Residents and Selectmen Raise Governance, Transparency Concerns About LYAA

Selectmen and multiple residents pressed the town to clarify oversight of the Loudon Youth Athletic Association after public commenters said the volunteer group has not held required public meetings, has unclear leadership, and may have lapsed nonprofit filings.

The issue drew sustained public comment because the town has in recent years provided budget support to youth sports and residents said taxpayers should be able to confirm how those dollars are handled. “There is no accountability,” said Colette Conway, a Loudon resident, listing officers she said were named in the association’s registration and saying meetings have not been held “in years.”

Conway told the selectmen she had pulled the organization’s original bylaws, found family members occupying multiple officer roles, and could not reach several listed officers. “The bylaws do not allow family members to be on the board for treasurer and president,” she said, adding that lack of checks and balances is a concern when town funds are involved.

Other residents corroborated complaints about disorganization. Dana Flanders, who identified herself with an Old Shaker Road address and said she has volunteered as a coach, said managers sometimes send last-minute team assignments and that volunteers struggle to get equipment and schedules organized. “I have seen the disorganization from the program as a volunteer coach,” Flanders said.

Selectmen acknowledged they are close to the limit of what the town can mandate for an external volunteer organization and said their immediate focus is on safety and field conditions. One selectman told speakers he did not want the board to “overstep our boundaries” but said he would help recruit volunteers and could call a meeting of former board members and townspeople if necessary.

Speakers said records have been dropped off at the town office and are “currently being reviewed,” but that gaps remain: missing meeting minutes, unclear sponsorship accounting, and uncertainty about whether federal or state nonprofit filings were maintained. Residents said the association’s IRS status had changed historically between 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(7) and that filings with the Secretary of State and charitable trust units may have lapsed.

Town officials did not make a formal enforcement action at the meeting. Selectmen said the town budget process, and ultimately a town vote, controls whether funds are allocated to the recreation program in future years. “For us to say no, we can’t have $5,000, it’s going to be up to the town,” a selectman said, describing the difference between providing funding and mandating how an external volunteer group is run.

The exchange ended with residents offering to help restart meetings and volunteers offering to rebuild membership if the town or former board members convened a reorganization session. Selectmen asked for time to review records already delivered to the town office and to seek legal or procedural guidance before taking further action.

The matter could return to a future meeting if the board decides it needs to place conditions on town funding or to facilitate a reconstituted volunteer board.