We, the undersigned, call on the Manitoba Deaf Association (MDA), the Manitoba Cultural Society of the Deaf (MCSD), and the Manitoba Deaf Sports Association (MDSA) to hold their Annual General Meetings in person rather than over Zoom or other online platforms.

Online-only meetings create real barriers for many community members, particularly seniors, those without reliable internet access, and those who are less comfortable with technology. An AGM is one of the most important opportunities for the public to participate in local governance, ask questions, and hold organizations accountable. That opportunity should be open to everyone, not just those who can navigate a video call.

We are not opposed to technology. We simply ask that in-person attendance remain an option so that no one is left out.

We call on MDA, MCSD, and MDSA to:

• Hold AGMs at an accessible physical location in the community
• Welcome all community members through the door, not just through a screen

Our organizations belong to the whole community. Our meetings should too.

Goal (number of signatures): 50

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UPDATE #1: 43 signatures as of May 11, 2026 at 10:46 PM CT

Email sent to MDA, MDSA, MCSD:

Dear MDA, MDSA, and MCSD Leadership,

We are writing to formally notify all three organizations that our petition, "Hold Annual General Meetings In-Person, Not Online," has now gathered 43 signatures and continues to grow.

Here is the breakdown of signatories by membership:

• 25 are MDA members
• 23 are MDSA members
• 9 are MCSD members

We ask that all three organizations take this petition seriously and respect the will of your members.

Please follow the petition for ongoing updates and read members' comments directly here: https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/hold-annual-ge...

Below is a sample of recent comments submitted by signatories:

• "MDA should be listening to their members…. not making personal decisions for themselves." - Vernon, Canada (May 10, 2026)
• "This need to be in person!!!" - Anonymous, Canada (May 10, 2026)
• "No zoom perfect in person" - Lawrence, Canada (May 10, 2026)
• "Best book up in the big room and three group share the cost of rent room .
• Poor internet some time freeze or pause. Best meeting room and all show up and sign up if person out of town can’t come too far and respect to put live streaming for them to watch. I will soon join Manitoba Deaf Sport association this week." - Jo Anne Halas, Canada (May 10, 2026)
• "Need change lots to make better and proper way to follow by laws in future and need to stop to get bad habits in old systems and stop bents too" - Michael, Canada (May 10, 2026)
• "Enough is enough!" - Anonymous, Canada (May 10, 2026)
• "Waste of time - plus no news or information on Facebook or elsewhere." - Kimberly, Canada (May 10, 2026)
• "I want to have that meeting IN PERSON!!!!" - Nancy, Canada (May 10, 2026)
• "Hi I’m not sure if I’m on MCSD members but if not I would like to renewal MCSD member please. Thank you. Andrew" - Andrew, Canada (May 10, 2026)
• "Will become member soon" - Anonymous, Canada (May 10, 2026)

We urge MDA, MDSA, and MCSD to each acknowledge this petition and communicate a clear response to your memberships.

Respectfully,

Manitoba Deaf Community

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UPDATE #2 (May 13, 2026 at 10:36 PM CT)

Email received from MDA, MDSA, MCSD via Moderator Sheila Montney

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mLwpBmoZ0MAdEcVWv...

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UPDATE #3: Email sent to Sheila, MDA, MDSA, MCSD (May 13, 2025 at 11:29 PM CT):

Dear Sheila, MDSA Board, MDA Board, and MCSD Board,

Thank you for your response letter dated May 13, 2026. We appreciate the time taken by all three organizations to address the petition. We have several points we wish to clarify and bring to your attention.

1. COMMUNICATION ADDRESSING
We respectfully ask that future formal communications from the 3M Deaf Organizations not address correspondence to Andrew Stadnicki by name. Manitoba Deaf Community, including the Manitoba Deaf Community Forum (Facebook group), the Manitoba Deaf Community page, and this email address, is a collective effort run by a group of community members. No single individual should be named as the sole representative. We ask that future letters be addressed to "Manitoba Deaf Community" accordingly.

