Chapter President David Anspach brought the meeting to order shortly after 1:00 pm, on Saturday, January 19, 2008, and immediately started by leading the pledge of allegiance, assisted by Chuck Huber.
Secretaries Note: 2 guests are attending this meeting, Richard breedlove, and Marita Papp, of which both applied to the chapter to become members. Richard Breedlove’s application was received on December 16, 2007. Marita Papp’s application was received on September 27, 2007. President Anspach called for vote from chapter, so that these 2 applicants could vote in today’s elections for chapter officers. Both applicants have paid their $10.00 at this time.
President Anspach called for the chapter to vote on the 2 applicants at this time, first calling for a vote on Richard Breedlove. Chapter unanimously voted Richard as a member. President Anspach then called for a vote on Marita Pap, and the chapter unanimously voted Marita as a member.
President Anspach then asked for a roll call of members present at meeting.
The following chapter officers were present:
President David Anspach, Vice-president Mike Lamb, Secretary Melissa Johnson, Treasurer Scott Carlisle, Board Member John Carson, board Member Tammy Anspach, and Board Member Jim Ellsworth.
The following chapter members were present:
Paul Prescott, Bonnie Prescott, Grant Downey, Linda Saunders, Charlotte Bogadi, Chuck Huber, Judy Wood, Janice Snow, Richard Breedlove, CJ Bradley, Eric Kosten, Eric Davis, Patti Ochi, Virginia Carlisle, Debbie Hietala, chuck Hietala, Marita Papp, Kim Ellsworth with daughter kandice.
Secretary’s note: 7 board members and 18 chapter members were present at today’s meeting.
President Anspach then called on Secretary Melissa Johnson to present the secretaries report. Melissa began by stating to John Carson that she would have the meeting minutes to him as soon as she could, and these are June, August, September, October, and November; once November’s minutes have been approved by the chapter. Melissa then began to read the minutes for November’s meeting. President Anspach called for any corrections, additions, or comments. John Carson made the motion that the minutes for the November meeting be accepted as read by Melissa, motion was seconded by Scott Carlisle. Motion carried.
President Anspach then opened a discussion on how to present the chapter minutes to all members from this meeting forward into the future. David’s thought on this matter, is to have the secretary, whomever he/she is, to have them transcribe the minutes, then email said minutes to all members who have access to email, and for those members who do not have email, the minutes can be converted to audio format, and uploaded to news line so that members can access our chapter minutes via telephone. This was put in the form of a motion made by John Carson, seconded by Linda Saunders and Eric Davis. Motion carried.
President Anspach called on Treasurer Scott Carlisle to give the treasurer’s report, in which Scott began by giving the balance of the general funds which is: $938.47. The balance in the Jill Carson Memorial fund is: $1,785.00. Scott then reported on expenses for the chapter, which are as follows: $128.50 for the domain hosting for the chapter web site renewal, and $750.00 for the scholarship sponsorship in memory of Jennifer Madsen. There were no deposits for Scott to report on at this time. Current balances are: general fund $809.97 and in the Jill Carson memorial fund $1,035.00. President Anspach then called for any corrections, additions, or comments, and Chuck Hietala asked if there were any additional deposits that are pending, and Scott stated that a donation had been received for $50.00 for the Jill Carson Memorial Fund. Vice-president Lamb then asked about dues, and Scott responded, that we have 26 paying members at this point, and that $78.00 will be sent to the state affiliate. Debbie Hietala made the motion that the treasurer’s report be accepted as given by the treasurer, which was seconded by Charlotte Bogadi. Motion carried.
President Anspach then called on Janice Snow to give the report for the expanding horizons and Sunshine Committees. Janice reported that she has been in contact with Marilyn Stevens (not sure of spelling), from the talking book library, and that she will be attending the meeting in February to speak with the chapter. Janice also reported that she has contacted Mike Magahon (not sure of spelling), and he is not sure when he will be able to speak to our chapter at this time, however, Janice has tentatively set him up to speak in March. Janice also put out to the chapter that she will welcome any ideas and suggestions for speakers to be asked to speak to the chapter, and they can contact Janice by her cell number which is (727) 723-4376. Janice then expressed concerns about getting people to come to speak to us on Saturday’s, because most people do not want to work on Saturdays. Janice then reported on the Sunshine committee, and she was very happy to report that everyone has been healthy!
Secretary’s note: If Janice Snow could please get proper spellings of names, then this can be corrected as part of the February minutes.
