News

Posted September 3, 2006
Re: Letter from the President

August 28, 2006

Dear Friends,

I would like to introduce myself as the newly elected president of the board of directors for Friends of
Westwind. There are some new faces (both equine and human) at Westwind Barn, so it will probably take
me a while to get to know everyone. Please be patient with me!

It is my highest priority to make sure that Westwind Barn continues to be a place where everyone feels
welcome and supported. I’ve always marveled at the fact that the Friends of Westwind community is so
diverse and accepting. It doesn’t matter whether you live down the block or in a neighboring town. It
doesn’t matter whether you’re young or old. It doesn’t matter if you’re a new rider or one that has ridden all
your life. It doesn’t matter if you own, lease, or borrow a horse – or just love to stop in and visit. It doesn’t
matter if you’re a boarder – or someone who participates in one of Westwind’s many programs. It doesn’t
matter whether you prefer one riding style or many. Whether a boarder, program participant, or a volunteer,
everyone is welcome – and the warmth and generosity of spirit that has been an intricate part of this
community since Friends of Westwind came into existence more than 28 years ago continues to make an
impression on everyone who visits this wonderful place!

In short, this community has deep roots and many new branches. Just as each and every horse adds a bit of
his own character to Westwind Barn – so do each of you. It is exactly this rich diversity that makes Westwind
such a unique and wonderful place. There is room for all of us at Westwind and we all have something in
common that connects us. We want Westwind to remain a place for people who love horses!
In my relatively short time at Westwind, I have met some of the most devoted "horse people" I have ever
encountered – and some of the most loved and well cared for horses. It fills me with pride to be a part of this
organization and a part of this community! And I want to reassure each one of you that you have elected a
strong, dedicated board of directors. No matter what the challenge, this team is ready to take it on – and will
do its utmost to preserve and protect Westwind and the community we love from those who would destroy it
for personal gain. To us, Westwind isn’t an “asset.” It’s more than that. It’s a treasure that is loved and
enjoyed by horse lovers throughout Northern California. And we want to ensure that it remains a treasure for
years to come!

If you would like to share any of your thoughts and ideas about Westwind with me, I would be delighted to
meet with you. Our wonderfully talented barn manager, Caesar, should be your first stop in addressing any
questions regarding day-to-day barn management; but please feel free to contact me or any member of our
very dedicated board of directors on any issues that are of concern to you.
If you would like to contact me, please send an email to ulli.sharma@gmail.com or you can call me direct at
(650) 283-4721 (cell). And thank you for your confidence in me! I won’t let you down!

Happy Trails!
Ulli Sharma
President
Friends of Westwind

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Posted July 9, 2006
Re: 2006 State of the Barn Address

Friends of Westwind Board of Directors
Sharon O'Malley, President
2006 State of the Barn Address
June 17, 2006

Good afternoon and welcome to the 2006 annual meeting of Friends of Westwind. On behalf of the Board of Directors, let me thank each and every one of you for your efforts this past year on behalf of Westwind Barn! As a non-profit, Friends relies on its members and volunteers for guidance, volunteer help, and support. Each of you deserves a round of applause for all that you've given to Westwind Barn this past year.

For our newer members, let me take a moment to discuss who we are and why we are here. More than 28 years ago, Friends of Westwind was founded to manage the operations at Westwind. We're a non-profit, social organization chartered with the lease, management and operation of the barn. So what does that mean? And who are we? Well, our membership includes:

• Los Altos Hills residents with and without horses
• Nonresidents from surrounding communities
• Local families
• Neighbors
• Club members (4-H, Pony Club, etc.)
• Instructors...and many others!

We do not discriminate - and have never turned away a prospective member in our entire history! The fees you pay as a member go into a general fund that covers:

• Upkeep
• Maintenance of the facilities
• Improvements to property
• Administrative costs

A few facts you might not be aware of…
• Friends has never needed a loan to continue operation
• We have an excellent credit rating
• We have an excellent safety rating
• We have no outstanding debts or large liabilities
• We raised $100K to build the lower arena a few years ago

In fact, there hasn't been a single liability claim since Friends of Westwind took over management in 1977! This is quite a claim - since there probably isn't another public facility in the state that can say the same! The reason we have this great safety record is because our members have worked closely and carefully with Parks and Recreation and other groups to ensure safety of visitors, boarders and riders. So, what does it take to run Westwind?

