December Board minutes
President Marrou called the meeting to order at 1:00PM with Gail, Dave, Wayne, Al, MaryAnn and Winnie present.
The minutes of the November meeting were approved as posted on the websites.
Dave reported the checkbook balance is $786.22 with $200 needed to be kept to avoid bank charges and an anticipated $300 outstanding for speaker honorariums.
Al gave Dave a CD of the 501C3 application which was sent 11/15. He noted it takes about 6 months for approval. Approval and paperwork is needed before tax exempt status can be filed. Al recommended after approval copies be made and the original be placed in a safe deposit box.
A financial audit needs to be made in early January by VP, Sec’y and an advisor to be ready to announce by the regular January meeting.
MaryAnn announced that the January speaker will be the bee lady, Kim Bacon, in February will be Elizabeth Moon. The March and April meetings will be short and during new class training. May is presently up in the air, and June will be a possible burn control.
Wayne reported he has received thirty plus inquiries for the new class to start in March. Four have registered so far. There was a discussion about getting the background check form signed on the first class day—Wayne will take care of that—and also about getting a photo release form signed.
The operation Handbook is complete with three minor changes made today. MaryAnn will get it on the sites for all to peruse.
Ben stated he thought the display table at the commissioner’s lunch on Dec. 7th was well done and wanted to know who was involved & what they did. Gail stated: MaryAnn provided photos which Diane mounted and printed identification for, Al provided the armadillo, Dave the Indian artifacts, Valerie created the Texas quiz and made the award ribbons, Sterlin supplied all the fishing info and display, Winnie created* and printed the butterfly flyers, MaryAnn provided the banner and lamination where needed.
The board unanimously voted not to participate in the Sun City day in February—held in Sun City.
It was brought up again that we do NOT want to be affiliated with any PAC association or their green day exhibits.
The board also voted to not send money to the San Antonio chapter for their May event. Winnie pointed out that we need to think about buying a display table, chairs and tent so we can participate in community functions.
MaryAnn will check with Donna to see how long the AgriLife room is reserved for board meetings and if still reserved for regular meetings, if so will release since it was voted on to keep the regular meetings at the Methodist church.
We made a list of people to invite to the Dec. pot luck lunch meeting. Ben will write invitations.
Ben stated there will be * chapter training in central Texas sometime in March for new chapters and forming chapters. More information will follow re: date, times etc.
Wayne related he has several Power Point programs ready to be used by anyone who desires to do so.
Ben reviewed the needs for the December meeting and who was doing what and bringing what. MaryAnn stated Wayne will do a five-minute talk, Sterlin will do the same on his fish program and Winnie will read a current nature article.
At 3:25 Al made a motion to adjourn, Dave seconded.
Respectfully submitted,
Winnie Bowen, sec’y
NOVEMBER BOARD MEETING 11-8-2010
President Ben Marrou opened the meeting at 1:05 with Dave, Gail, MaryAnn, and Winnie present. The minutes were read and approved as written with Gail making the motion and Dave seconding it.
There was discussion about when to start advertising the 2011 class. Ben will talk to Wayne regarding same. Checks should be made out to Good Water Chapter of the TMN. Dave will check with the bank to make sure TMN does not have to be written out. Dave gave the treasurer report with a balance of $940.04. The account was charged a $3.00 service fee when the balance dipped below $200 in the beginning. Dave will check on any future service charges. All chapter monies have now been transferred to our checking account. February 25 will be the cut off for the new class. Dave will buy a receipt book for cash payments.
Discussion re: the availability of the room at AgriLife. It is free and available on the fourth Tuesday afternoon throughout 2011 except in the fall when the Master Gardeners have their classes. The March and April monthly meetings will be short and held at the AgriLife facility along with the new class. The May meeting will fall after the conclusion of classes so Ben will talk to Wayne re: the last class schedule and then a determination will be made as to whether to move the May meeting up or to hold at the regular time. After considerable discussion and input from Bob Whitney it was decided to continue holding regular meetings at the Methodist Church and classes at the AgriLife building.
The December meeting will be a pot luck lunch and held at the AgriLife building. The business meeting will be short. Election of officers will be held. MaryAnn will get an email out to everyone inviting those who wish to give a 5 minute presentation at the December meeting.
Ben has proofed the 501c3 application, but it has not yet been mailed.
MaryAnn will post training and volunteer opportunities on the Yahoo site for the next year.
Winnie reported that the 2011 officer slate and committee chairs have been filled. All will be posted at the regular November meeting.
There are still some problems with the format of the operating manual. Gail and MaryAnn have set a date to combine efforts. When it gets put on the website it needs to be easy to search.. MaryAnn knows how to set that up. Diane will have control of the website and everything put on the site should go through her. Both Diane and MaryAnn have passwords for the site.
