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Administration

OMTA
1710 Oakhurst Court
Eugene, OR 97402-8002

MEMBERSHIP
Interested in joining OMTA?
Print an application to mail.
Have a question about your membership?
Contact Heather Bennouri at info@bennouri.net

FAQ
Have a question? Want to know about insurance, licensing, laws? See Frequently Asked Questions.

Elections

Two offices are up for election in even-numbered years: President and Vice-President. Three offices are up for election in odd-numbered years: Secretary, Treasurer and Membership. Click on the links to see the Job Description.

Nominations for the elected positions on the Executive Committee open on April 1 and close at the Annual Conference in October. Ballots will be mailed to all voting members. Per the By-Laws, three members of the Executive Committee will meet to count the ballots. Newly elected officers will be invited to attend the next scheduled EC meeting.

Terms begin in November and last for two years. Biographies of the nominees are required, using the format below. If you wish to nominate someone (or yourself), fill in the information below, and email to the webmaster, Robert Bike, at robertbike@comcast.net. To print out a blank ballot biography, click here.

PROPOSED BY-LAWS CHANGES

OMTA's By-Laws were reviewed by a committee selected to examine them to see if they fit under existing law and existing practices. The Committee recommended some changes. The Executive Committee reviewed the recommendations, made minor corrections, and are presenting them to the membership for a vote. The Executive Committee strongly recommends a YES vote on amending the By-Laws.

Here is a PDF of the By-Laws with additions bolded, and subtractions lined through.

Here is a PDF of a table explaning the By-Laws changes.

2009 OFFICER ELECTIONS

Secretary Nominations

Name: Joni Kutner

Number of Years in Practice: In practice since 1990

Oregon Massage License #: 3296

Education: BS in Nursing and Dance, Former Certified Athletic Trainer, Massage Therapy, Advanced Cardiac Life Support, Advanced Pediatric Life Support, Basic Life Support

Membership in Professional Organizations: American Nursing Association, Oregon Nursing Association, ABMP, OMTA

Short description of the type of massage/bodywork you practice: Swedish, Deep Tissue, Reflexology, on-site chair

What gifts and strengths do you feel that you will bring as a member of the Executive Committee of OMTA? Good organizational skills, has a different perspective having been in both Athletic training and in Nursing

What do you see as the most important next step for the position for which you have been nominated? Keeping membership informed and up to date.

What do you see as the most important next step for the position for which you have been nominated? Want to keep abreast of what’s going on with the legislature and be active where able to keep licensing active.

What do you envision for the future of OMTA? Help increase membership numbers by going to schools and talking to students.

Treasurer Nominations

none

Membership Nominations

Name: S. Heather Bennouri

Number of Years in Practice: In practice since 2002

Oregon Massage License #: 10079

Education: BA, Creative Writing, Pacific University 1996; Ashmead College, Professional Licensing Program and Sports and Clinical Treatment Specialization, 2002

Membership in Professional Organizations: ABMP, OMTA, USA Gymnastics, OBMT board member since February 2009

Short description of the type of massage/bodywork you practice: Integrated blend of deep tissue and treatment therapies with hot/cold and negative pressure modalities

What gifts and strengths do you feel that you will bring as a member of the Executive Committee of OMTA? Passion for the field of massage therapy and commitment to the ongoing integrity and value of OMTA.

What do you see as the most important next step for the position for which you have been nominated? Putting the membership database into an online format and integrating it with the web site so that all information is current in one place, with a one-step process for both members and the Executive Committee to update and access information.

What do you envision for the future of OMTA? Play a critical role in maintaining licensure and professionalism for the field of massage therapy in Oregon.

Below are the 2008-2009 new officers of the Executive Committee. Robert was elected by the membership. Rowan was elected by the Executive Committee to fill a vacancy after a resignation. Both were inducted at the November meeting of your Executive Committee.

For President

Name: Robert Bike

Number of Years in Practice: 13 (1995)

Oregon Massage License #: 5473

Education: AA Journalism 1975

Membership in Professional Organizations: Member of Executive Committee of OMTA in various capacities since 1996; ABMP

Short description of the type of massage/bodywork you practice: Emotional Freedom Techniques

What gifts and strengths do you feel that you will bring as a member of the Executive Committee of OMTA? Because of my lengthy service with OMTA, I have a sense of the history of our organization, its purpose and its traditions. I've served as Secretary, Directory Editor and Webmaster, and have served on the By-Laws review committee. I am able to balance the needs of the organization with the needs of our membership. I have a strong sense of duty and responsibility.

What do you see as the most important next step for the position for which you have been nominated? I have a vision and focus for using the position to lead OMTA into a stronger position within the massage community, and to make our organization more recognized by massage professionals and the public.