Each year, our members put in HUNDREDS of volunteer hours!!!
• We help maintain the property. We help with landscaping, garbage pick-ups, and even pruning our beautiful rose bushes.
• We police ourselves and visitors, making sure that Westwind remains safe for visitors, facility users, guests, and horses.
• We raise money to keep the property in good working order through our yearly fundraisers.

Behind the scenes…
• We oversee the budget, which as our Treasurer will point out currently exceeds $300,000.
• We manage the boarding program.
• We work closely with Parks & Recreation, 4-H, and other organizations that utilize the facility to ensure that programming and operations are in sync.
• We ensure that horses are well taken care of and that their everyday needs are being met.
• We make sure that any repairs that need to be made to the barn or the grounds are taken care of.
• We take care of emergency operations if needed (for example, we made sure the huge tree that fell this past year was removed quickly).
• We make sure that Westwind has a staff person on site 24-hours per day.
• We hire staff as needed.

In fact, as you know, we have some great new additions to our team this year, which currently includes our fabulous Barn Manager, Caesar. Caesar has done an amazing job these past months and we thank him immensely for his dedication and hard work. In addition to Caesar, Camarino, who works the a.m. shift, and Oscar, who works the afternoon and evening shifts, have joined him as full-time members. Jeremia and Temo work part time. Members Stephanie Kolkka and Dianna Watters have worked many, many part-time hours to support our staffing requirements. In short, Friends of Westwind isn't a nameless, faceless organization. It's You!!! And YOU deserve a big round of applause for all YOU do!

Now, as many of you know, this has been a challenging year for Friends. A small group of disgruntled individuals have made it their mission to convince the Town Council and the community that Friends shouldn't be managing operations at Westwind. This group has been spreading misinformation about the organization, its mission, and its members.

First, let me assure you that your board of directors won't stand for attacks like that on our community. So we've made every effort this year to combat those negative messages. We started an educational campaign to educate the community about Friends of Westwind and made it our mission to explain how much you have done for Westwind and this community over the past 28 years. And, we're working to make sure that information that has been distorted about Friends and its operations are clarified and the record set straight.

We'll start that today. So if any of you have any questions about specific issues, let's take some time today to discuss them. And, I'll call on other individuals as needed to help me out. A few quick notes on some of the key issues:

In regard to staff housing at Westwind:
Westwind needs 24-hour security to ensure the safety of the horses and the facility. If there's an emergency in the middle of the night, whether fire or an earthquake or even a medical emergency with a horse, we need someone on the grounds to take care of the situation. The barn currently has sleeping quarters for the staff member who is on duty overnight. Staff is not required to live here full-time. We do have available one overnight staff room (formerly Gregorio's). We are currently interviewing potential candidates for that room. And, the accompanying part-time position.

Now I'm sure you read in the paper about the housing issues last fall. First, let me assure you that allowing one of the staff members and his family to live in the barn full-time was a decision made years and years ago. And, it was made with the best intentions. The issues surrounding that have been resolved. If you have specific questions, we'll address them. But, a few quick points:

• There was a growing concern among board members and the Town about the suitability of the living quarters for a growing family.
• In conjunction with the Town, we agreed to have someone assess the situation. The inspector found that a wall had been added to one of the living quarters. This changed the set-up of the original living quarters and required the addition of a window to meet current building codes.
• Based on this and a few other minor concerns, the Town made the decision to evict the family on January 26, 2006. They did this without prior notice and before Friends had seen the final report. The decision was made in haste, and took everyone by surprise. However, it did not leave the staff member and his family homeless.

To clarify, the family had never been required to live at Westwind. They asked to live there to save money and send their kids to school in this district. Years ago, permission was given as a perk to that staff member. During that time, the family saved money and bought a home in the area. A home that they could have moved into at any time. Instead, they chose to rent it out and stay at the barn. When the Town evicted the family, which they had a right to do as owner of the property, Friends’ members pulled together and helped pay for temporary housing in a local residence inn for the family. Today, we are not allowed by the Town of Los Altos Hills to make the final improvements necessary to return that room to overnight staff quarters.

