Help Needed

PLEASE HELP ME UNDERSTAND CERTAIN THINGS

A very cynical thank you!

In 2023 at Lacrosse Canada’s annual meeting the delegates received a package that, on page 1, indicated the respect that the Association wanted to express to the First Nations. It read this way:

‘’We would also like to give thanks to all first nations, Métis and Inuit as we all sit in their territories, we say thank you’’,

The intent is probably very positive and empathic as it somehow serves as a recognition of the fact that ‘’we’’ are on ‘’their’’ land and that ‘’we’’ thank ‘’them’’ for allowing us to carry on with our meetings and business. Everyone probably reads that sentence that way.

I don’t.

How can we not understand that this is full of contempt, arrogance and despisal. If you read this the way I do all that you see is that ‘’we’’ are on ‘’their’’ land, that ‘’we’’ recognize it and that there is nothing ‘’they’’ can do about it other than receive our generous ‘thank you’’. And there is nothing ‘’we’’ will do about it. ‘’We’’ did not ask for permission, we came and did out thing. We came with our people, our rules, our police and our institutions and, yes, we are on their land but there is nothing to stop us as there is nothing ‘’they’’ can do about it.

How can it be read otherwise? How can ‘’they’’, as a minority not feel the despisal and disdain? Hey, help me understand this as I also come from a ‘’minority’’ group.

Lacrosse Canada and the creationist theory

In the same public document Lacrosse Canada goes on:

‘’At this time, we would like to give thanks to the creator for giving this medicine to the Iroquois/Haudenousnee (1) (people of the longhouse) for sharing this medicine with the world. We say thank you Creator for giving us mother earth; she then gave us the tree in which our sticks are made from. This is the true roots of the medicine we call Lacrosse today’’.

The correct spelling in Lacrosse Canada’s document should have been Haudenosaunee!

My difficulty is not with the existence of a lone uncreated creator it’s with the fact that, in a society where there is a recognized division between church and state, that Lacrosse Canada, as a national association recognized by its members and by the Government of Canada, decides that the creationist theory of the world is the one it chooses to abide with. Are we not slowly taking this secular association to the point where it will become a religious association in a secular society? What other national sport association embraces the creationist theory and gives thanks to the creator for giving us mother earth who gave us the trees from which our hockey sticks or baseball bats are made from, or the water wherefrom energy and electricity is created?

Is lacrosse not creating the conditions for its marginality? And at what costs?

Lacrosse Canada’s defiance of Sport Canada’s governance code

I don’t understand why Lacrosse Canada steps forward with a defiance of Sport Canada’s governance code. The ‘’code’’ published in 2021 established the general principles and practices for good governance for national sports associations. The ‘’code’’ was not just a suggestion; it was a ‘’do it or else’’ approach. And in many areas, it was very positive and useful for national sport governing bodies.

One of the elements of the code dealt with the issue of transparency and said ‘’the following items must be posted on the NSO’s website and be publicly accessible’’:

Articles of incorporation
Annual financial statements
Minutes of meetings of members
Etc.

These were not ‘’suggestions’’; so why does Lacrosse Canada refuses to post the minutes of the Board meetings on its website? Why does it shield the members from information which might be very useful to evaluate the Board’s efficiency and competence? Why does it want to create a ‘’vibrant association’’ while not putting important information forward for all, from the community, to see and assess?

I have often stated that Lacrosse Canada was a closed shop. Help me understand why things are the way they are? But mostly help me to understand why the membership tolerates a closed shop as their national association?

Let’s just for the sake of clarity, put an example forward. In May 2025 Lacrosse Canada held its semi- annual meeting in Fredericton. Delegates from all provinces were in attendance; so were the Board members and the staff. The minutes of the Board meeting are nowhere to be seen on the website; there was no preliminary information indicating that such an important meeting was to be held and the only report from the weekend discussions was in the May 2025 newsletter (not on the website) which stated: …’’productive few days of meaningful dialogue and collaboration. The focus was clear how we can work together to move the game forward across the country. Thank you to everyone who contributed their time, ideas and passion to help shape the future of lacrosse in Canada’’.

That’s it! Tell me, does that help you in any way feel that you are being properly informed? That you feel included into a vibrant community? Can Lacrosse Canada get more childish (or paternalistic) in its reporting process? Help me understand why this is happening and why the members are being treated that way?

And where are the members?

Every four years Lacrosse Canada puts forward a strategic plan, a mission statement, an expression of its vision and the set of values it wishes to promote and abide by. The plan is written by a small group of persons and presented to the members for approval. Hopefully it is in line with the association’s budget except that the budget was adopted well before the plan was conceived!! The cart before the horse…

Help me understand why Lacrosse Canada’s goals are not measurable goals? Why does our national association, working with a 2.4M$ budget, does not wish to aim at measurable goals? You know, goals that will either be met or not.
Help me also locate the evaluation of the previous strategic plan! There was a ‘’strategy’’ at work; where is the evaluation?
Help me understand why the national association does not have an ELECTED treasurer in charge of reporting to the members about the association’s finances? Tell me of another national sport association that does not have an elected treasurer?
Help me understand why Lacrosse Canada has an invisible president? A president who communicates with the members and the community through the website. A president who informs the membership about the challenges to the game and the options available to develop the game!
Help me understand why Lacrosse Canada does not have (and has never had) a plan to increase the number of participants within the game? As we watch other sports grow and gain in numbers it is saddening to see that Lacrosse Canada still believes that the provincial associations are responsible for the growth of the game; and are just not doing it significantly.
Help me understand why the provinces don’t get together and draft their own version of a strategic plan instead of simply approving the plan that is presented to them by the so- called experts. The provinces, through the members’ council, could address the issue of development of the game and somehow have the national association work for them for a change. Hey, you know…. the democratic process at work!

There you are with some of the things that I fail to understand about our game. If you have answers to my questions don’t hesitate to enlighten me. It will help me to ‘’move along’’.