February 24, 2003

February 24, 2003

IN ATTENDANCE: Ann Barden, Jane Grace Bowman, Barbara Brodsky, Corty and Cassie Cammann, Dottie Coyne, Jackie Deron, Su Hansen, Susan Klimist, Pat Shalis, Martha Zingo.

Feb 9th Minutes--read, modified and accepted. 

The Board consulted and approved via email of a 10% raise for our office manager.  This comes to an $11 an hour rate for Su.

NOMINATING COMMITTEE: Jane Grace Bowman and Barbara Brodsky are the committee and perhaps Kalindi Trietley. We need two new board members. Aiji is interested in returning to serve. She does not have email but a folder can be kept here at the office for her. She can come by once a week to pick up her mail. Su asks that all board email come through the office too. ACTION ITEM: Jane Grace will ask Kalindi if she is still on the committee.

This committee will search for one more Board member. we will need an assistant treasurer now that Martha steps up into Pat's position.  This need not be the new person--perhaps someone that has sat on the board for a while. We shall have to learn what skills the new board member brings.  Is anyone on the Board ready to serve as the assistant treasurer? Barbara asks: Could a volunteer be an assistant to the treasurer and not serve on the Board? And perhaps join the board in a later time. (David Coupland? Anna Marie Heinrich?) The Board approves an assistant to the treasurer if they are willing to come on the Board in a year or be replaced in a year by whoever does come on the Board. ACTION ITEM: Ann Barden and Jane Grace will work together in the search for an assistant to the treasurer.

FINANCE COMMITTEE--We need one. ACTION ITEM: Ann Barden is searching for members of this committee.

NEWSLETTER COMMITTEE: Handout of deadlines.

TEACHER TRAINING COMMITTEE:  On going class at Slauson. Tues/Thurs classes here, Barbara will teach committed students on Tuesdays comparable to teacher training and Thursday's class with David Lawson and Cassie will be intermediate students, Aaron classes twice a month.  The class size for Barbara's classes will be limited. Dottie is proposing a Metta class and David Coupland a Sutra Class. Dianne Austin and Jane Grace and Cassie are program coordinators. Before someone signs up to teach a class, they should contact this committee.

FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE: Ann Barden is looking at a system for tracking pledges. The Board approved that Su keep track of pledges and checks as they come in. Over-the-phone commitments have been made this past fall. ACTION ITEM: Ann Barden will compile a master list of the pledges. A letter of appreciation and acknowledgment of the commitment will be sent out, also by Ann, except for Corty's contacts who got one already. Then annually there will be a review of pledges--most likely in September.

OM/OMA REPORT:

The main issue for Su concerns the flow of information regarding programs.  Su requests that information from the Program Coordinator--days of meditation, retreats, classes, rooms, description of the activity--come to her two months in advance. Usually this only happens a few times a year. Then Su can present the basic calendar. Corty: If there is something in the book, the room is taken. Once it is in the book, it has to stay there. Su is the only one who records things in the book. There is a Deep Spring activity priority. Scheduling has to be a lot more in advance. Fall schedules, for example should be in now. Non-Deep Spring events need to be more than two months in advance. Promotion Coordinator is a much-needed position.  This person would help decide how things get promoted -- calendars, Crazy Wisdom, magazines, our newsletter, etc. Retreat Committee in future should give Su complete information about the retreats so that the price is set clearly and all details agree in the many advertising spots. Perhaps a form can be created in the office that teachers and retreat organizers could complete to record all the details of their event with Su. Non-DSC applicants for activities at Deep Spring in future could also fill out a form with Su so that she has a contact telephone and necessary details and can reserve a space in the calendar for them if the room is free. ACTION ITEM:  Cassie will take on this problem of the program and usage committee work with Su. ACTION ITEM:  Jackie Deron and the Sangha Service Committee will find a volunteer to be the point person for Promotion of Deep Spring activities.

FINANCIAL  REPORT:  three handouts:  Draft 2003 Budget, Monthly Summary for January , 2003 and a six-page summation of our finances for 2002. Draft 2003 Budget, Bottom Line: at the end of the year we may be negative $3,000 unless we figure out some estimates that we don't have and if we can generate more income and figure out how to do less spending. ACTION ITEM:  Program Coordinators should report to Martha on a full year's basis what classes we will teach and guess how many people will sign up and how many hours to give an estimate of income for the building rental costs. This will just be an educated guess. Board members are also  asked to help fill in the budget numbers with hard estimates as best we can. Teachers, who are a primary source of Deep Spring income, may be able to help with the estimates (class size x number of nights x $5 for rental) for the months ahead until the end of the year. Board members are asked to give any changes to the budget proposed for 2003  to Martha by next Monday or soon thereafter.

ACTION ITEM: Cassie and Corty will take a request to the Sangha Development Committee that it will have to reschedule the State of the Sangha Meeting now set for April 13 as several Board members will be absent and the Board is doing the program.

Meeting adjourned 9:45 pm.

Handouts: 3 Financial, OMA report, Web Page report, Feb 9 minutes, Newsletter deadlines for 2003.

Before we all went home, we thanked Pat Shalis for her outstanding service to Deep Spring with flowers and song.  Tonight was Pat's final Board meeting.

Respectfully submitted, D. A. Coyne