Cincinnati Bridge Association: Board of Directors Meeting
Minutes of the Regular Meeting of August 18, 2009
Board President Potter Orr called the meeting to order at 5:35 p.m.
Members present: John Burpee, Debbie Cummings, Patti English, Betty Hurst, Barb Levinson, Adrienne Netherwood, Potter Orr, Mike Purcell, Chris Schwartz, AJ Stephani, John Stoppiello, and Jean Sturtevant. Members Absent: Everitt Kitchen, Gayle Keaney. Guests: Amit Raturi.
The July minutes were approved.
Communication glitches between Board members and the ALERT editor were discussed. We welcomed Amit Raturi to the meeting, and he shared several problems he had encountered in his role as Editor of the ALERT. He indicated he was unwilling to continue in the position if the Board viewed the newsletter primarily as an outlet for Board communications, rather than for general Unit membership education and communication. He requested direction on the guiding philosophy of the ALERT. After a hopefully-not-too-spirited discussion, there appeared to be consensus concerning the purpose of the newsletter, the authority of the Editor, and the role of the Board. John Burpee agreed to write up a summary of the discussion by way of ALERT Editor job description, which he will forward to the Board for review.
The October Sectional brochure was distributed. The fascination by the UAW Ladies’ Auxiliary with hoagies appears to have nixed the possibility that lunch on Saturday of the Sectional will be offered. An ad for the Sectional is scheduled to appear in the next Midwest Monitor.
With respect to newspaper ads for CBA bridge lessons, we find ourselves in the unusual position of being the recipient of the Cincinnati Enquirer’s largesse. They are offering Two-for-One ads, so a motion was made and approved to place a total of eight ads in the Enquirer during the month of September. Bob Veverka decided to move the beginning date of his lessons to the end of September to benefit from this largesse.
Two CBA members have agreed to run for Board positions beginning next year. A search for a third generous soul is in progress. Two persons have indicated a willingness to take on the Herculean task of replacing Adrienne as Treasurer, and both persons will be queried further to determine the size of their accounting muscles.
Status update on the Holiday Party: Melanie Onnen is assisting Chris Schwartz in coordinating the gala this year. We agreed on a date of Wednesday, December 9th. A search for a new caterer is in progress, with the proposal by the UAW Ladies’ Auxiliary for an all-Hoagie dinner already having been rejected.
The Instant Matchpoint game in September is apparently scheduled, with Annease Comer penciled in as tentative Director.
Kay Mulford’s position as CBA Club Director was clarified to those of us who wanted to know.
The Northern Kentucky’s trial with BridgeMate has gone relatively successfully, and we should consider replicating the trial in the near future.
The method of addressing conflicts between club directors, or dissatisfaction with club director performance, was discussed. The President of the Board retains the discretion to address situations that call for immediate action, but the rest of the Board should be notified of any action taken as soon as practicable afterward. The need for a more consistent mechanism for resolving these situations was discussed.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:48 pm.
A.J. Stephani
Ad Hoc Recording Secretary