AgriLife has invited GWMN to have a display table on December 7 at their annual commissioner and political function. Gail reported that her committee of Valerie, Diane, Al, Sterlin and MaryAnn are coming along well on the project and that they will be ready for the luncheon. Some materials can be stored at the AgriLife building. Five or six of us will attend the luncheon.
Gail stated that Jo Williams had made all the coasters for the 2010 speakers. She has not submitted a bill for the supplies to the chapter. She will be traveling a good deal this next year and so wishes that someone else take over the speaker gifts. Ben will contact Wayne for his input re: such gifts and journals for all the new students and also to see how many repeat speakers there will be.
Ben reported that on May21-25 there will be an Urban Wildlife Management and Planning Conference in Austin. TMN is looking for donations from all 42 chapters. After reviewing our bank balance and expected obligations it was decided to hold off on making any donation to this cause.
If Bob Whitney orders class books they are less than half the regular price.
It was discussed that dues of $10 (ten) annually will be due in January and late after March 31. Nonpayment of dues terminates chapter membership.
Winnie requested that to eliminate delay a completed application for a background check be obtained at the time of payment for the new class.
The meeting was adjourned at 3:40PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Winnie Bowen, sec’y
BOARD MEETING SEPT 9, 2010
President, Ben Marrou, called the meeting to order at 10:00 at the AgriLife building with MaryAnn, Winnie, Dave, and Al present.
Winnie read the minutes of the August board meeting and they were accepted as read. Ben stated he would like to have the decisions discussed and made in the board meeting and then relayed at the general meeting. It was decided to post the board minutes on both the Yahoo and web sites.
Ben read from an email received from Wayne stating that he has reserved the AgriLife classroom from 1-5 PM for the new MN class starting on March 8-May 15. Al suggested we do what we know works regarding time of class sessions. After the chapter gets on its feet we can experiment with evening and or Saturday classes. Ben will touch base with Wayne to let him know the Methodist church is available if we want to use it and also to discuss the possibility of having the regular monthly meeting in March and April in combination with a class day.
MaryAnn had copies of the Chapter Documents which includes Membership Manual, Operations Manual, By-laws, Management Guidelines, AT and Volunteer Hour requirements, Code of Ethics and Standard of Conduct. All will check the document over to make sure any repeated sections are not contradictory.
Winnie stated that for the chapter to have a true picture of what it cost to operate, everyone should summit a bill for supplies used. If they wish to donate such supplies, then they can donate the monetary reimbursement. The option is up to the individual.
Ben stated that he has emailed Jim Rogers at Wilco Parks twice and as yet has not received a response. He will call for a follow-up. MaryAnn stated the girls in Taylor have met with the parks people there but she does not the outcome of the meeting. Winnie suggested we assemble various emails for volunteer opportunities so individuals can get put on interested email lists for notification of volunteer projects coming up.
MaryAnn showed everyone the website explaining the various components to it and a couple of problems with the use of the site. It was unanimous that all information actually put on the website go through the webmaster.
It was determined that board meeting in the future will be at 1:00PM on the second Monday of the month.
Ben stated that Gail has agreed to be the chapter historian.
An effort will be made at each general meeting to mention current and coming up volunteer opportunities.
Meeting adjourned at 12:10 PM.
Respectively submitted, Winnie Bowen, sec’y
BOARD MEETING 8-11-2010
President Ben Marrou opened the meeting at 10 AM at the AgriLife office with Dave, MaryAnn, Al and Winnie present.
Discussions included:
Ben asked MaryAnn to get and put a group picture in the chapter charter folder. She said she would and would also include pictures of the steering committee.
Transferring the chapter’s money into our own bank account vs keeping it with AgriLife. Dave will obtain an EIN number and then go to First Texas Bank to open an account. It was determined we would use the bank’s free checks and the treasurer would be able to write checks in the amount up to $250, but for amounts over that two signatures would be needed.
MaryAnn stated the web site is up and running. There is training tomorrow for the Word Press program. A newsletter on the web was briefly mentioned with the caution that we need to take it one step at a time. There will be a history of the chapter archived on the website, but we still need an historian to scrapbook.
The combing of the operation manual will be complete by the next meeting and be all inclusive including by-laws as well as the criterion for AT hours. The order of the contents was discussed and decided upon.
Ben was concerned that no publicity has appeared in local papers. He will check with Jim to see what has or has not been sent. All concurred that it is a bit early to try to lead any article into the 2011 class info. MaryAnn will contact Taylor & Hutto papers to see if they will print info if we stress Williamson County vs only Georgetown.
There was a discussion re: interviewing people for the new class. MaryAnn stated she thought we’d have more people than we can accommodate. Al stated that the average time commitment for a MN is three years. Al stated the mentor program we had for the 2010 class was a great idea and beneficial in retaining people.
