Cameron Watt Pursuing Career Outside of Turf Industry, Resigns as WCTA President
By Jerry Rousseau, WCTA Executive Director
One of the first steps for me after every 2nd AGM, is to email the new President a note of congratulations and orientation. We then setup a call to start things moving, like drafting the coming year’s meeting schedule, doing a conference debrief, discussing finer points of the Presidency role and going through a wide-ranging association status and activities update.
Cam Watt (left), UBC Athletics, at the 2018 WCTA conference. That’s David Phipps, GCSAA on the right. Image credit Mayowill photography
This year started similarly until, prior to our first Board meeting, I received a surprising call from newly elected WCTA President, Cam Watt, letting me know he had resigned from UBC Athletics to pursue a coaching and sales career in the personal development industry and that unfortunately, he would be leaving the Board as well.
For Cam, it was probably just a second or two but it seemed like about a minute before I could come up with a response. “Wow and congratulations,” was sort of how it went, “Wow, you know this is kind of unprecedented!”
Cam knew it’s not often an association President resigns and explained that for the past several years, he had been developing his life coaching skills and business on the side of his day job and volunteer activities. More recently and far ahead of schedule, an opportunity arose to pursue his new passion as a full-time career. After some long and difficult thinking, he realized it was something he couldn’t pass up.
In a subsequent letter to the Board, Cam wrote:
“I am stepping down from my role with the Board entirely, and stepping away from the turfgrass industry after an amazing 21 years. I resigned my position at UBC earlier this week and talked with Jerry about my decision to leave the board. This decision was emotional and not easy at times, and there was a process I committed to that was in line with my best morale and ethical integrity.
I’ve made incredible connections, experienced memorable times, and invested half my life in this industry which I fell in love with 21 years ago. I got into it because of the desire to grow, and the direction from my early mentors who believed in me and the success I could achieve.”
Although disappointing news for the WCTA, I’m proud of Cam’s accomplishments and appreciative of his volunteer efforts for the industry over the past 6 years as a WCTA Director, very well done!
Speaking for the entire membership, we wish Cam Watt all the best of success in his new career. Since we’re always looking for professional and personal development speakers, perhaps there’s a WCTA conference appearance for Cam sometime in the future! (at a discounted speaking fee of course😀)
