May 2006

Wikimaster's Note: These minutes were recreated by Andy Koenig some months after the fact, from rough notes taken by Jean Scully.

OPENING CEREMONIES

The meeting was called to order at 8:12 p.m., at the home of Mark & Robin Schaffer.

Roll Call

We do not have the attendance list from this meeting.

Treasurer's Report

April's expenses are artificially low due to going to the on-line; it will even itself out. Festival registrations are ahead of last year--going very strong. Taxes are due May 15th but we may go for an automatic extension.

BUSINESS ITEMS

ACMA Grant

Pam Robinson: We are working on grant paperwork; due June 15th. Grant money can be general operating expenses for the FP, which will get us the most money. We don't have to tell them what it's for until after we spend it. We are applying for $5,000 and we will probably get about $1,000; we'll find out in October and then we can decide where to spend it. The grant would cover printing, postage, rent, etc; anything except durable equipment. There's also a Dodge Partnership grant and we could get up to $3000 from that but we haven't applied for that yet; they are not exclusive.

Mark Schaffer moved to apply for a grant for maximum amount from Arts Council of the Morris Area. We have to put a line in our publicity saying that we are supported by ACMA.

Barbara Moo: How do we cope in a couple of years if we begin relying on grant money now? Answer: It's a relatively small amount, and we could use it for odds and ends. It could free up money for performers, etc.

Andrew Koenig’s experience with the Early Music Players is that if we receive such a grant, we have to keep track of demographics of our audience, have to keep copies of programs, and have to publicize the existence of the grant in all of our literature. He thinks these requirements are a bit draconian. Mike Agranoff feels we don't need grant money as much as other organizations do.

Motion to table the motion on the vote: carried. Straw poll: 3 against all grants, 2 in favor of committee level grants, 10 in favor of organizational level grants.

Affinity Federal Credit Union

Elizabeth Lachowicz got a sample of the link to our website; whatever we wan,t they will do in terms of brochures, etc. We have a copy of all benefits to go into the newsletter. Barbara Moo and Elizabeth Lachowicz will work up the actual wording for our website. Discussion tabled until next month.

Back Burner

Insurance and such has been put aside for now.

REPORTS OF THE STANDING COMMITTEES

Minstrel Staffing

Sandie Reilly: Minstrel volunteers are now totally on line, with 143 people on the mailing list.

Horses Sing None of It

Sandie Reilly: We have a great schedule coming up, with great shows taped. David Massengill & Modern Man taping on May 15th. HSNOI has been going on for 14 years, with great publicity all over East Coast and now California. It's been coming out of Ralph Litwin's pocket for all this time and it's time for the Folk Project to take it over financially.

Memebership

Nothing to report.

Newsletter

Nothing to report.

Webmaster

George Otto: There has been a big increase in web hits, but it has settled down and is now down to 42 per day. The company that gives us web support is now moving to a UNIX environment, so there will be things that we can now do that we couldn't before. We've been added to the New Jersey Arts Forum website through a friend of Tommy Mahoney.

Publicity

Do we want to put an ad in the Philly Folk Festival program?

Internal Affairs

October and November Evenings of Music are open.

Community Affairs

Elizabeth Lachowicz says thanks to everyone for helping at NJFF. The weather was totally perfect. Our ad in their program really sucked again and we'll be protesting. In addition, she gave away many cards with her personal ticks. Gave a cable TV interview. Had some last-minute requests for getting performers.Gave our contact information to a local paper.

Sound Reinforcememt

Thanks to Pat Hickey, we have enough equipment for Tanglefoot & Great Bear Trio. Mike Agranoff still needs a policy statement from Bob Safranek for the circumstances under which Morristown Unitarian Fellowship can use our equipment.

Minstrel Booking

Average attendance over the past 12 months has been 103 people; 105 over April. Fees have gone up also. Feature act has gotten average of $616.

June 2nd: David Jacobs-Strain very amazing; you must come see him.

Swingin' Tern

There will be a waltz workshop with Ken Crawfordand a special fund raiser (Harvest Hoot) to bring in more FP folks into Tern in the fall.

Special Concerts

We talking to the Bickford Theatre about December 3 for Cherish the Ladies. <<get report from Gwen Orel>>

Festival

165 people registered for Festival so far. We are just under the guarantee of 170.

Storytelling

<<get report from Julie Pasqual>

REPORTS OF THE AD-HOC COMMITTEES

Archives and Key Dates

Bobbie Rosengarten hasn't heard back yet from the guy working on skit videos; we will get in touch with Rutgers if we haven't heard anything in time and just put his stuff in late. Pam Robinson still needs copies of any open contracts of leases, insurance policies, etc.

Bobbie has copies of what she has so far. Right now it's just passive, no way to have it remind people of their dates coming up other than Bobbie getting reminded and passing it along.

Document retention:

THE INBOX

Raritan Valley Community College is having an international folk festival this weekend.

Chris got info on Elderhostel trip to Quebec to coincide with a Quebecois festival.

GOOD OF THE ORDER

Mike Agranoff went to Jean Rohe's senior recital at The New School. Rick Thomas reports that tobins have built nest in the azalea bush and had a baby. Elizabeth Lachowicz is going to Chicago tomorrow morning, and then going to Mexico with her sister before she (the sister, not Elizabeth) becomes a nun. Bobbie Rosengarten will be in Alaska for the next board meeting. She had a great time with her son Thomas when he was here. Barbara Moo went to great concerts including Shostakovich. Ken G been accepted a to juried showcase for riverway story festival in Albany for his original story. Jim King sang a Gounod Mass and had a brilliant time.George Otto has succeeded with his web TV broadcast medical broadcast info all over the world on Internet 2. The Early Music Players, including Andy Koenig, played at Bernardsville Library in honor of Shakespeare's birthday; the concert included Andy’s original arrangement of a Shakespeare song. Mark Schaffer's daughter is graduating from William Paterson College and going to France. Mark's parents are upset that he put in their real ages of 86 and 91 and requested fictitious ages. Lois DeRitter’s godmother loved Music Town's show on CD. She saw a Bruce Springsteen & Seeger Session concert , which she highly recommended. Jim West was selected to play People's Choice concert at Folk Factory Coffeehouse in Philly on June 9th. Tommy Mahoney completed his first acting class. Ken Galipeau’s son graduated from Rutgers and now is getting to blow stuff up at Picatinny Arsenal. Pam Robinson went to New Hampshire to visit Alex and Bridget for their housewarming.Brad Pryor went to a bluegrass festival Mark Schaffer his hosting the breast cancer benefit concert on June 17th.

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting adjourned at 10:06.