Winnie reported having had a conversation with Micki Ross at the Wilco Museum and that they are willing to partner with GWMN. Chisholm Trail Day is coming up and Winnie will get back with Micki to see what might be appropriate for us to do. Ben will talk to a committee regarding to move forward with a Berry Springs park partnership. He also stated that there are two places at the park (amphitheater & fire circle) where we could conduct programs. MaryAnn will contact Taylor and Hutto parks and Ben will contact and confer with Jim Rogers with Georgetown Parks and Rec.
Signatures are now required on all volunteer reporting sheets. MaryAnn and Winnie will make corrections and get on website along with instructions on how to electronically sign them. There was a long discussion on whether attending the monthly meeting should count as an hour of volunteer time. Finally a vote was taken after Dave made a motion ,seconded by Al, and with a 3 to 1 in favor of allowing the hour, plus the possibility of an hour AT time depending on the speaker. No travel time would be allowed.
Our AgriLife agent, Bob Whitney, is leaving the end of the month and because he was so supportive and cut so much red tape to get GWMN started many ideas were tossed around as to what we could do for him. It was decided to give him a certificate, a set of the coasters, and a gift card in the amount of $100 in a nice thank you card which as many people as possible will sign.
A Criminal check for everyone was discussed. We will obtain the proper form from AgriLife, and get it on the web for everyone to download and fill out by the next meeting. This is necessary for anyone having any contact with children. The fee is $10 each and the check must be done annually. The AgriLife agent will take care of this for us but he wants all forms at one time and one check for the fee.
Winnie suggested that the chapter be responsible for obtaining a GWMN name tag for each steering committee member as they transfer into the chapter. All agreed.
After two hours Ben ended by noting the need for an historian and will make a contact with a possible prospect. Then he adjourned the meeting.
Respectfully submitted,
Winnie Bowen sec’y
BOARD MEETING 7-1-2010
Meeting held at AgriLife small conference room with Al, Dave, Ben and Winnie present.
Discussions: Obligations of volunteer coordinator
How to do PDF files for Yahoo site so all can open
How much info-manuals we need, possible consolidation to avoid redundancy
Bylaws are written in stone and we cannot change them.
Review time of monthly meeting ie afternoon vs evening
Dues for the next calendar year. It was decided that $10 a year would be good.
Need to remind steering committee members to transfer their memberships to GWMN
There is no agenda yet for the annual meeting in October
Discussed need for publicity and PR person. Sonny will come to next meeting when it is definite as to where it will be held. Talked about having a group picture made at that time and to use for publicity. In addition to the Wmson Co Sun, we should also try for publicity in the Round Rock and Cedar Park papers as well as the monthly View and Impact papers. Wayne might be a good one-time person for this project and MaryAnn to take the picture.
Ben will make contact to see what needs to be done re: getting a website.
Ben feels we all need to sign a liability form. For next class to have it done the first day of class.
Ben stated M N carries a secondary insurance for accidents while working as a naturalist. He will post a note on the Yahoo site
Background checks need to be done on anyone who will be working with children. Bob can take care of that by connecting through 4H vs having to fill out the detailed personal form needed otherwise.
Winnie was informed that she needs to contact Sonny re: pins, name tags. Al will send her Sonny’s email and phone #.
Adjourned 1:45 min later.
Respectfully submitted
,
Winnie Bowen
8-11-10
Ben added getting everyone to sign the liability form had been tabled at the 7-1-10 meeting.
Otherwise minutes read and approved as corrected.
W Bowen
BOARD MEETING May 21,2010
The first board meeting of the Good water chapter of Master Naturalist was held on this date with all four members present plus Al Kirchner and extension agent Bob Whitney joining us.
It was decided that we would have monthly meetings. Ben will contact the extension office to see what days and times the meeting room is available. It was decided that dues will not be charged until the beginning of the next calendar year.
Al clarified that volunteer and AT hours only have to be pre approved when they take place outside those listed on the approved list. It was also discussed that hours can NOT be counted for both MN and the participating organization. One must choose one or the other. The possibilities of partnerships was discussed and it was emphasized that all major cities in the county be included.
Most feel getting criminal background checks is necessary so everyone can be available to work in parks and with children. Will seek advice from Bob Whitney regarding this.
Ben will get necessary paperwork and bylaws copies to Michelle so we can become a sanctioned chapter.
Discussion of people who might be willing to fill committee slots.
Al agreed to be state coordinator. He will also head an advance training and volunteer service group.
MaryAnn will be Monthly program chairman
Winnie will assume membership as secretary for this year.
Ben will contact other class members regarding other positions to be filled.
Meeting was adjourned at 12:20
Respectively summated
Winnie Bowen, secretary
