FRIENDS OF ELYRIA PUBLIC LIBRARY SYSTEM BOARD MEETING
January 4, 2016
PRESENT: Nancy Baldauf, Cherie Fabian, Denise Klammer, Jane Leavell, Phil Lyon, Jean Sebastian, Kathy Wainwright, Marcia Widman, Tim Widman
Staff: Lyn Crouse, Jen Harmon
Meeting called to order at 6:37 PM.
December Minutes
Cherie Fabian moved to accept the draft of minutes, and Denise Klammer seconded. Motion passed.
Treasurer’s Reports
Ron Koepp, caretaker at St. John’s and a help to us with our annual book sale, has been in and out of hospitals and Life Care for rehab. Phil Lyon sent him a get well card on behalf of Friends.
Ellen Otis gave us a $250 donation. A woman bought memberships for her grandparents as a Christmas gift, and Phil sent a letter welcoming them.
Phil gave Tim Widman a stack of membership renewals before tonight’s meeting began. Phil Lyon and Jane Leavell paid in cash last month. Nancy reminded the Board to make sure their memberships are current.
Phil will do an amended December financial report showing payment to 2015 library levy campaign account of $3000.00. This amount was based upon the IRS formula for allowable donations for non-profits
We received 1,350.00 in membership dues and spent 46.39 on the Annual Meeting party. Our current balance is $16,925.34.
Jane Leavell moved to accept the report, and Marcia Widman seconded it. Motion passed.
Director’s Report
Lyn Crouse requested the 2016 donation for the plotter (a printer for oversized items like banners), and for the New York Times list of new books and authors to be distributed to the community (the BookPage subscription), and for the annual $340 membership to the Rutherford B. Hayes Obituary Index so the library can continue submitting Elyria obituaries. About half the counties in Ohio have membership in the RB Hayes program.
A number of renovations are planned for the library this year. The bookmobile garage needs more room so the new bookmobile can fit inside. This means moving the Maintenance items, which means building a new garage for them and for the delivery van. Restrooms will also be improved/repaired.
Committee Reports
Book Sale: The library is making a massive purge to make room for the renovations. We already have approximately 575 boxes packed. Although we currently have only a handful of VHS tapes donated, Phil Lyon has volunteered to take a box of them to the Recycling Center once we accumulate more. At sorters’ discretion, if we find a library discard that we believe will really sell, we can put it in one of the categories that have been limited to donations only. Finally, Tim Widman and Phil Lyon agreed to be co-chairmen of this year’s Book Sale.
Membership: Someone reported that when she was at the West River branch, she was told our membership envelopes are no longer on the counter because they ran out. Phil Lyon retrieved the handful of remaining envelopes from the book room and gave them to Jennifer Harmon for distribution. We reviewed those remaining envelopes and made suggestions about changes. Phil, Denise, and Jen will work together on completing the design and meeting with PennyLane Printing regarding printing them before the next Friends newsletter goes out.
New Business
Nancy Baldauf reminded Phil Lyon and Denise Klammer to meet with her at the bank to update the bank information for this year. Phil, Nancy, and Lyn Crouse agreed to meet next Wednesday at 10 a.m. to draft our annual budget.
Jean Sebastian asked whether sorters could buy books in advance. For several reasons, we must wait until the book sale to buy books.
Lyn Crouse will research some contacts for an apprenticeship program offering college credits or other rewards for students willing to work with us on increasing membership.
Jen distributed a draft of the Friends of Elyria Public Library System section of the library newsletter. It looks great.
The next meeting will take place at 6:30 on Monday, February 1st at the Main library.
This meeting adjourned at 7:45 p.m.
Respectfully submitted by Jane Leavell.