Elections to the board of the Cyprus Community of Melbourne and Victoria (CCMV) took place last week establishing its new committee, led by Jim Wood.

Mr Wood returns to the presidency after heading the committee in the late 1990s. His election comes after a turbulent period for the CCMV, following the membership’s recent rejection of proposals recommended by the previous committee to transform the organisation’s financial situation and redefine its position within the wider Greek Cypriot community.

Speaking to Neos Kosmos, Mr Wood said that one of the new committee’s priorities will be to create solutions to reduce the CCMV’s $1.5 million debt.

“The community has a lot of assets but it’s cash-flow poor. We need to look at the good work the previous committee did, capitalise on that, and see what more we can do,” he said.

Commenting on the well-publicised divisions expressed within the community in the past, the new president has called for a new spirit of unity to prevail within CCMV. “It’s time to build bridges,” said Mr Wood.

“We need everyone on board. It’s not about five or ten people working: everyone needs to put in, whatever they can offer.”

Mr Wood said the key to finding solutions for the organisation lay in prioritisation. “There are a number of conflicting priorities for the community at the moment, and we need to prioritise. It’s easy to say but difficult to do. With eleven people on the committee and with members coming in on sub committees, I think we have enough gifted people around to be able to assist us, and really help the community.”

With the previous committee’s plans partly based on a vision for greater involvement by the younger generation in the CCMV’s future, Mr Wood said he believed generational change could only come about by encouraging unity.

“If we can talk to the people of today, and the people of tomorrow, and combine the positives, the things that unite us, then I think we can be successful. But tomorrow is coming vary fast and we need to be laying the foundations now.”

CCMV’s new president is also a practising Naturopath. Naturopathy is an area of holistic medicine that involves encouraging energies to assist processes such as reproduction, growth, and adaptation.

Mr Wood’s knowledge of such health-enhancing processes will be more than useful for the future well-being of the organisation of which he is president.

CCMV office holders elected last week are: Vice President, Maro Ostrognay; Secretary, Loukas Thrasis; Assistant Secretary, Pavlos Andronikos; Treasurer, George Efthymiou; and Assistant Treasurer, Dimitris Demetriades. Other Members elected were: Andrew Demetriou, Harry Neokleous, Sofronis Michaelides, Koullis Aristidou and Evros Evripidou.

Neos Kosmos