We once again braved through the terrible weather for another MSOL meeting! This month Ofc Michael Croteau of Westford PD hosted the meeting at the BBC. His speakers were Christy Barbee (Case Coordinator) and Jennifer Larson Sawin (Executive Director) of Communities for Restorative Justice (C4RJ). Christy and Jennifer presented the members with a brief outline of their organization. The mission of C4RJ is to offer “restorative justice as a complement to the criminal justice system where victims of crime are given an opportunity to be heard and understood; offenders are held accountable for their actions in constructive ways; and community members offer support and concern.” The ‘myths’ or ‘stereotypes’ behind organizations such as this were discussed head on and Christy and Jennifer explained the entire process and the role of the Police throughout the process. Handouts with case studies of the program were provided to the members and a number of questions were asked. Currently the organization is based out of Concord, MA and six communities are involved: Acton, Ayer, Boxborough, Carlisle, Concord, Everett, Groton, Littleton and Westford. If there are any members interested in learning about the program, please check out the website at www.C4RJ.com or contact:

Christy Barbee                    978-318-3467           cbarbee@C4RJ.com
Jennifer Larson Sawin       978-318-3447            jlarsonsawin@C4RJ.com

During the General Meeting, Chris Harrington discussed the partnership with Saving Lives, Inc. This non-profit organization is led by the MSOL’s own Kym Craven and Kym is currently focusing on a grant to provide Members with some different safety opportunities. The main focus is CPS and funding for education, training, equipment, and community events is being sought. The BOD will be looking for a liaison to this partnership and if anyone is interested, they should contact Ofc. Chris Harrington.
Olivia Silva is working on a date for the Citizen Safety Award for 2009. Due to some scheduling issues, the award was not presented in June. Danvers PD is looking at some dates and Olivia will update us when one becomes available. It will most likely not be on the Meeting Dates, so keep your eyes open for an email!

We did have a number of people sign up for the New England Driver Safety Conference being held in Nashua, NH on October 29th and October 30th. We are still looking for people to man the table – we are looking for 2-hour blocks but will not be disappointed with anything you may have to offer.

This is a great opportunity to get the MSOL out there and for people to see the variety in Members.
In November, we will be taking a vote to change the MSOL Bylaws. Attached you will see what the ballot will look like. The reason for changing the By-Laws is to give Members an opportunity to get more involved. There have been some years when only one person is nominated for one position and other years where four people may be vying for one position. The Board is not looking to up the BOD membership two-fold, but instead allow opportunities to those who wish to be even more involved. Also, the BOD is looking to increase/decrease the numbers at their discretion depending on the attendance at the General Meetings.

As always, your input is important! If you have any pictures from your summer events, please forward them to Jennifer Bellissimo for website publishing! jbellissimo@townofchelmford.us

November 3, 2010

Article VII: Officers
Section B

CURRENT
“The Board of Directors shall be comprised of the Officers (President, First Vice President, Second Vice President, Executive Secretary, and Treasurer), plus six other persons who shall be elected annually.


THE MSOL Board of Directors is proposing the following change:
“The Board of Directors shall be comprised of the Officers (President, First Vice President, Second Vice President, Executive Secretary, and Treasurer), plus no fewer than five with a maximum to be determined by the Board of Directors.”


________________ In favor of the Proposed Changes to the By-Laws


________________ Opposed to the Proposed Changes to the By-Laws