FAIR HILL ENVIRONMENTAL FOUNDATION AND NATURE CENTER BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING FAIR HILL NATURE CENTER August 13, 2002 6:00 P.M.

Attendees:

Josh Brown, Jim Campbell, Bob Carroll, Dennis Clower, Mario Gangemi, Holly Hannum, Doug Hill, Larry Klevans, Dan Schneckenburger, Nancy Simpers, Barbara Snyder, Dan Speakman, Rebecca Taccone, Rick Waterhouse,

Dan Schneckenburger called the meeting to order at 6:08 P.M.

The minutes from the July Board meeting were amended to read "Eddie Howell" instead of ' 'Eddie Howe", then were approved.

Program Committee: Barb Snyder

• Fox Hunt Talk - Sept 18, 7:00, Erlene Michner will bring a beagle and tell about foxhunting at Fair Hill.
• Leaf Walk Oct 19 - 2:00 p.m. with Holly Hannum, Hayride at 4:00 p.m.
• Stargazing, Nov. 13, 7:00 with Linda Tinsman
• Wreath Craft -Nov. 16 10:00, Katherine Straughan and Pat Holleran. Make a wreath with purchased and collected materials.
• Santa Hayride - Dec. 7 - rain date of Dec. 8. Come ride the wagon to see Santa at Nature Center, make birdfeeders, crafts.
• Holiday Party - Dec 11 Board of Directors, Staff Holiday party.

Discussion:

Twenty-five people attended the skipjack cruise. Free admissions were given to the leaders of the VISTA project, as a "thank you".

Due to a lack of registrations, the talk at the Upper Bay Museum had to be cancelled.

The September beef and beer/dance was discussed in committee and was cancelled, because it would not be an effective fund-raiser.

Finance Committee: Larry KIevans Report as of July 31, 2002 :

• In July, 2002, expenses exceeded income by $2141. The majority of income items were $1740 from CCPS, $780 for summer camp, $625 from United Way of C.C., $155 from non-public schools, and $151 for memberships.
• Major expenses were $4543 for staff, $477 for office expenses, $374 for payroll taxes, $340 for summer camp, and $150 to reserve the skipjack. We have yet to receive enough reservations to recover this cost.
• As of July 31, Year to date Income (YTD) totals $67127 vs a budget of $65245, while YTD expenses total $69179 vs a budget of $65242. Thus our YTD net income was $2052.
• The fund balance as of July 31 was $15842. If my forecast of a loss for the year of about $12000 is close to the mark, our fund balance on December 31,2002 will be only $6000. This is not satisfactory.
• Fund raising efforts need to pick up, to approach a balanced budget.
• Application for a 2003 grant from the United Way of C.C. was submitted on August 1

Discussion:

We need to make an effort to get more funding. Dennis estimates we will get $5000 from the bar association, and we have received $5000 from Ms. Patsy duPont.

The Spring Fest accounts have been finalized and each of the two participating organizations earned $7000. Upper Bay Counseling is committed to doing this fund-raiser again. They will begin planning in September.

Larry suggested closing down the nature center for the month of December to conserve funds. .

Nature School Report: Holly Hannum

There were 221 children enrolled in summer camp. Five scholarships were given through the aid of the Garden Club of Rising Sun and Wells Fargo. Evaluations showed that the favorite activities were: hiking, making crafts, stream exploration, owl pellet study, fox tracks study, and learning about snakes. Parents expressed many positive opinions and preferred the half-day format.

Holly discussed funding and scheduling for the next school year's programs. The MD Dept. of Ed. application was turned down.

The school district covered transportation for grades one and two. Grade three is being covered by money from the C.C. Bar Association and the school district, with students paying a portion. $9000 from Cecil Soil Conservation will fund grade four. Grade five will be covered by money from the Waterfowl Festival and the C.C. Bar Association. Holly Stated that a total of $7200 is required for the program fees for one grade level. The C.C. Arts Council is providing $1800 to cover Kindergarten visitations for the first 18 classes that apply. A grant from PG&E may be applied for. Nancy Simpers will contact Lion's Clubs about covering classes in their communities.

Holly went to the Waterfowl Festival luncheon to receive their check and has photos to be added to the next newsletter.

The Nature School staff is returning on August 26.

MBNA will have volunteers present to work on trails on August 28 and 29.

Holly will be making out the school visitation schedule during the first week of school and the classes will start coming after Labor Day.

Holly reported that she attended a planning meeting for a residential program, which would operate at a facility on Elk Neck. The Ericson Foundation would run this program for sixth graders.

Personnel Committee: Dan Schneckenburger

Hinda Smith is now on the personnel committee.

Public Relations: Doug Hill

The film is ready to be used. Doug asked the group for ideas about its use. A suggestion was made to give it to

BEP AC, via Ralph Young, to be shown at their monthly meeting. Barb Snyder will pass it along to Ralph. Showing it at the Fair Hill International was another suggestion. Doug will convene his committee to brainstorm possible presentations and report at the next board meeting.

Membership: Bob Carroll

The decal order has been received. Bob gave these to those present. Bob prepared a letter to go out in a mailing to the membership. They all receive one decal, with the option to order more for a donation amount, as yet to be determined.

Bob reported that membership is 30% higher than the figure that was budgeted for the year.

Buildings and Grounds:

The waterproofing of the basement was discussed. Barb said that there is a place where water runs into the basement when we have rain. Dan Schneckenburger suggested that we wait until it rains to see if this is a serious enough problem to devote some of the budget to.

Dan Schneckenburger discussed the barn repair problem. He plans to meet with Wayne, Jerry Newman, and selected board members, to look at the barn and try to make a definitive decision about repairs.

Dan Speakman will schedule a time to strengthen the railing on the wooden steps to the pasture, and will let potential volunteers know the date.

New Business:

The bridge on the property has been completed, however, the "Singing Tree" had to be cut down to complete the project.

Dan Schneckenburger handed out the committee assignments:

Building and Grounds - Jerry Newman (Chair), Jim Campbell, Bill Lucas, Dan Speakman

Finance - Larry Klevans (Chair), Ralph Young, Rebecca Taccone

Program - Barb Snyder (Chair), Rick Waterhouse, Phyllis Kilby, Joanne Dawson

Membership/Benefits - Bob Carroll (Chair), Dennis Clower, Chuck Dolor

Comm. Relations/PR - Doug Hill (Chair), Mario Gangemi, Nancy Simpers, Josh Brown

Dan suggested that board members might each need to take a presentation of the video to a certain number of organizations or businesses, to further our fund-raising efforts.

Next Meeting:

September 17 (changed due to a conflict with Primary Election Day on September 10) The starting time for the next meeting is being changed to 6:30 P.M.

The meeting was adjourned at 7:40 P.M.

Respectfully submitted,

Rick Waterhouse

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