President Anspach then called on Vice-president Mike Lamb for the report on the Outreach Committee, and he stated he really did not have much to report at this time, however, he would give an update and full report in February’s meeting.
President Anspach then called on Debbie Hietala and Tammy Anspach for the Dog Guide committee report. Debbie Hietala announced that a new executive Director had been hired for south eastern Guide Dogs, and she deferred to Chuck Hietala for the individuals name. Chuck then reported that the person’s name was Titus Herman (not sure of spelling) Chuck stated he would get the recording secretary the proper spelling of this person’s name. Chuck then spoke about the little bit he knew of this individuals background coming from Goodwill Industries in Sarasota. Chuck then spoke about the Walk-a-thon to support South Eastern Guide dogs, on Saturday, March 1, 2008. Debbie then reported that she had spoken to Marion Gwizdala and that he is planning to run for president of NAGDU, and that this is because the person currently holding the position is stepping down. Tammy Anspach then opened a discussion about ownership policies that was also being discussed on the NAGDU email list, a full discussion followed by the chapter. Scott Carlisle then stated that Guide dogs for the Blind (GDB) will no longer be breeding German Shepard’s for their program.
President Anspach then called on John Carson for an update on the Web site committee. John stated that the site is still averaging approximately 600 hits or more each month. John also talked about the web site renewal, which was a total of $128.50, which was mentioned in the treasurer’s report as an expense. This is basically 119.50 for the renewal of the web site hosting for one year, which will expire January 23, 2009, and $9.00 for privacy so that John’s personal information will be kept private by Network solutions the provider. John also explained that network Solutions also gave the chapter a credit of $34.95, which could be used for one of 2 things. The first being a second domain name could be registered for one year, or the second, you could use it for extending the current domain name registration for another year. John chose to extend the registration for one more year, which now will expire on January 23, 2011.
President Anspach then called on John Carson once again for the Fund raising Committee report. The first thing, was to announce a committee meeting on Sunday, January 27, 2008 at John’s house from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm, in which we will discuss the upcoming yard sale for the chapter, which will be again hosted by John Carson. John then explained that the yard sale will be on Saturday, March 15, 2008, and instead of a chapter business meeting, each chapter member will come to participate in a 2 hour shift which will take care of their meeting obligation for the month of march and help to get more participation from the chapter so that only a few people are not stuck with trying to do it all again this year. This was put in the form of a motion by John Carson, and seconded by Eric Kosten. Motion carried. Details on the upcoming yard sale will be discussed at the fund raising committee meeting. Debbie Hietala also announced that drinks will be provided for volunteers, and she also wanted everyone to know that the most important times of the yard sale is the setup and breakdown and that this is when we would really need some help.
Chuck Hietala spoke about the tape players from the chapter, that Debbie and Chuck is selling to help raise money for their Challenge aspen trip. Chuck talked about the 3 winners that have been picked through the raffle they held at the Meet the Blind Picnic. One of the winners is David Beardin, and sandy Anderson from the FCB chapter, along with her husband Rob. Chuck also thanked the chapter for the donation of the tape players to help make this happen.
President Anspach then opened a discussion on a committee he was forming for correspondence. This committee will be called the “Correspondence Committee” and will be chaired by chapter member Virginia Carlisle. This committee will be responsible for any and all correspondence, for events and letters to be sent to those who help our chapter to hold our events. Virginia accepted this appointment, and also asked for at least one other person to be part of the committee in case she ever gets to being overwhelmed so this person could help take up the slack. Janice snow and Richard Breedlove stepped up to this request and volunteered their assistance.
President Anspach then opened a discussion quickly on the upcoming state convention that will be held in Jacksonville this year. It will be at the Embassy Suites Hotel about ¼ miles from Interstate 95, which is very close to Jacksonville Beach, grocery stores and restaurants. David stated he would email all those members with email access the information about the hotel, and also stated that the room rates were going to be $89.00 per night, and there is an Omaha Steak House Restaurant right inside the hotel. The $89.00 per night room rate does get you a cook to order breakfast, and a 2 hour period in which they have a manager’s special happy hour where drinks are free. David stated that this is all of the information that he has at this time, and will be updating us as he receives more information.
President Anspach then discussed an email that he received from Kathy Davis, President of the NFB of Florida Affiliate. He explained to the chapter that Kathy was inquiring about the state convention in 2009, and to see if the Pinellas Chapter would be interested in hosting this convention, which was followed by full chapter discussion. David then mentioned about the convention this year (2008), that he was not sure about any assistance from the state affiliate, but he imagined it more than likely would be the same as years in the past. He then mentioned about the possibility of renting a van, and Chuck and Debbie Hietala stated that they may not be available this year to drive said van, however, the chapter has several sighted members who may be able to step up and drive this year, and this can be decided once more information is obtained from the state.
