Introducing the new ABPA Facebook page ...

[Shelley Hansen]

Greetings All ...

On behalf of the ABPA Executive, it is my pleasure to introduce you to our new ABPA Facebook page ...

https://www.facebook.com/Australian-Bus ... 4/?fref=ts

This page has been newly created and is still in its infancy, but like all babies, it will grow!

As well as sharing quality Aussie bush poetry, the aim of this page is to showcase the events, activities and endeavours of ABPA and its diverse family of members. We are hearing great reports of the work of our performing poets and writers – in the community, in support of charity fundraising, on road trips, in the “grey nomad” arena – and so on. We know you are enthusiastically keeping the bush poetry craft alive and vibrant, and this page will provide an opportunity to publicise such endeavours through social media.

In addition, our Fund Raising Officer Janine Keating has been working behind the scenes to secure corporate sponsorship for the ABPA, and our Promotions Officer Brenda Joy has been working to increase public awareness of bush poetry and to find multiple ways in which we can all promote our genre throughout our local and Australia-wide community.

Our new ABPA page supports these endeavours and will give the chance for us all to broadcast any poetry events and activities we are involved in to a wider audience. It will also give members the ability to share the posts on their own Facebook pages.

We invite you to visit the page and “like” it. If you are involved in bush poetry and related activities, please feel free to upload the details as a visitor’s post. For those who are not Facebook users, you may email any member of the Executive to have appropriate information directed to the page’s administrators.

Regards
Shelley (ABPA Treasurer)

[Hal Pritchard]

This is a terrific move and well worth all the work that has gone towards setting it up as a link from the logo on the ABPA website homepage.
Thank you to everyone concerned.
Hal and Brenda

[Stephen Whiteside]

This looks great, Shelley, thanks. But I am a little confused. There is also a Facebook page for the Australian Rhyming Poets, and they look very similar. Why do we have the two of them?

[Shelley Hansen]

Hi Stephen

Thanks for the question - and you are quite right about the apparent similarity of the pages. As a regular Facebook user you would have noticed that the original ABPA Community Facebook page has recently undergone a change of name to "Australian Rhyming Poets". The renamed page's description says in part: “Primarily we foster and encourage Australian Rhyming (also known as 'Bush') Poetry. Australian Bush Poetry by definition, is metered rhyming verse about Australia, Australians and/or the Australian way of life. However, on this page we welcome rhymed and metered verse from anywhere across the globe.”

The Executive felt it was important that ABPA still had a Facebook page that is clearly identifiable with our Association, as distinct from rhyming poetry in general. For that reason the new page has been created as an “organisation” rather than a “community” page. We feel this enhances our ability to use it as an advertising tool for sponsors as well as showcasing the talents of our members.

Cheers
Shelley

[Stephen Whiteside]

OK. Thanks for the explanation, Shelley.

[Maureen K Clifford]

At the risk of sounding a trifle bitchy or like a woman scorned, I found this comment rather amusing

The Executive felt it was important that ABPA still had a Facebook page

since the previous FB page of 3 years standing and very many hours of work and daily updates, received no acknowledgement at all from previous committees either at AGM's or on the forum other than on the one occasion that I recall. It was this marked lack of interest and support for it that was one of the reasons behind the change in name to Australian Rhyming Poets.

[Shelley Hansen]

Hi Maureen

I cannot comment on the views of previous committees, but I can assure you that the members of the current executive are very interested in using social media as a means to publicise and market the endeavours of ABPA. It is one of the few avenues we have to get our stories out to a wider audience.

I am well aware of your extensive work in this field.

Regards
Shelley

[Brenda Joy]

Hello Maureen and for the information of all,

I cannot comment on what happened in 2013 when Manfred Vijars was ABPA President, but as the ABPA Secretary for the past 2 years (2014 and 2015) while Hal Pritchard was President, I can comment and can even give evidence of the ABPA Committee’s appreciate of and support for both the Forum and the Facebook pages.

Aside from many telephone conversations from Hal regarding Facebook and extensive discussions at a Committee and at a personal level, I submit the following quotations from Hal’s President’s Reports which can be verified through their insertion in the relevant ABPA Magazines.

From President's Report delivered at the 2015 AGM and in the 2015 February/March ABPA magazine.
"Thanks also go to Maureen Clifford for the very attractive Facebook pages and for sharing bush poetry through the well-presented on-line magazine The Australian Times and to Manfred Vijars and the team of facilitators for the successful running of the ABPA Forum. All members are urged to take advantage of the interactive opportunities of this network."

From President's Report 2015 August/September
"Thanks largely to the work of Gregory North, Webmaster, Maureen Clifford, Facebook Co-ordinator, Neil McArthur, Magazine Editor and Manfred Vijars, Forum Administrator, the ABPA is able to offer communication links to suit the taste and needs of all its members... We must thank all our networking team for the valuable contribution they make towards keeping newcomers and members aware, interested and informed."
From President's Report delivered at the 2016 AGM and printed in the 2016 February/March ABPA magazine.
"Our website showcases modern poets and performers, lists poetry events, competitions and festivals, displays award winning poems and yarns, provides writing and performing techniques, contains bush poetry competition resources and links to others socially and instructively through the Forum and Facebook social media."

Thank you,
Brenda Joy (2014/2015 ABPA Secretary) current ABPA Promotions Officer

[Hal Pritchard]

In addition to substantiating what Brenda has posted above (as the 2014/15 ABPA Secretary), it should be noted that the ABPA’s Facebook page was taken away and renamed without any consideration or comment to the present committee. As the current ABPA Vice President, I tried to reach Maureen on numerous occasions to discuss the situation with her and to explain that there cannot be a name change without costly and proper procedures being adhered to. By renaming the ABPA Facebook without consultation, this effectively left the ABPA with no supporting Facebook page.

The important thing now is to know that, following a great deal of work by all members of the current ABPA executive, supported by technical expertise, we do now have an ABPA Facebook page which cannot be commandeered or stolen by any party. This is essential to our organisation and we urge all who have been previously participating in this valuable ABPA social media outlet, to utilise the new page accessed by link from the homepage of our ABPA website. We thank you for continuing to support your ABPA organisation.

In addition, more generally, not many people realise the amount of work that a committee does in keeping an organisation legally maintained and able to serve the multiple needs of all of its members. I must say that I am not happy at aspersions that have been cast by some who are unaware at all that goes on beyond the scenes and who do little to help the overall objectives of the ABPA. The negative comments cast here, and elsewhere, against the extremely hard working and dedicated 2014 and 2015 ABPA Committees is not appreciated. Things like this cause valued contributors and members to walk away.

In the two years while I was President, despite numerous calls for others to volunteer to assist in the running of the ABPA, not one person came forward to offer to fulfil a role. Very few came forward to even say thank you. As applies to the current committee, the whole running of the ABPA is down to a handful of enthusiastic workers who have the interests of the ABPA and all its members at heart. Please bring any concerns you have direct to the administration. Negativity and false or unfounded backstabbing criticism does little for the overall good of the ABPA and nothing at all for bush poetry in general.

Hal Pritchard (2014/2015 ABPA President) current Vice President

[Neville Briggs]

When members register for this site we agree on a standard of material to be posted, I am wondering if posting the term " prima donnas " as a reference to other members ,is complying with the agreement. Perhaps someone could make that clear for me.