1. REPORT OF EXECUTIVE SUCCESSION COMMITTEE
1.1Jack Farley presented the proposed slate of members for the Management Committee of 2008-2009 as follows:
OfficeMemberDeputy
Executive
PresidentGeorge AdamsNick Thornton
Past PresidentTed DaemGeorge Adams
Vice PresidentNick Thornton
SecretaryTed HorseyBrian Wasson
TreasurerBill MansonGrant Hammond
Committees
SpeakersFred CottonDuthie Welsford
MembershipDon NewmanConrad Rademaker
ActivitiesJohn CruickshankTo Be Announced
HouseDoug LambertBill Kennedy
NewsletterRoy WilliamsBill Weatherall
Membership ServicesBill SexsmithTo Be Announced
Historian / ArchivistGordon ThomDon Farquhar
John Cruickshank said he would advise Jack Farley of the proposed Deputy for the Activities Committee. Roy Williams asked for a volunteer to help with the Power Point Projector during speakers' presentations. Bill Sexsmith is to advise Jack Farley of the proposed Deputy for the Membership Services Committee.
ON MOTION DULY MADE, SECONDED AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY the proposed slate of members for the Management Committee was approved.
Jack Farley is to present the proposed slate for election or appointment at the next meeting of Probus Club Vancouver on Tuesday 12 August 2008. Under the constitution, any further nominations are to be presented to the Nominating Committee 24 hours before the Annual Meeting in September.
2. DEPUTY FOR THE VICE PRESIDENT
It was the consensus of the Meeting that it was unnecessary to have a Deputy as back up for the Vice President.
3. REPORT OF THE EVENTS COMMITTEE
John Cruickshank reported on the progress and direction of the Events Committee.
3.1 Appointment of Deputy. John Cruickshank said that he would advise later on his proposed Deputy for the Events Committee on learning whether the present Deputy was prepared to continue. He mentioned a few possible persons he had in mind for appointment.
3.2 Questionnaire on Activities. John Cruickshank presented to the meeting, for comment, a proposed questionnaire to be sent out with the September newsletter. He asked for comments. Most of the events listed are proposed new events, although some are on-going events, such as the Presidents' Luncheon. There was discussion whether there should be a golf tournament, but it was stated that most golf-playing members had already-arranged games so it was questionable whether there would be a required minimum of 40 members who were interested in playing in a tournament.
3.3 Watershed Tour. Jack Farley said that there were still three vacancies for the Watershed Tour. Fred Cotton said that members of the Management Committee should make every effort to attend Club-organized events to familiarize themselves with the activities of the Club.
3.4 Organization of Events. It was suggested that the Events Committee appoint a person responsible for the organization of each event to provide for such things as name tags, money collection, and necessary direction.
3.5 Job Description for Management Committee Members. It was the consensus of the meeting that the recently distributed job descriptions for members of the Management Committee were not "carved in stone", but should be flexible to deal with new and changing conditions.
4. MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE
Don Newman presented the report of the Membership Committee in the absence of Nick Thornton. He stated that the Committee had one meeting, but have had email discussions on various matters. The members of the Committee have not been finalized, but will include the Deputy, Conrad Rademaker.
4.1 Nomination Form. The Membership Committee presented a draft nomination form for comments. The Committee considers that it is more appropriate to have a nomination form, rather than an application form. The nomination form provides for the proposer to state the number of years he has known the nominee.
4.2 Acknowledgement of Nomination. The Membership Committee proposes to send to each nominee an acknowledgement of receipt of the nomination, advising of the waiting list. There was a discussion whether a nominee should be invited to attend a certain number of Club meetings as a guest before being elected to membership. There was a suggestion of a maximum of two meetings.
4.3 Number of Persons on Waiting List. As of April 2008 there were 35 persons on the waiting list. Doug Lambert orders name badges as persons are nominated. The Management Committee determines how many and which new members can be accommodated each month. Generally the Club accepts persons from other Probus clubs as members, without a waiting period.
4.4 Reduction of Persons on Waiting List. The meeting discussed how many new members the Club can admit to membership per month. The present policy is to admit 5 or 6 new members. A suggestion was made to admit 25 or 30 on a "wholesale basis", but the comment was made that we could not easily assimilate that number.
4.5 Maximum Number of Members. The Planetarium / Museum venue will accommodate up to 215 attendees. For good speakers the venue is never full; for speakers who are not as popular there are about 140 attendees or less. To attract good speakers the Club likes to be able to proffer about 170 members in attendance. There was a suggestion that the Club should accept 5-6 new members per month from September to December 2008, and that in the meantime that those members who did not attend be asked if they wished to continue their membership. The names of the members on the waiting list were read. It was stated that a problem with additional members is the finding a venue for the Presidents' Luncheon; that the Point Grey Golf Club facilities barely permitted the present members who attend. Other venues were suggested, including the Terminal City Club, the Vancouver Club or perhaps at a lower cost one of the larger Chinese restaurants or the Italian Community Centre.
4.6 Criteria for New Members. There was a discussion whether there should be criteria for new members, such as age or place of residence. Fred Cotton mentioned that when Probus Club Vancouver was first formed there was a conscious effort to have a membership diversified on the basis of a place of residence, former occupations, age and other diversities. He stated that among the objects of the Club is to have diversity and promote good fellowship. At the present time the average age of members is 74 years. One of the members advised that the Club should ensure compliance with all human rights legislation.
4.7 Cost of Membership. The Membership Committee brought up the question of reduced fees for members who join in the latter part of the membership year. Doug Lambert pointed out that fees are reduced already for new members joining during the second half of the Club year. The annual dues are now $40.
4.8 Annual Billing. The Membership Committee arranges for the annual dues letter to be sent out in October, sometimes including a questionnaire, to keep membership lists up to date, with a follow-through on those from whom no payment is received. It was suggested that email addresses be included in the Newsletter Masthead. Roy Williams said he would determine if there was sufficient space to do add them.
4.9 Sufficient Input. Don Newman said that the Membership Committee had received sufficient input on its proposals, and that the Committee would try to have 6 new members admitted at the September meeting. He said it will circulate its plans to the Management Committee for comment.
5. ADDITIONAL BUSINESS
The Chairman, Ted Daem asked if there was any old business or loose ends that should be tidied up.
5.1 Charitable Status. It was stated that Probus Club Vancouver did not have charitable status for tax purposes.
5.2 Miscellaneous Matters. Roy Williams stated that:
(a) Barb Kemp was not a full time employee, and asked that she be given adequate time and notice to do any necessary secretarial work,
(b) often emails were returned as undeliverable, often because the mail box was full or change of email address; he asked that members keep their email status current, and
(c) new members of the Management Committee should be prepared (e.g. get a haircut) to have their pictures taken at the next meeting.
5.3 Thanks to Management Committee. Ted Daem thanked all members for the work they had done on the Management Committee, and in particular, Roy Williams for recording Club Records on computer hard drive for easy access.
5.4 Thanks to Ted Daem. The meeting thanked President Ted Daem for the good job he had done as President and Chairman for the past year.
5.5 Treasury Surplus. Treasurer Bill Manson reporting on a happy note advising that there was approximately $20,000 in surplus funds, and that some thought should be given to the proper reduction so that the surplus does not become too large.
There being no further business, the meeting terminated at 11:10
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Ted Daem, Chairman
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Ted Horsey, Secretary