Hello Neighbors,

The 2026 HAND Board election will be held on Tuesday May 12, 2026.  Like last year, we will conduct our election in person at our May General Meeting.  Our bylaws allow for election by voice vote; in the last two decades, we have never had to resort to paper ballots, and I don’t anticipate this year will be any different.

We have a number of open seats for 2-year terms.  If you are over age 18, live, work, or own property or a business in HAND, you are a HAND member and are eligible to vote and run for the board as well as vote.  The HAND neighborhood boundaries are Hawthorne to Powell, and the river to 28th/29th Avenue.  We also have a seat reserved for a student under 18.  If you know someone who is interested, please let me know.

We will accept nominations up until the election.  If you want to run, we’ll ask you to make a brief statement introducing yourself and telling us why you want to run.  All members of HAND as defined above attending the meeting will have the opportunity to vote.

Being a board member requires a minimum commitment of 2 hours per month to attend meetings.  In addition to attending our monthly meetings, board members can take on an officer position, volunteer to participate on a committee, or help with a project or event.  Officers will be elected in June.

I see HAND’s role as providing a platform for civic engagement.  What this means for individual members varies.  For some it is attending meetings to get a better sense of what is going on in the neighborhood.  For others it means representing HAND at other civic organizations.  Or participating in or leading projects of interest to the community.  Or learning how to engage with city bureaus.  In my role as chair, I try to foster participation from board members and guests alike, and we welcome ideas and input from all.

We are back to meeting in person, on the second Tuesday of the month at St Philip Neri Church.  Our meetings are open to all, and everyone is welcome to participate.

We look forward to hearing from you, and hope you will be interested in serving our neighborhood!  Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions.

Kind Regards,

Chris Eykamp

Chair, HAND