What do you envision for the future of OMTA? I'd like to see OMTA be a leaner organization, eliminate excessive costs, reduce the burden of time & energy for our core volunteers, better serve the membership and all Oregon-licensed massage therapists, provide more outreach and continuing education, expand our political presence, and establish a sense of ownership of OMTA with our membership.

For Secretary

Name: Rowan Cindy Varvais

Number of Years in Practice: 10+

Oregon Massage License #: 6690

Education: Central Oregon Community College Massage Therapy Program, graduated 1998

Membership in Professional Organizations: OMTA member since 1999

Short description of the type of massage/bodywork you practice: Deeply relaxing & dynamically effective therapeutic Swedish massage

What gifts and strengths do you feel that you will bring as a member of the Executive Committee of OMTA? Past OMTA Secretary and President. Conference Registrar for the 2008 Annual Conference.

What do you see as the most important next step for the position for which you have been nominated? Consistency, availability, and focused attention to this job.

What do you envision for the future of OMTA? New, bright horizons.

Donovan Monroe & Mike Pooler were appointed Area Reps for Portland and Eugene

For Area Rep, Portland

Name: Donovan Monroe

Number of Years in Practice: since the summer of 1999

Oregon Massage License #: 10214

Education: Santa Monica College, Gen. Ed.; Tao Healing Arts Center, Shiatsu Practitioner Cert.; Phoenix Therapeutic Massage College, 640 hour program; Oregon School of Massage, Cont'd Ed for OR Licenser.

Membership in Professional Organizations: HOTA, OMTA

Short description of the type of massage/bodywork you practice: My treatments range from general relaxation to focused orthopedic massage. A majority of my clients rely on me for conditioning muscles for optimum health. I deal with joint dysfunction, specific aches for head and body, recovering from trauma or overuse, rebalancing and overall maintenance. Deep Tissue, Myofascial Release, Trigger Point, Swedish, Shiatsu and now Cupping Massage.

What gifts and strengths do you feel that you will bring as a member of the Executive Committee of OMTA? I have a great overall understanding of the massage field. I maintain a regular practice and try to stay up to date on current topics. I have an interest in teaching as well as connecting massage therapists within the area.

What do you see as the most important next step for the position for which you have been nominated? Moving forward with a CE course. Gathering new members from the Portland area.

What do you envision for the future of OMTA? At this point, I would like to learn more about OMTA and how I would fit in before I make any assumptions as to the future of the organization. But, if I were pressed, I would like to see more events (perhaps a spring equinox celebration that focuses on therapists physical and psychological health) and additional member benefits which could aid in increasing the amount of overall members.

For Area Rep, Eugene

Name: Michael Pooler

Address: PO Box 2397, Eugene, OR 97402

Phone: 541- 556-0970

Email: kmiamike@yahoo.com

License: 13902

Years in practice: 2

Position applying for: Eugene Area Rep

Membership in Professional Organizations: OMTA, ABMP

Short description of the type of massage/bodywork you practice: Relaxation

What gifts and strengths would you bring as a member of the EC of OMTA? Hard work

What do you see as the most important next step for the position for which you have been nominated? Social networking in Eugene

What do you envision for the future of OMTA? Success for all the members.

Below are the Officers elected by the Executive Committee at the November meeting, but who have not yet been inducted into office. Executive Committee rules require Officers to affirm in an in-person meeting that they will follow the By-Laws and other rules.

For Area Rep, Central Oregon (Bend)

Name: Bruno DeBlock

Number of Years in Practice: 11+

Oregon Massage License #: 6060

Education: Graduated from COCC Massage Program; background in marketing, accounting, corporate management

Membership in Professional Organizations: OMTA, ABMP, BNI, Bend Chamber of Commerce

Short description of the type of massage/bodywork you practice: I offer a variety of techniques for structural and medical therapy, including Advanced Deep Tissue, Manual Lmmphatic Drainage, Trigenics, Structural Integration, Body Assessment, PNF, and many more.

What gifts and strengths do you feel that you will bring as a member of the Executive Committee of OMTA? I've served 2 years as Vice President and 2 years as President. Having eliminated a few volunteer positions from my activities, I will be able to concentrate more on teaching as well as organizing the local area, to bring more quality Continuing Education to Central Oregon.

What do you see as the most important next step for the position for which you have been nominated? Contact COCC as well as Sage (local massage schools) and the COCC Continuing Education department to find out how we can possibly work together to bring CEs to Central Oregon. I will work on compiling a list of all LMTs interested in taking CE classes locally, to make it easier for notification when meetings are held.

What do you envision for the future of OMTA? Do you really want me to write a book about that? A few areas where OMTA can use some improvement are: A more interactive Web presence, including a membership area as well as advertising opportunities; Develop a comprehensive list of available CE's for our area (State of Oregon); An integrated database containing all the information on Oregon LMTs, including address, phone, and e-mail.