29 December, 2008.
In this newsletter, we are sad to report the passing of DC Chair Richard Ehrman. In light of this, we are announcing some changes at the DC. IFF Board President Jenni Evans also explains the relationship between the IFF and the IFF-DC.

Happy Holiday's and Happy New Year.

Sincerely,

IFF DC Board: Robert Black, Jaclyn Boone, Cliff Smyth
IF DC Staff: Allegra Heidelinde

 With the sudden passing of Richard Ehrman, (please see the article in this newsletter) the International Feldenkrais® Federation Board requested that Rob Black take on the role of Interim Chairperson for the IFF Distribution Center. The members of the Board of the Distribution Center quickly increased their involvement. Rob and Jaclyn Boone personally went to Boston to meet with Richard´s widow. Cliff Smyth took on the role of liaising with the owner of much of the DC materials.

Allegra Heidelinde continues to maintain the Office and so there is no change in the response to your online orders.

Richard was coordinating quite a number of projects involving some exciting new products. It may take a little time for the Board to review these projects and then get them moving again.

If you have any questions, please contact either Allegra (sales@iffmaterials.com) or Rob (dcchair@iffmaterials.com)

Short answer - you do.

The longer answer is that the IFF Distribution Center is wholly owned by the International Feldenkrais Federation (IFF). It is managed by a volunteer Board of Directors, who are appointed by the IFF Board. The IFF is owned by the National Guilds and Associations who send representatives to vote on issues of relevance and interest to us all. They also elect the IFF Board, who are likewise volunteers. As a member of your Guild or Association you share in its ownership of the IFF and therefore, the IFF DC.

So who gets the profits? You do.

All surplus funds derived from the sales of IFF materials go directly back into creating more translations, and developing new products. This allows practitioners and students to have access to the work of Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais.  In a relatively small market place there is little scope for making profits, but by buying your own copy of the various manuals, CDs, and DVDs, the IFF and DC can continue the work of preserving and publishing these vital resources.

Of course none of this would be possible at all without the many hours of works donated by our committed volunteers.  Maybe that's something you would like to be involved in? If so, please contact a member of the IFF or DC Board of Directors and tell us about your particular interests or skills.

As many of you know the Chair of the IFF Educational Materials Distribution Center (DC), Richard Ehrman, died unexpectedly on November 19, 2008. His death represents a terrible loss not just to his wife Liz and their families - to whom we have extended our deepest condolences. It is also a loss to Richard's colleagues and students at the Berklee College of Music where Richard ran the performance space and taught the Feldenkrais Method® as an Assistant Professor in the Ensemble Department. We know that there was considerable shock at the college where counseling was offered to students and staff on the day after Richard's death.

It is also a huge loss for the Feldenkrais community for the enormous thought, work, commitment and creativity Richard put into whole International Feldenkrais Federation (IFF) Materials area. He was not only DC Chair but also convened the IFF Archive Working Group.

He edited two books of Awareness Through Movement® lessons by Mia Segal/Gaby Yaron and Dr. Feldenkrais published by Feldenkrais Resources. He also served as New England Regional Chair of the FGNA, and became a FGNA Representative to the IFF Assembly.

But beyond that, we have lost one of the brightest minds and most passionate hearts in our community. Richard was totally passionate about the Feldenkrais Method and its development. He felt particularly strongly about the importance of Awareness Through Movement and improving the effectiveness of the teaching of Awareness Through Movement. He taught workshops at the FGNA Conference on ATM teaching, assiduously studied Moshe's lessons and engaged in intense discussions with colleagues about ways of comparing, relating and categorizing lessons. There is much that Richard had to contribute that sadly the Feldenkrais community and the world will now miss out on.

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I began working with Richard in 2003 when he joined the IFF's Educational Materials Committee when I was the IFF President. Having him to work with took a lot of pressure off me as I ended my term in 2004. He then joined the newly formed IFF Distribution Center Board, taking over from me as the Chair in 2005. It was a great relief to me to leave the IFF materials projects in such competent hands and his willingness to take on this job allowed me to finally move into semi-retirement from my IFF work!

During his time working for the IFF DC Richard worked on 'unsticking' a number of important projects that had become stuck, including moving the Amherst Training transcripts toward completion, and publishing the San Francisco Training transcripts with the innovate DVD format that allows text to be read while listening to the audio. He struck up a relationship with Moshe's nephew Michel Feldenkrais-Silice and maintained the IFF's relationship with the Feldenkrais family.

Wearing his Archive hat, he negotiated for the IFF Archive of the Feldenkrais Method to obtain many original materials from Dr. Stanley Brown. The first of these are now available from the DC as Moshe Feldenkrais in Vancouver 1973. He also located for the Archive various materials from other sources, including rare videos of Moshe teaching obtained from the New York Public Library.

And more. Much, much more.
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I have fond memories of spending days in Portland with Richard and our colleague Becci Parsons - sorting through the Archive materials, finding treasures in boxes, plotting about how we would publish them, and pushing ourselves though the endless details of working out what was what, updating the data base, sorting, filing... Richard worked hard at both the big ideas and the details needed to see things to fruition. He had the kind of intention and attention that ensured quality.

Finally sometime in the evening we would have to stop working ¬and then over lively dinners we would solve all the problems of the Feldenkrais community - and sometimes the world!

I miss Richard. Everyone who knew and cared for Richard will miss him. Others will step forward to fill the hole left and carry on his work for the community.

However, nobody will be able to fill the particular promise offered by this particular passionate heart and strong mind that was our colleague Richard Ehrman.