Board of Directors

Regular Meeting -- September 8, 2007

The Board of Directors held its regular monthly meeting at 2007 Bert Avenue, Austin, TX 78704, starting at 1:09 pm. The following directors (constituting a quorum of the full board) were present at the meeting: President Pam Latham (Oceanna), Vice President and Treasurer Pam Chambers, Secretary Kathy Lee, Leslie Harvey and Robert Gardner. Robert McGarey (Executive Director) and our intern, Morgan Anderson were also present at the meeting.

Reading of Mission Statement and Approval of Minutes

The Mission Statement was read aloud at the beginning of the meeting. Minutes from the previous meeting were read aloud. The following change was suggested: Bob didn't write the grant to the Fentress-Brown Foundation; Pam wrote it and Bob edited it. The minutes were then approved as amended.

Intern's Report

Volunteer Management. Morgan reported that on Saturday, Sept. 29 at 10 a.m. she is planning a volunteer event, which she has named Operation First Impression. It will consist of three phases:

Phase 1 will be done on the 29th, and the other phases will take place in subsequent months. This phase will be a 2 or 2 1/2 hour project to improve the general cosmetic appearance of the Center, including weeding and mowing the front, side, back and cul de sac. She plans to serve coffee & donuts before and lunch afterward. She hopes to have 7 to 10 people at the event.

Phase 2 will be landscaping, including devising a planting plan and installing soaker hoses, etc. It will require a smaller group of people.

Phase 3 will be more major structural improvements, such as painting the buildings and constructing a shade overhang for the Information Board. Eventually it could include constructing a parking area out of a cement slab or a gravel area.

She also reported that we have a new riding lawn mower, and that she's planning to schedule a training seminar in 2 or 3 weeks. Also, she will get together within Bill Edelbrock and talk about getting rid of some of the less desirable trees around the campus.

Good Wheelchairs/Randalls. She is also planning on knocking on doors in Rebekah's neighborhood to get people to sign up. She thinks we have about 6 scooters, 1 wheelchair right now. We need 20-30 wheelchairs to really start selling them.

Executive Director's Report

Changes in Intern's Contract. Bob reported that he had been considering making some changes in the contract of Morgan, our Non-profit Management Intern. After considerable discussion, the board approved creating a 3-month probationary period in which Morgan would be expected to bring in some significant new funding to help cover the increased pay we would be giving her. The board delegated working out the details and finalizing the contract to Leslie and Bob.

Bingo. Bob reported that after extensive negotiations with Littlefield, our bingo lessor, our bingo unit agreed to accept up to 7 charities into the unit, a change which will hopefully be offset by improvements in the facility that Littlefield has promised, such as installing an electronic sign and installing a fully-functional snack bar. As a result of these changes, we have had to withdraw most of the money that has been accumulating in our bingo account, and Bob was able to deposit $10,000 into our general fund yesterday. He plans to focus this additional income on improving credit, since that will lower our interest rates and make refinancing the property more feasible.

Publicity, Grants and 990's. INACS and the Anomaly Archives were mentioned in an article in the Austin American Statesman. Also, one of our volunteer requests was listed in the RSVP newsletter. We haven't received any response yet from the Fentress-Brown Foundation. And Bob & Oceanna did a lot of work on the 990's, and they're glad that it's done!

Membership Structure. The board continued its discussion of our membership structure. Bob pointed out that we offer two levels of service: we offer workshops and classes to the general public, in which those who attend must be aware enough to "see the group" and not be disruptive, and membership for those who are interested in creating emotionally-healthy community and are committed to learning more about themselves. After extensive discussion, it was decided that we will institute an annual membership fee of $240 with three payment options: a one-time payment of $240 by check, cash or credit card; monthly payments of $20 via PayPal, or three checks for $80 each post-dated one month apart. The board also approved a Friends and Family plan, where if two people join together, the first will pay $240 and the second person will pay just $120.

Since there was no further business, the meeting adjourned at 4:26 p.m. Minutes submitted by Kathy Lee, Secretary, September 8, 2007.