President Ellen Kosmer opened the meeting at
12:45 p.m. after lunch. Ellen expressed appreciation to the Board for
the congenial Board meetings and their dedication. Nominations Chair Arthur Kinney presented the slate. The slate was elected to assume office July 1st: President Roger Webb, Vice-President and President-Elect Andrea Battle, Secretary (to be determined), Treasurer Bonnie Isman, Registrar Jacquie Price, Attendance Gigi Barnhill, Lunch Notes Linda Honan, Membership Paul Bacon, Program(to be determined), Love Notes Barbara Freed (co-chair to be determined), Activities Vivienne Carey and Larry Siddall, Archives Honore David, Webmaster Jim Wald, Nominations Ellen Kosmer. As provided in the Bylaws, the Board will fill the vacant positions. Secretary Rachel Mustin summarized the Board's activities for the year, noting that most attention during the monthly meetings has been given to Membership and Love Notes. She reported that the Board approved the name change to Discretionary Fund from what had variously been called the Hospitality Fund, the Raffle Fund, or the Savings Account. The Board approved a policy to have a committee each year of the Vice-President, Treasurer, and a Board Member to make decisions on small grants from the Discretionary Fund not to exceed $500 total each year. No single grant shall exceed $100. She also mentioned that the Board is developing a policy on the Endowment, to be further discussed below. Treasurer Bonnie Isman presented the Annual Treasurer's Report. She noted that the change in quarterly dues from $100 to $110 has put us in a good position. In response to questions about the Endowment, she pointed out that it is managed on a calendar year, and the most recent quarterly report of March 31 indicated that we had $31,280. Since it is in an indexed fund, it varies with the market. Registrar Jacquie Price reported that we have 40 full members, 38 associate members, and three partner members. Lunch Notes Linda Honan received appreciation from the membership for regularly taking lunch notes. Program Andrea Battle received appreciation from the membership for all her work obtaining lunch speakers. Love Notes Barbara Freed, 2014-2015 chair, shared her enthusiasm for developing a new model for Love Notes. Several members were positive about the new Hadley Farms Meeting House as a venue for a dinner with cabaret type entertainment. Barbara suggested that we examine what we are providing to the community, and look to raising more money. There was a discussion of branding the event, with suggestions such as "Seniors to Seniors" and "Club Amherst." Barbara will email members in a contest to develop a new name for the event with a prize of a bottle of wine from the Club. One member suggested we hire a fundraising consultant. - Vice-President Roger Webb discussed the policy on the Endowment that the Board is developing. The Board has approved in principle an annual award of $750 to an Amherst High School student and $250 to an Amherst Middle School student, in both cases for Community Service. The awards would rely on recommendations from the schools and be granted at graduation. Roger pointed out that the standard guide for giving from an Endowment such as ours is 4%, which means we currently have about $1,000 to award annually. Members made a number of suggestions that the Board will consider in establishing the policy. The meeting adjourned at 1:30 p.m. Rachel Mustin Secretary |
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