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November 12, 2002 Kit is on Vacation. Here is a November 20, 2000: Whatever happend to ... ? Jon Bedernick
" Jon Bedernick
was a real "people person'. He was the first we hired right after being
an 'in house' 'organization. Bedernick had a lot of imagination... Events
and creativity was much better back then, then recently. I miss him.
" "
Jon came to WAEL from the Independent Banker's Association after search
committee interviewed more than 20 candidates and reviewed more than
100 resumes. Jon's strengths were his written communications and publications.
If you remember the Newsline prior to Jon's tenure it was of much lower
quality. Jon received a crash course in financial management during
his first year at WAEL. To say we had some tough finance meetings before
the BOD met is a gross understatement. The Executive Committee at the
time; Ben Millerbis-Past President, Jim Possehl-President, Ron Wagner-VP
and Bill Grohe-Sec-Tres held weekly conference calls and held Jon's
hand as much as possible. Our Spring Conference at the Camelback was
a success, but not without some significant good fortune. The Fall Seattle
Conference was also successful but the chaos behind the scenes was serious
hand wrenching. We were very fortunate to have hired excellent staff
and the year was a positive one for WAEL but required four or five times
the time and effort by the executive committee and a load of good luck."
After Months of conducting an extensive nationwide search, the WAEL Management Selection Task Force recommended a twenty -year association executive, Jon C Bedernick; he was appointed by the WAEL Board of Directors to the position of Executive Vice President during a special meeting held in November. Bednerick assumed his new post on December 5. That date marks the beginning of the transition from the long-term relationship with Management/Association Services, Inc. (MAS), which has been providing administrative support to WAEL for some fifteen years. WAEL will establish its own association headquarters staff in the Oakland/San Francisco Bay area. Plans call for the transition to be completed around mark of 1989. Chosen from a field of more than 400 candidates, Bednerick has been Executive Director of the Western Independent Bankers (WIB) for over five years. WIB is a regional trade association of 300 independent banks and some 50 associate member firms in thirteen Western States. Bednerik's association career includes serving as Director of Government Affairs for over six years with the National Association of Drilling Contractors, and five years with the National Society of Public Accountants, as well as two years with the National Association of Broadcasters. A registered lobbyist in Washington, D.C., his prior job experience was a newspaper reporter and in the advertising and publishing fields. A graduate of Rollins College in Winter Park, FL with a bachelor's degree in philosophy and government, he also completed his course work for an LLB at Vanderbilt University School of Law in Nashville, TN. Bednerik noted, "WAEL is extremely fortunate to have the benefit of outstanding volunteer member involvement and has enjoyed the services of one of the finest multi-association management firms in the country. Now WAEL has the opportunity to develop its own full time team. My goal is to continue to build on the strong foundation and to provide expanded membership services, to emphasize high quality seminars at reasonable costs, and to create higher public profile for professional lessors and the important role played by the leasing industry." An avid sailor, he and his wife Darlene, live in Alameda. Their daughter Lydia attends the University of California at Santa Cruz. Management of WAEL will be in the process of transition throughout the first few months of 1989, while the new office is being relocated. (See "President's Perspective" column for details on the Management Transition Task Force.) Watch your mail and future issues of Newsline for updates and details on all of the exciting changes currently happening in your association. Jon Today: Jon Bednerik,
CAE Glad to hear from you and get a chance to catch up on the latest from the WAEL/UEAL team members. I did not know Ray ( Prof. Ray Williams ) had left (although I saw him in August in Orlando at the ASAE - American Society of Association Executives - meetings). As usual, I am in the midst of change (whether I create it or am just the lucky exec to be around when it occurs). Our group has just re-negotiated our relationship with the national organization and now other parts of the country are following suit. We are still enjoying Sarasota (although the right offer from a San Diego area organization could certainly tempt us). Darlene is the Director of Public Affairs with the Sarasota Association of REALTORS (the same position she held in Oakland). I am the nominee for President-elect of the Florida Society of Association Executives (see what happens when you are out of the room when they are picking officers). Enjoyed reading the piece on Past President Hal Horowitz. I look forward to seeing this type of feature in the future. Thank you for helping keep the links alive. WAEL was a special time in our lives and the experience and skills that you all taught me have truly made me a better association executive. The personal relationships were equally as important and have been missed. Jon Bednerik,
CAE
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