The Lake Chapala Society Board of Directors held its latest open meeting on Thursday, May 14. It was not business as usual. I say that with absolute certainty because I have attended monthly sessions consistently for just over two years. 

It was the second open session since the new board was seated following the troubled Annual General Meeting on March 17. I detected a degree of disorganization from the get-go and a prevailing air of tension likely caused by the largest attendance of LCS members I have ever seen, six of whom registered in advance to speak their minds.

The first thing I noticed was that printouts of the agenda were not available to visitors, as normally happens. Triangular name placards were not on the table. Past President Hunter Johnson introduced this practical system to identify board members who wished to comment on the proceedings in an orderly manner.   

Secretary Greg Custer, absent while traveling abroad, was substituted by his predecessor, George Radford. Newly elected director Terri Daniels was also excused for undergoing medical treatment.

With a quorum established, the agenda proceeded with unopposed approval. Item four was listed as “Motion to April 9th, 2026 minutes as reviewed.”  Jack Knudsen asked to scratch the record of comments by the guest speaker at that session, who objected to his conduct, arguing this was invalid because she was not a current member at the time. The motion was eventually tabled because it turned out the officers had not been provided with copies of the minutes beforehand.

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