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McAdam: Ousted board member denies RCSC allegations for dismissal in Sun City

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During the past week Recreation Centers of Sun City board Secretary Dale Lehrer has twice published a letter sharing “some of the circumstances leading to (my) removal from the RCSC Board;” first in an email blast to thousands of RCSC cardholders and second in the pages of this newspaper.

I trust that the good people of Sun City who have read either of these letters were as mystified as I was by this board action. Four times since the hastily and dubiously called executive session ending with my dismissal, I have asked the board to explain the charges they believe deemed me “unwilling or incapable of performing” my share of the duties and responsibilities of a director.

After two-and-a-half months of refusing to enlighten me, the board has instead now chosen to publish vague, unchallenged and defamatory accusations regarding my board service. Ensuring the application of due process is apparently not one of this board’s values.

Vague accusations allow for little in the way of defense, but for what it’s worth, here are some thoughts regarding the threefold accusations in Lehrer’s letter.

1) The past six months have revealed that this board does not shy away from cloaking inappropriate behavior in a mantle of secrecy. Spurious and malevolent accusations can be made with no repercussions for the perpetrators; outrageous behavior is not just tolerated but protected by the code of silence. Executive sessions and board hearings hide malfeasance. Nothing that I have said about the content of any executive session has ever reflected harm or injury to any other person.

2) Many on the board seem to hold to a private definition of “conflict of interest” that is consonant neither with our corporate documents nor with common understanding of the term. Try this little exercise. Individual A pleads with the board to refrain from hastily demolishing sporting facilities of a sport she actively plays. Individuals B, C, D, E and F vote to spend millions of dollars of member money on the sport they or their family members equally actively play (and sometimes publicly mislead about) or on whose courses they live. Individual A is nailed for an alleged conflict of interest, while Individuals B, C, D, E and F go scot free. Secretary Lehrer, at the June 24 meeting, you said, “Even the perception of a conflict of interest is unacceptable.” Is that true only when applied to me?

3) I would like to set the record straight that I have no knowledge of ever threatening anyone in Sun City, neither board members, staff, management nor members of the community at large. I haven’t the slightest idea to what this accusation refers. Apparently, the board has chosen to believe an allegation without bothering to confirm its veracity. Lady Justice’s blindfold has slipped.

Will the Board learn from its mistakes? I certainly hope so.

Editor’s Note: Karen McAdams, a Sun City resident, was elected to the Recreation Centers of Sun City board in November 2020 but was removed by other board members during a June 25 secret meeting.