Elections scheduled for VAS Ambulance

Annual meeting moved to Avoca

— The annual meeting of VAS Ambulance Service Corporation is set for 10 a.m.

Saturday, Jan. 16, in the Avoca Community Room which is adjacent to the Avoca Fire Department office. At that time, nominations will be taken from the floor for three positions on the board of directors.

It will be the first annual meeting for the organization under its new name and bylaws.

VAS, chartered in 1981 as Volunteer Ambulance Service, has held annual meetings in Garfield historically.

A new board was elected Oct. 31, 2008, at a meeting at the Arvest community room in Garfield.

This past year, the board changed the name of the organization to VAS Ambulance Service Corporation, adopted new bylaws and hired full-time employees, no longer operating as a volunteer service.

According to the bylaws, the annual meeting will be held in the month of January each year. The purpose of the meeting is to elect directors to the board and for the transaction of any other business that may come before the meeting. The board is required to notify the public of place, day and hour not less than 10 days and not more 50 days before the scheduled date of the meeting by publishing notice in the localnewspaper.

“It is customary that the elections are held at the annual meeting,” Tony Miltich, board member, said. “Our bylaws state that the paper notice is notice to the public.

Nominations will be from the floor.”

As to the reason for the change in location, Miltich said: “For decades it has only be held up at NEBCO and Avoca is as much a part of it as NEBCO. It’s so more people from Avoca can participate.”

There are nine board members. Seats currently held by Miltich, Gary Echols and Jim Geddie are up for election.

VAS is funded by annual dues charged on the real property tax bill to the 4,000 households in the northeast Benton County area. Any person residing in the district may nominate a board member and cast a vote. The meetings are open to the public.

News, Pages 1 on 01/06/2010