Life Member Profile – Steven Walker
Steven Walker was, like his brother and fellow life member Robert, effectively born into the club which his parents Geoff and Barbara had joined in 1959. He became a member in 1984 on reaching the age of 18, but by then he was well versed in skiing and in life in Thredbo and the club’s lodge. An accountant in his professional life, his skills made him a good fit for the treasurer’s job which he took on in 2000. In that position he followed Mike Hutton, who had been the treasurer for the previous ten years, and Steven was to do it for a further 14 and maintain a club tradition of continuity in the portfolio: in its 60 years the club has had only nine treasurers. He delivered 14 sets of audited financial statements, ensuring the club’s accounting practises remained sound and compliant with legislative changes. He oversaw the financials and funding for two major lodge renovations, implemented the GST changes of 2000, established structured expenditure controls and updated the club’s asset registers. In his last year as treasurer Steven moved the club’s bookkeeping and accounting IT systems from desktop applications to the Xero cloud-based online accounting application, a strategic, future-proofing change that allowed the board greater visibility of and control over its finances. In 2014 he handed over to Andrew Wearne a club in a strong and healthy financial position. Steven and his wife Bernadette have continued to support the club on a contract basis through their accounting practice (Walker BDS), managing the Xero application, BAS preparation, the monthly payroll function, membership invoicing and supplier payments and co-ordinating the annual audit process. He was a driving force on the club’s board, making a large and positive contribution to the club’s health. His achieving life membership in 2018 meant that he became the third member of his family to be granted the award.