskilling. From scoring clinics to umpire sessions and skills development for our younger members, over 80 participants engaged in these valuable initiatives. Thats a very impressive number of members engaging in these sessions and make them all the worthwhile. Kudos to all involved in organising and executing these events.

Two of my highlights from the season so far have been our afterhours social events. After the success of our Welcome Back Bash and overwhelmingly positive feedback, we decided to throw another party and celebrate the festive season as an Association. It was fantastic to see so many members together and enjoying themselves down at the ballpark. These events create an opportunity for greater interaction between our clubs and their members and only strengthen the positive environment we're trying to foster with Geraldton Softball! I look forward to enjoying more of this in the second half the season. If you guys keep supporting these initiatives, we will endeavour to create more opportunities!

If you've driven past the ballpark in the last few days, you may notice that we are missing a rather large fence. Over the weekend a group of dedicated volunteers and a couple of supervisors assisted in removing the old back net from Diamond one. This has been a much-discussed project over the last few years, and it is wonderful to finally see progress on this matter. All things going to plan there will be a shiny new back net ready and waiting for everyone when we return to the fields in 2024. We do need to thank the City of Geraldton, Rio Tinto and Kennards Hire for their amazing contributions to help see this project through.

Lastly, I want to touch on one of my favourite parts of sport, which is the passion and enjoyment that our players and spectators display week in week out. As an association we want to encourage this spirited and vocal support of our team, our club and our friends, we also love to see banter between teammates and combatants alike. From time to time, we still do come across the occasional comment or behaviour which crosses the line of what we hope to see within our Association. All we can do is to continue to help each other stay within the acceptable boundaries so that everyone enjoys their experience at the Geraldton Softball Association, whether it be your 1st experience or your one 1,000th experience!

I wish you all a very Merry Festive season and look forward to another extraordinary year of Softball in 2024!

PS - I’m still on the lookout for more colourful socks from you all!

Regards,

Paul Valenti

Chairperson - Geraldton Softball Association

E: chair@geraldtonsoftball.com.au

www.geraldtonsoftball.com.au