Bonneville America Forums Forums Off Topic Discussion Forums Lounge BA.com.. looking forward

The question of the future of BA.com has been posed by some concerned members since the passing of our friend FJ..... We had wanted to allow some time for a mourning period of sorts before making a public statement concerning the continued operations of this web site but I feel we need to go ahead and lay any fears or concerns to rest.

John was a forward thinking kind of guy.. (and maybe a bit psychic as it turns out) as he had instituted a plan for "just in case" over a year and a half ago. As with all business matters concerning BA.com, it was discussed amongst our group (mods) and a plan was set forth for the site to continue on past his untimely death or incapacitation. Of course none of us ever thought it would be necessary (yeah.. right John) but he wanted us to be prepared all the same.

In Janurary 2011, Moe, Wojo and I were sent the "keys" to the site.. all things concerning the operation, liscensing and funding of Bonnevilleamerica.com is now in our quite competent hands and through a joint effort we will continue on the path that he and others have laid down before us and will continue to work towards keeping this site the same place we have all come to know and love.

Concerns:
Financing.... at this time all financial matters are well in hand.. all dues and liscenses are paid in advance. We are in the process of restablishing a fund for those of you wishing to donate to the site, we will make an announcement when those arrangements are complete.

Administrative:
John, in his wisdom and forethought, learned as the rest of us did that a single Admin site is a fragile thing.. One person with all the keys and all the control, passes on, goes off the deep end, cuts off communication.. with everyone... or whatever the case may be, can be left to dwindle and die. Thus the multi-admin approach that is in place now assures the future of this site. Moe, Wojo and I have been here since the beginnings and rest assured there are no members more dedicated to the survival of this site and honoring the history of it than we three.

Creativity: All creative ideas, plans and changes to the site have always been discussed as a group amongst our moderator staff. It has been that way since John took over the site and will continue to be that way in the future. While John was the driving force, he also believed a cooperative approach was best and I think the continued success of our now 10 year old website is proof positive that it works.

Changes: We plan to change nothing at this time.. it a good system, and it works so we will continue on as we always have in an effort to provide a friendly, family oriented place for all who wish to participate.

Hammer of Smiting: It is still here... John left it for us with specific instructions to wield it freely should the need arise. So play nice!

Moe: The man has spent countless hours of his personal time researching and compiling information to assure the survival of BA.com.. be sure to say thanks.

In a nutshell: We have the knowledge and capacity to continue on as always and plan to do so.

Although many of the newer members may not know me I hope some of our older members will remember my years of moderating here at Bonnevilleamerica.com and understand I was just taking a break from the daily tasks.

When John took over the site he trusted Chy, Moe and myself with the keys to the kingdom as insurance. I believe neither one of us gave it a second thought but even from the afterlife John has shown more wisdom than the three of us combined.

As Chy stated above, this site will go on. First and foremost every single one of the mods here think of the site as a family and that it is unique in that sense.

The mods of BA.com have always been it's heart with John being the site's soul and conscience. Even though we have lost him that soul will live on here.

John's way of doing things was to ask our opinions before making a decision but also to back each of us when we made a move on our own. Even during my hiatus John never cut me out of the loop, at times going out of his way to make sure I knew when something major was being discussed. We don't see a need to change any of that one bit.

At this time we do ask the membership for two things; patience as we need to wrap our heads around what needs to get done and how we can each do our best but most of all we need the time to get over the shock and to mourn the loss of our friend. Thank you.

John died intestate. Yet he let his Will be known regarding his bonnevilleamerica family. We’ll never need to open John’s stuff and poke around. No need to do anything more than to ensure the keys are secured and accessible. Then one rainy day in June. Omg.

This community John Bedard loved so dearly will continue.