<p>The DignityUSA Board of Directors met in San Francisco the host city for Convention 2009 from Friday March 27 to Sunday March 29. The meeting was held in the convention venue the Parc 55 Hotel in the heart of the vibrant city.</p> <p><strong>Strategic Plan</strong>: The Board approved a 5-year strategic plan in October 2008. Six months later the progress and status in five major priorities were discussed:</p> <ol> <li>Ensure efficient and effective operation of the National Office: 80 to 100% of action items in this priority have been achieved.</li> <li>Rebuild relationships with local expressions of Dignity: Considerable progress has been made with regular Chapter Leaders Teleconferences and chapter visits by board leadership and the Executive Director. Most initiatives however are in process and incomplete.</li> <li>Pursue proactive and prophetic witness as the best agent of change: DignityUSA&rsquo;s visibility has been heightened in the past year by numerous national press releases mobilization actions and a marketing &amp; advertising campaign. Future work will build on these recent successes.</li> <li>Reverse the trend of declining membership by &ldquo;Enlarging the Tent&rdquo;: Mostly in the planning stages with action and implementation slated to begin in 2009.</li> <li>Create effective partnerships that enhance our ability to build an inclusive church and society: Mostly in the planning stages but with some success in securing grant funding.</li> </ol> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Convention 2009</strong> is ahead of track with major groundwork completed or well underway. While much &ldquo;nuts &amp; bolts&rdquo; implementation remains to be done the Board and Convention Committee are confident of having everything ready to go by the July 2nd date. Convention 2011 is also ahead of track with a favorable hotel contract nearly finalized.</p> <p><strong>Executive Director&rsquo;s Report</strong>: Marianne Duddy-Burke is busy forming working alliances with like-minded Catholic groups as well as other GLBT groups. A joint press release with New Ways Ministry and Call To Action opposing the Pope&rsquo;s ban on condoms to prevent HIV transmission was issued March 18 2009 (see page 2). She is also building on last year&rsquo;s success with securing grant funding for DignityUSA.</p> <p><strong>Marketing Committee</strong>: Local and nationwide ad campaigns are underway (see March 2009 Dateline for details). Future plans envision the expansion of the local ad campaigns to more markets and eventually national roll-outs.</p> <p><strong>Treasurer&rsquo;s Report</strong>: Overall the state of DignityUSA&rsquo;s financial health is good. The Accountants&rsquo; Review Report for Fiscal Year 2007-2008 dated March 16 2009 was satisfactory. 6-month (Oct 2008 &ndash; March 2009) Operating Statement will be published in the May 2009 Dateline.</p> <p><strong>Ballot issues</strong>: The Board approved two proposed bylaw amendments for Dignity- USA members to approve by ballot in July 2009. Members will receive the proposed amendments with the President/Vice President and Board of Director ballots in the beginning of May 2009. While the election of President/Vice President and Directors occur before the national convention the bylaw vote will occur after the July 2009 membership meeting at the convention. Future Datelines will contain more information on the bylaw proposals.</p> <p><strong>San Francisco Chapter Hospitality</strong>: Dignity/San Francisco hosted a delicious dinner at a local Italian restaurant Saturday evening March 28th. Including board members and chapter hosts over 40 people enjoyed a wonderful evening of getting to know each other. The Board of DignityUSA thanks Dignity/San Francisco for being such gracious hosts and for the great progress in realizing the upcoming convention.</p>