President Anspach then called on Jim Ellsworth to explain the procedures for the chapter elections, on which Jim took a few minutes to explain the details of how things would be handled, and that all positions, were up for re-election, and that any dues paying member can run for an officer or board position if they wish too.
President Anspach turned the election for President over to the current Vice-president Mike Lamb to hold the election for position of President. Mike asked for nomination of president, and David Anspach received nomination. Mike asked if David would serve and his response was “yes.” Mike then asked for any other nominations for president, and John Carson was nominated. Mike asked John if he would serve, and his response was “yes.” Mike then asked for any other nominations, and none was given at this time, and nominations were closed. There was a call from the floor for a secret ballot. Election was held, and David Anspach was elected president
President Anspach then opened the election for Vice-president. Mike Lamb received a nomination, and David asked if he would serve, and Mike’s response was “yes.” Dave called for other nominations, and John Carson received a nomination, and Dave asked if he would serve, and his response was “yes.” Dave then called for any other nominations, and none were made. Nominations were closed and election was held by secret ballot. Mike Lamb was once again elected as Vice-president.
President Anspach then opened the elections for position of Secretary. David called for nominations and Tammy Anspach received a nomination and when asked if she would serve, she respectfully declined. John Carson then received a nomination and when asked if he would serve, his response was “yes.” David then called for 2nd nominations from the floor, and there were none. David then made the 3rd call from the floor for nominations and there were none. A motion from the floor that nominations be closed and that John Carson is elected secretary by acclamation at this time. The chapter unanimously elected John Carson as Chapter Secretary by acclamation.
President Anspach then opened the elections for position of treasurer. David called for nominations, Scott Carlisle received a nomination. Dave asked if Scott would serve, and his response was “yes.” David then called for other nominations and Eric Davis received a nomination, and when David asked if he would serve, his response was “yes.” David then made the 3rd and final call for nominations, which there were none, so nominations closed and election was held. Eric Davis was elected to the position of chapter Treasurer.
President Anspach opened the elections for the first board position available. David called for nominations from the floor, and Scott Carlisle received a nomination, David asked if Scott would serve and his response was “yes.” David called for 2nd nominations and Janice snow received a nomination, David asked if she would serve, and her response was “yes.” David then called for 3rd nominations, Eric Kosten received a nomination from the floor, and David asked if he would serve, and his response was “yes.” Nominations were closed at this time and election held. Janice snow was elected to the board.
President Anspach then opened the elections for the 2nd board position. David called for nominations from the floor, and Tammy Anspach received a nomination, David asked if she would serve and her response was “yes.” David called for 2nd nomination and Scott Carlisle received a nomination, David asked if he would serve and his response was “yes.” David then called for 3rd nomination, and Eric Kosten received a nomination, David asked if he would serve and his response was “yes.” Nominations were closed at this time and elections held. Scott Carlisle was elected to the board.
President Anspach then opened elections for the 3rd board position. David called for nominations from the floor and Tammy Anspach received a nomination, David asked if she would serve and her response was “yes.” David then called for 2nd nominations, Eric Kosten received a nomination, David asked if he would serve and his response was “yes.” David then called for 3rd and final nominations from the floor, and there were none. Nominations were closed and elections held. Tammy Anspach was elected to the board.
Tammy Anspach asked to make an announcement at this point in the meeting. Tammy announced that on November 3, 2007 that she had lost her Grandmother. Her grandmother’s name is “Ruth Estelle Beckdal.” Tammy went on to tell the chapter how she idolized her and how much she looked up to her grandmother. Tammy also told the chapter of how her grandmother was her biggest fan, and how her grandmother bragged about how happy Tammy was and more. Tammy received a small inheritance from her grandmother, and Tammy announced that she was donating $100.00 in her grandmother’s name, to the general fund of the Pinellas Chapter.
Prior to adjourning the meeting, President Anspach ran through the new list of elected chapter officers and board members:
President: David Anspach
Vice-president: Mike Lamb
Secretary: John Carson
Treasurer: Eric Davis
Board member 1: Janice snow
Board member 2: Scott Carlisle
Board member 3: Tammy Anspach
A motion was entertained and seconded at 2:55 pm for adjournment; President David Anspach respectfully adjourned the meeting at this time.
Respectfully Submitted
John Carson, Secretary
Pinellas Chapter
NFB of Florida