New York Rural Water Association

Hello, for those of you who don't know me, my name is Steve Freeman. First let me tell you that it is an honor to be chosen as President of the most prestigious organization in the water and wastewater industry. I am from the Village of Boonville, which is about 30 miles north of the City of Utica. I am a New York State IIB certified water operator, as well as a New York State certified back flow prevention device tester. I have been with the Village of Boonville for the past 14 years. The village has approximately 950 water service connections, a population of about 2300, 17 miles of water main, and is home to the Oneida County Fairgrounds and the New York State Woodsmans Field Days. Well, enough about me. By taking on the obligation of President, I am faced with a very difficult task. That task is filling the shoes of past President Jerry Barron. For the past 6 years Jerry has served as a very effective President, dealing with such tasks as the new office / training center and new field programs, just to name a couple. Great job Jerry! For those of you who attend our Annual Technical Conference, you can probably imagine the amount of work it takes to put it all together. The staff works year round from the last day of one years conference, to the first day of the following years conference, year after year. That is just one example of the New York Rural Water Association staff's diligent work ethics. Your Association has seven field staff and three office staff, along with the CEO. Day after day the field staff is busy putting out the fires of rural communities, while the office staff tries to keep track of them, setting up their future appointments, handling member phone calls, the magazine, record keeping and a wide variety of other duties. The CEO is responsible for both the office and the field staff, as well as her own duties, from tracking bills at the capitol in Albany, to fulfilling her commitments to one of the many state committees she sits on, again, just to name a couple. As you can tell the NYRWA staff is a very busy bunch of professionals, when you see one of them keep that in mind.

To wrap up, I would like to say, I will do my best as President of your Association. We look forward to the many challenges that come down the pipe, so to speak. We look forward to future growth and future programs to better serve our members. Our members are our lifeblood, we do our best and are committed to you.