Greetings SAROOTS Supporters:

It is with some regret that we have to inform everybody that SAROOTS will not take place this year. We want to be quick to assure everyone, however, that this is not a
cancellation of the conference, but simply a hiatus until 2006.

This decision was reached by the SAROOTS Leadership Team prompted by a number of factors. The main impetus behind this decision, however, is a recognition that SAROOTS has evolved to the point where as an event, significant deconstruction and restructuring is required in order to ensure that it continues to achieve its objective as an agent of change, sparking and encouraging mission and renewal throughout The Salvation Army in Canada and Bermuda.

Our Leadership Team will move through a time of transition over the next few months. Following the wind down from this year's event, we will be meeting in order to look hard at SAROOTS and start planning for what it needs to "become" for 2006.

This decision has been endorsed by Territorial leadership who continue to recognize SAROOTS as one of the renewal movements within Canada and Bermuda.

For those of you who have been committed to SAROOTS over the past three years and may have even already booked into this year's event - please accept our apologies for this decision, that may seem to have come so late in the day. We are asking for your trust and support for this call that we are certain is the right decision. The Territorial leadership continues to support SAROOTS as one vital aspect of renewal within Canada and Bermuda.

Please feel free to contact us directly with your thoughts on this decision. We have always said that SAROOTS is more a "conversation than a conference" and so we invite you to join us in this conversation about the future of SAROOTS. Any suggestions, criticisms, input of any sort that may help us as a team make SAROOTS all that it needs to be for 2006 would be greatly appreciated. Feel free to drop us a line at: sarootsca@rootsonline.org

Thank you all for your understanding and continued support.

Yours in the mission of The Salvation Army.

Geoff Ryan, Event Leader
Chris Graves, Event Producer
Floyd Tidd, THQ Liasion
SAROOTS Leadership Team 2004/2005