In regard to labor issues:
When issues about the housing made the paper, Westwind staff was approached by attorneys and individuals eager to capitalize on the situation. Before that time, there had been no dispute surrounding how Friends compensated its employees. Although I can't discuss details publicly, let me assure you that the board has reviewed the questions brought up by former employees to the labor commission and we feel confident that we've been paying our staff appropriately. In addition, above and beyond requirements of the law, our full-time staff receives
paid vacation and health insurance.

As you may know, the labor code is complicated. And, it was made even more complicated a few years ago when new federal laws went into place. However, our board has worked with professionals to determine how employees should be categorized and paid. Frankly, every organization has some issue come up over labor at some time. It's not unusual for staff to have questions about how they were paid and whether they should have been paid more. Regardless of rumors, at the time, no lawsuit has been filed against Friends on any labor issues. There has simply been a request made to the labor commission to review guidelines and to make sure that Friends is categorizing its employees correctly. We'll be sure to keep you posted on happenings.

As with any organization, rumors do tend to fly around. If you have a concern, we would rather you make the extra effort to talk to a board member about what you've heard. That's the best thing we can do to ensure that rumors don't hurt the reputation of Friend and its members.

In regard to governance: A lot of rhetoric has been flying around. In short, there are those that insist that the Town should break the lease and take over "governance". So what does that mean? First, the Town of Los Altos Hills owns the property, and they do have ultimate control of the property. It's as simple as that.

• We can't make major renovations to the barn or the property without their permission.
• We can't add major programs without working with Parks & Recreation on details.
• We go before the Town Council yearly to review our use permit.

In short, there is no governance issue. But there are two big areas of concern:

• Upgrading and renovating the property
• Improving and adding programs

First, any organization managing "operations" at Westwind is going to be doing just that. Managing operations. They aren't going to be responsible for programs or for renovation to the barn. So, the Town is going to be responsible for these two key areas no matter who is managing the facilities. In short, the problem doesn't stem from Friends of Westwind. We've just been made out to be the culprit! In reality, the problem stems from the fact that no master plan exists for the property! With no master plan, various groups are constantly vying for use of the facilities. There is continual debate over:
• Location of paddocks and riding rings
• Which programs get priority and funding
• Future program expansion

The neighbors worry that new programs or building efforts are going to impact them. And, the door is open for anyone to stir up controversy with neighbors and other organizations over usage, new facilities, etc. As the manager of the facilities, Friends of Westwind management has to be the bad guy. The organization is chartered with looking at the condition of the property at various times of the year and has
to make judgment calls as to boarder usage, program usage, priority repairs, etc.

Sometimes we make people happy.

Those organizations or individuals don't complain. Sometimes we make people mad. Those people do complain. But their complaints don't mean Friends of Westwind isn't doing its job. That's the nature of managing a facility like Westwind. So, how do you solve these problems?

First, form a special committee devoted to developing a master plan for Westwind! This is just what the Town Council has decided to do this past month. A master plan will map out a ten-year vision for Westwind. It will identify key programs. And, it will figure out what site improvements need to be made to put those programs into place. Once a master plan is in place, it will make our job running operations much easier. We're encouraging members to apply for the master plan committee; particularly those with experience in horse care, working on long term planning, etc.

It will be a big job, but an important one.

If you have questions or are interested, let one of the board members know and we'll give you more information.

Before we hear from the Treasurer, let me address the issue of the lower arena.We'll be forming a special committee to look into raising funds to improve the base of the lower arena. Anyone interested should be sure to let the board know you're interested in helping out!

Finally, it has been my pleasure to serve on the Board of the Friends of Westwind. I'm amazed at how much effort and hard work goes into making this organization run effectively. There's no way a "for profit" organization could come in here and do what we do. And, it's all possible because of you! You should be very proud. And, on behalf of the board, we thank you for your efforts and your support!

Thank you,
Sharon O'Malley

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Posted: April 13, 2006
Re: Westwind employee privacy

April 13, 2006

As an employer, Friends of Westwind protects the privacy of its employees regarding pay rates, job descriptions, and performance issues. We would never comment publicly on a possible dispute, and we hope that others will show similar tact and discretion.

Sharon O'Malley
President
Friends of Westwind