Here are the highlights from the May 10th board meeting.
Call to Order Jeff Fitzgerald
Fitzgerald called the meeting together at 11:36 A.M. with the following Board Members present: Jeff Fitzgerald, Carol Buettner, Lesley Fry, Joel Mengerink, Derek Stemen, Elizabeth Brown-Ellis, Andy Wannemacher, Andy Farley. Also, Secretary Anne Decker and Treasurer Dan Best were present.
Secretary’s Report Anne Decker
Approval of the April 12, 2022 Board Minutes
Farley made a motion to approve the minutes of the April 12, 2022 meeting as submitted. Buettner seconded the motion. Board approved.
Attendance Report for April 2022 Anne Decker
Three new members joined the club and one member resigned. Membership is down -2 for the year. April attendance was 42.63%. The month ended with 137 active members and 5 honorary members.
President’s Report Jeff Fitzgerald
Selection of Club Vice President
Farley made the motion that Demi Burden be appointed Vice President of the Lima Rotary Club. Fry seconded the motion. Board approved. Burden will move up the chairs and become president of the Lima Rotary Club for its 2024-2025 year.
Avenues of Service Awards
The board reviewed nominations for the annual Avenues of Service Awards and selected the winners. They will be announced at the Changing of the Guard on June 27th.
Spring Blood Clinic
Fitzgerald announced that there were 252 attendees at the Spring Blood Clinic. That number is consistent with the number who attended the Fall Blood Clinic, but is less than half of the attendance the clinics had prior to COVID. It was recommended that additional advertising be done on television, radio, social media, and through the Chamber of Commerce. The amount of money raised from the event is not yet known.
Reverse Raffle Update
More than 100 tickets have been sold for the Jay Begg Reverse Raffle on June 2. Katy and Cat are working hard to sell all 200 tickets. Setup at the fairgrounds will likely be during the day of the event. The price of meals has increased nearly $10 per person over last year’s cost. Nutrien has offered to pay the additional cost.
Social Meeting Update
There are no social meetings scheduled at this time.
Scholarship Committee
The Scholarship Committee will award 14 scholarships at the May 23 meeting. Wannemacher requested 5 minutes at that meeting for Bart Mills and Marc Wright to promote Lima’s Juneteenth celebration. Board agreed.
New Treasurer Discussion
No club members have volunteered to fill the club treasurer’s role when Dan Best leaves it at the end of this Rotary year. Best agreed to continue those duties for a couple more months until a new treasurer is found. He will contact Tracey Regula and see what it would cost to have her accounting firm take over the job.
Jerry Lucas Picture Raffle
The winning raffle ticket for the autographed Ohio State Buckeyes photos from Jerry Lucas will be drawn at Changing of the Guard on June 27th. Tickets will continue to be sold for $20 until that time. The club will split the proceeds from the raffle 50/50 with Lucas’s educational program.
Toledo Rotary Inquiry About Dues Structure
The Toledo Rotary Club contacted the Lima Rotary Club to inquire about our club’s dues structure as it considers raising dues. Best discussed this with them. Toledo Rotary currently has a tiered dues system with one price for members under the age of 40 and a higher price for members over the age of 40. Meals are additional and are paid by members at each week’s meeting.
Printed Membership Directory
Richard Warren requested the club begin printing membership directories as it did in the past. The board does not think that is a good idea due to the cost and the constant changes in membership.
Juneteenth
The Lima Rotary Club will not meet on June 20th due to the new federal holiday, Juneteenth. The Civic Center will not be open that day and would have to open just for the club and pay overtime to its staff if we chose to hold our meeting that day. The club traditionally does not meet on federal holidays.
Board Reports All Board Members
Empowering Girls Committee
Fry reported that the Empowering Girls Committee met on May 9 with attendance from several community members. They are still in the fact finding stage, trying to determine what services are needed to help local girls and how the club can go about filling those needs. The Lima City Schools has stated that there is a need for feminine hygiene products among some of the students. Stemen suggested that the committee see if it is eligible for a district grant.
PolioPlus Fundraising Campaign
Stemen reported that Plunge For Polio will take place on May 23 with him in a dunk tank during the club meeting. Members can purchase balls to throw at him. If members don’t want to be in the dunk tank they can purchase immunity tickets for $20 prior to the meeting. It is expected that this event and the proceeds from the quarterly Rottery drawing will bring the club to its $5,000 PolioPlus goal for this year.
Rex Perry Memorial Golf Outing Update
Wannemacher reported that many sponsors are already committed and the committee is currently working on signing up teams for the August 17th outing.
District Dues Increase
Stemen received a letter from Rotary District 6600 stating that Rotary International dues will be increasing $4.00 per member in the 2022-2023 year and $3.50 per member for the 2023-2024 year. District 6600 will not increase dues next year and will evaluate the situation the following year. This led to a discussion about the need for the Lima Rotary Club to raise dues since the club has no extra funds to cover the increase. A committee of Best, Farley, Stemen and Decker will meet on May 23 to discuss the amount of the dues increase likely to be required. In the meantime, Fitzgerald will contact Milano’s and Farley will contact the Civic Center to see if they will be increasing their costs to the club next year.
Treasurer’s Report Dan Best
Best reported that the club’s total income year to date is $88,499.10, slightly above the same period last year. The club’s YTD expenses are $81,525.18, leaving the club with a net income of $6,973.94, down $23,827.62 from the same period last year. The club’s working capital is $20,016. Farley made a motion to approve the treasurer’s report. Wannemacher seconded the motion. Board approved.
New Business
- Applications Anne Decker
The Lima Rotary Club has received the following new member applications:
Sheila Miller – Care Access Patient Access Liaison
Troy Elwer – New Allen County Fair Manager
Scott Neth – Premier Bank Vice President Commercial Lender
Erin Hardesty – New United Way Director
Kendra Dilts – The Springs of Lima Executive Director
Kendra Dilts – The Springs of Lima Executive Director
John Payne – Lima Municipal Court Magistrate
Stemen made a motion to approve all six new member applications. Buettner seconded the motion. Board approved. Their orientation is scheduled for May 25, 2022.
Stemen made a motion to approve all six new member applications. Buettner seconded the motion. Board approved. Their orientation is scheduled for May 25, 2022.
- Resignations
None at this time
Farley made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 12:57 P.M.
Respectfully submitted
Anne Decker, Secretary