Volleyball Nova Scotia’s annual general meeting in Truro was full of drama and tension.
The meeting lasted just 10 minutes before Paul Worden, the organization’s president, shut it down. Warden said that the first speaker brought up that the group has been run using a 39-year-old set of rules that may not be valid anymore. The only set of bylaws with the Nova Scotia registry of joint stocks is the original document from 1977.
This meaning that changes made since 1977 might not be valid.
“I didn’t know if the member was correct that we were legally bound to 1977 set. I didn’t know how we could move forward in a meeting with such unsurety of how voting was to unfold,” said Worden.
The meeting that took place was open to members of Volleyball Nova Scotia and the parents of the youth volleyball players.
Two banned members, Leanne Marriott and Rick Doane, were not allowed to take part in the meeting. Marriott is a former youth volleyball coach and is serving a one-year ban, while Doane is a former VNS board member serving a three-year ban. Each were banned after questioning publicly the decision-making within the organization. With this called into play, both of the suspensions may not be legally binding.
Doane said that tensions flared following the meeting when the president was questioned regarding a series of alleged ethical breaches and questionable decision-making.
“There were people screaming and shouting,” said Doane.
The organization is now seeking legal advice concerning the suspensions and the status of the bylaws. Volleyball Nova Scotia will resume the annual meeting once the bylaw confusion has been resolved.
No meeting date has been set.
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