What is your caching name?

My name is Gina T. (ThompsonKickers) and I have graciously accepted the nomination to become NoVAGO’s 2024 President – if all of you amazing cachers out there, yep, I’m talking to you, choose me for this role.

What is your caching background?

I’ve been a member of NoVAGO since 2016 and I’m not just a member – I’m a volunteer and geocacher! I love to promote and participate in the NoVAGO annual series, by hiding and finding the caches. (As President a goal of mine is to also bring MORE NoVAGO-themed caches or series in 2024 so everyone can be a part of NoVAGO in some way.) You may not know this, but I began caching in January of 2016 and found the NoVAGO website by chance for the photo contests. Promotion is so important to me because I would not have even known about the group had I not accidentally found it. At first I didn’t know much about the organization and had no idea how great it could be. Once I was told about a big spring event and that was the first I had attended, and I vowed I’d make new friends and participate as much as I could to be part of this amazing group of people. I jumped in with volunteering for projects such as the new and exciting Ice Breakers, Spring and Fall events, Tip Jar, rounding up nominations and launching the annual cacher/cache awards voting and more.

What is your NoVAGO volunteer experience?

After becoming a Director in 2021, then Vice-President in 2022, my ideas led me to President in 2023. Now I wish to continue on the journey in 2024. Together with the other officers and directors, I would like to continue to promote NoVAGO with every cacher in the area, spreading the word that NoVA is a great place to cache and all geocachers are welcome and wanted here.

What would you like NoVAGO to accomplish in 2024?

Who loves Geocaching? Who knows about Geocaching? Who is excited and would like to see more Geocaching events and collaboration with local parks and the public? If that’s you, then I’m all in because that’s what I want to do as well. I have been very honored to hold this position this last year. Just like caching, being President one year in, gets your feet wet. But not just wet, the “muddy, stuck in your socks” wet that you can’t get rid of. You get ideas that you didn’t have before, you start building on smaller ideas that you did have before you started. That’s where I am right now. My brain is full of so much excitement for the next year in NoVAGO.

What’s all the excitement talk about? I know you may have already read what we all did collectively last year, as I posted it in the President’s Favorite posts last week. For me, it’s personal, I love all of you and have the need to make sure everyone is involved and having a great caching experience.

I want to recharge those of us who have been around a while, get motivation to jump on board, and do some volunteer work for NoVAGO. One of my biggest goals is cacher involvement. BIG, small, in the middle, no matter where folks are in their wish to be involved, that’s where we want them to be, then help them step it up a notch by bringing great things to all cachers as a team of volunteers. I’m not saying I want everyone else to do the work, I’m in knee deep and together we can make the NoVAGO caching experience amazing and memorable and to keep cachers, well…caching here!

Continuing to engage new cachers is a big part of this as well. Last year I put a big emphasis on encouraging new cachers. I want to keep this rolling by continuing to reach out and invite them to events, helping them to feel welcome to our group of amazing friends. Bridging new cachers with seasoned to help them become more knowledgeable while caching, placing caches and learning how they can help and join the organization.  

Other ways to promote Geocaching is by growing the Geocaching 101 in local Libraries and Scout groups, which is another long term goal. When collaborating with these groups, we create awareness, but even more than that, when a local cacher is presenting or providing information for this fun activity for everyone it bonds them to the local community and our geo-family grows strong.

With the community in mind, I plan to increase the CITO events, this helps keep the earth clean and yet again bonds cachers to each other and the area’s they clean up. CITO truly are text book community care caching. Through CITO, not only do we clean areas up, but we work to grow connections with park management and local government to keep geocaching open to the community and to promote the geocaching hobby to the greater community.

Another goal is, working with the board, finding new ways to increase the available funds to provide great large group events for all as well as other projects in the works in the future. Having funds makes all the cool things happening. The budget is all set for now, although we just want to keep on building the bank.

I have truly become friends with so many cachers new to me and new cachers alike while being President this past year. Becoming connected with other geocachers and how they love the game truly fires my desire to do more in the area. I myself love geocacaching more every day and never tire of the excitement of an event, new cache, new friends and new ideas. Working together with the Board and Directors of NoVAGO in 2024, if elected, I plan to work hard so every geocacher feels like I do. Although, no matter the results of this vote, I will continue to enjoy caching in NoVA, meeting up with fellow cachers, participating in activities and will do my part to help others enjoy the game.  In the end I just want the organization to GROW!

ThompsonKickers loves geocaching and geocachers, and I want to make geocaching in NoVAGO better for geocachers like YOU!