Believe it or not, summer vacations are over. September is officially here and fall is in the air. Labour Day weekend has come and gone and it's time for many of us to get back to work. My hope and prayer is that as many of you as possible were able to enjoy some quality vacation time with your loved ones. Others, perhaps, were saving your vacation time for the CHP Convention in Hamilton this November.

During my travels and in some of my speeches, I have made reference to my grandson, Emmett, who lives in Calgary. He and I have an interesting and somewhat humorous exchange that is meant to encourage and inspire each other. He will ask: “Grandpa, can we do it?” and I will respond emphatically, “Yes, we can!” This is repeated two or three times before he will change the statement to: “If we can't do it...” and I will finish the sentence,“...then no one can!” We have a lot of fun as we get more and more passionate and demonstrative in our actions.

While on the campaign trail in Macleod this past June, I had the opportunity to connect with members of my family who reside in Calgary. On each occasion, Emmett and I would engage in our little exercise as he understood, to some extent, the dynamics of my involvement in an election campaign. It's truly amazing how much his interest, along with the support of my entire family, served to motivate me and keep me energized throughout the campaign.

Now we in the CHP are in a new season. It is time to get to work both individually and corporately as we officially employ the “Jethro Strategy.” By now, our Provincial Presidents and all of the EDAs should have received the materials and, hopefully, are ready to launch the Membership Drive immediately. The intention or the goal is that each member should recruit one new member during the month of September. Of course, there is nothing preventing you “signing up” many new members. Our hope is to double our membership this month and meet several for the first time as delegates at the Convention. Unfortunately, this endeavour, as simple as it sounds, has never been realized. But, “Can we do it? Yes we can!” We can't afford to wait until the last week of September—we must get busy. Now!

Also, it is high time to make plans for attending the convention in Hamilton. This will truly be a historic event as we elect a new leader and a new president and fill other positions on the National Board. The Convention Planning Committee has done an outstanding job in lining up great speakers and scheduling stimulating sessions. Our Resolutions Committee is carefully reviewing the submissions that will be debated and of course, the connections that are made and friendships that are established will be cherished for our lifetimes.

Some might say, “We can't afford the time or the money to go.” However, I would say, “This is a convention that we, as CHP members, cannot afford to miss.” I personally believe that this convention may well be the most important convention in our 28-year history and will be pivotal in determining our future and developing a strategy as we face another Federal Election in 2015. We need your participation and involvement as a voting delegate at this Convention, appropriately themed: “Standing on Guard for Canada.” Don't say we can't do it at this time. Rather say, “We can do it—Yes we can! If we don't do it—it won't be done!” ...

Join us as we, together, renew our commitment to “Stand on guard for Canada!” Remember, “Nothing is impossible with God,” and “I (We) can do all things through Christ Who gives us strength and supplies our needs...”

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