For context, the Manitoba Deaf Community Forum Facebook group alone has 135 members residing in Manitoba. This reflects the scale of community engagement and the importance of treating communications to this group as addressing the broader community, not any one individual.

2. HYBRID FORMAT
We welcome and strongly support the exploration of a hybrid meeting format. This is exactly the kind of accessible, inclusive approach our community members have been asking for, and we appreciate that all three organizations are working collaboratively toward this solution. We look forward to confirmed details as soon as they are available.

3. CLARIFICATION TO MCSD REGARDING SECTION 7.2
We wish to respectfully clarify a point raised in MCSD's statement. MCSD noted that the petition did not meet the requirements under Section 7.2 of the Bylaws, which states:

"Special meetings may be called by the President, three members of the Board or upon the written request of 10 members in good standing."

This section governs the calling of Special Meetings. Our petition is not, and has never been, a request for a Special Meeting. It is a member-driven expression of concern and preference regarding the format of the upcoming Annual General Meeting. These are two distinct matters, and Section 7.2 does not apply here.

Members have every right to collectively express their views and advocate for how their AGM is conducted. This is a legitimate and appropriate form of member engagement, entirely separate from the procedural requirements for calling a Special Meeting.

4. MEMBER REPRESENTATION AND QUORUM CONTEXT
We also wish to bring the following to MCSD's attention:

According to MCSD's 2026 AGM report, MCSD has 10 members on record. Of the petition signatories, 9 individuals have identified themselves as MCSD members. If we account for the MCSD board members themselves, the number of non-board members may be as few as 6. This means that approximately 90%, or potentially more, of MCSD's general membership has expressed support for an in-person or hybrid AGM format.

This level of member consensus is significant and deserves meaningful consideration, regardless of the procedural question around the petition.

Additionally, we remind all three organizations that the last two AGMs, held in June 2025 and October 2025, both failed to reach quorum. This is a serious governance concern. Ensuring accessible, in-person or hybrid participation is directly relevant to addressing this ongoing challenge.

5. ON OFFICIAL CHANNELS AND MEMBER VOICE
MCSD's statement encourages members to "continue participating constructively through official organizational processes and respectful dialogue." We agree that constructive participation is important, and we are committed to that. However, we want to be candid: petitions and community forums such as ours exist precisely because unofficial channels are sometimes necessary to ensure that member voices are not filtered or diminished.

It has been our experience that communications shared by members with individual board members of the three organizations are not always passed on to the full board. When members cannot be confident that their concerns will be heard and relayed accurately through official channels, it is both reasonable and appropriate for them to seek other means of expression. A petition is a legitimate and transparent way for members to make their collective voice heard without relying on any single point of communication.

We encourage the three organizations to reflect on how internal communication practices can be strengthened so that members feel confident their voices reach the full board, reducing the need for workarounds.

6. REQUEST FOR CLARIFICATION
Finally, the response letter states: "We also wish to acknowledge that the Manitoba Deaf Community has elected board members for the 2026–2027 term."

We wish to seek clarification on this statement. Manitoba Deaf Community is a community forum and platform, it does not have an elected board. Could you please clarify which organization or body this sentence is referring to? We want to ensure there is no confusion about our role or governance structure, and that this statement is not being used to characterize or speak on behalf of the Manitoba Deaf Community in a way that is inaccurate.

We remain committed to working respectfully and constructively with MDA, MDSA, and MCSD. We look forward to further updates on venue and format decisions, and we appreciate your continued engagement with the community.

Respectfully,
Manitoba Deaf Community

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UPDATE #4: Thank you all for signing this petition to ensure 3M meetings have an in-person option. Here is the message from 3M:

Good Morning MDA/MDSA/MCSD Members,

New Location of 3 in 1 AGM will take place:
CMU - 500 Shaftesbury Blvd (Lecture Hall)
Saturday May 30, 2026
8:30am to 3:30pm (schedule is mentioned in video)

Please see ASL video: https://youtu.be/do0zLK-oBCo

Let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Thank you,
MDA/MDSA/MCSD

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