Kathy Peterson Candidate for ALSA Board of Directors
I need and appreciate your vote in the ALSA election. Your VOTE is the most important.
Asked why she is running for a seat on the Alpaca and Llama Show Association Board of Directors, Kathy Peterson responded, "I have the skills and the determination to be an effective board member and to help ALSA keep moving forward in a positive way. I will use my business experience to help communications between the Board and the membership, while working to help ALSA develop more ways to broaden its financial base."
Kathy continued, "The lama industry is in a state of turmoil. ALSA faces new challenges every day, with no end in sight. No member should be expected to agree with every action the Board takes. I don't. Even so, members should support ALSA and do whatever they can to ensure it has a bright future. I believe with all my heart that I will make a positive contribution to ALSA as a board member."
Fresh out of high school Kathy moved to Atlanta and went to work at the telephone company. Over the course of several years she worked her way up through the ranks and began attending college at night.
Ten years later, she was transferred to Birmingham, where she continued to progress with the company. During her 27 year tenure, Kathy had many different assignments. Some of these included marketing, finance, customer relations, and corporate culture change (big words for helping upper management of the company learn how to manage and communicate more openly). Along the way, Kathy got a bachelor's degree in marketing and a master's degree in management.
After capping off her career as president of one of the telephone company's unregulated start-up companies, Kathy retired. During the next eight years she and her husband created, oversaw and sold a regional chain of retail pet supply stores.
Kathy believes her wide range of job assignments, management experience, and formal education, coupled with values her parents instilled in her, will help her serve the membership and ALSA well as a board member.
Kathy is an advocate for homeless animals and has been responsible for the adoption of over 10,000 homeless dogs and cats. This was done through pet adoption centers inside pet supply stores owned by Kathy and her husband. Kathy also negotiated with ABC television to donate a weekly 30-minute segment called Adopt-a-Friend. Various dogs and cats from humane societies across the region were featured with voice over script that gave each animal a unique personality.
Kathy created the concept, wrote the content for the segment and was the anchor spokesperson for the show, which was the first of its kind. She also appeared weekly on ABC to promote pet adoptions. She negotiated with veterinarians to perform low-cost spays and neuters of animals for adoption. With this program, Kathy was able to ensure no dog or cat was adopted without first being spayed or neutered.
During this time the internet was becoming more and more popular, and Kathy worked with programmers to develop a web based adoption program for humane societies across the region. Her company donated the program, computers and web cameras, so each humane society could use the web to display different animals for adoption. She was instrumental in obtaining corporate sponsors to fund the project and to donate items and food to the shelters.
Kathy also was theco-anchor of a weekly two-hour radio show (PetsAmerica Live) that was broadcast across the region each Saturday from inside one of the pet stores. Different industry experts appeared on the show each week and, of course, adoptions were at the top list.
Kathy grew up on a farm outside of "tiny town America," Dixie, Georgia. (There really is a Dixie.) The youngest of five children, she was determined to have a successful career and to get a great education. "My parents instilled in me a strong work ethic, consideration for others and belief in myself. These have carried me through every challenge or opportunity," said Kathy.
Kathy and husband, Dale, have been married for 31 years. They have a daughter and two grandsons and have lived in Birmingham since 1978. Kathy and Dale share their days with 31 llamas, including a group of geriatric ones. They also have a rat terrier, a mastiff and a pit bull, all of whom are rescues. Kathy's favorite pet friend is her macaw, Winkle, who is her regular companion as she cares for the llamas or works in the garden. And, naturally they have a couple of cats, also rescues.
Asked which direction she would like ALSA to take, Kathy said "ALSA must be run as a business. It is in the "business" of promoting llama and alpaca shows throughout North America and the world. A business has a fiduciary responsibility to protect its members' interests and a financial responsibility to manage the organization's resources for the betterment of the organization. The ALSA Board must communicate with its members and encourage them to communicate with the Board. Two-way communications will encourage discussion and implementation of new, creative ideas to keep ALSA moving forward. Volunteers and committees must be empowered to act and should be held accountable for their actions. It's time to set aside biases and personal agendas and through ALSA do what it takes to put the lama industry back on track by fostering participation instead of alienation."
Dale & Kathy Peterson Contact Us Birmingham, Alabama
