The meeting was called to order at 8:17 PM on April 1st, by President Elizabeth Lachowicz.  This meeting was held via Zoom.

ROLL CALL

Present: Mike Agranoff, Loretta Brooks, Jeff Canter, Sam Edelston, Paul Fisher, Doug Heacock, Jeff Jonas, Allan Kugel, Elizabeth Lachowicz, John Mahon, Bob McNally, George Otto, Sandie Reilly, Tina Ross, Mark Schaffer, Robin Schaffer, Jean Scully and Pamela Zave.

Absent: Christine DeLeon, Todd Dennison

Guests: None

MOTIONS MADE

• The minutes of the March 2025 monthly  meeting were approved with 1 abstention and 0 oppposed.

• A motion to adjourn was made at 10:00 PM and approved unanimously.

TREASURER'S OVERVIEW 

Jeff reported that he sent out a second P&L report which restricted the period covered to the month of March.  The original included April 1, which changed the numbers a lot for Swingin’ Tern because they pay their rent on the 1st.

Pamela brought up concerns about the money we have in Vanguard Wellington funds, which she looked into.  After some discussion, it was agreed that the Board will continue to monitor the performance of the fund.

OLD BUSINESS

There were no Old Business items on the agenda.

NEW BUSINESS

There were no New Business items on the agenda.

COMMITTEE REPORT HIGHLIGHTS 

Sound Reinforcement

John gave a synopsis of his report, which was sent just before the meeting.

There were successful shows in March.  We also had some new roles, with Alicia Weimer doing Head Sound for the first time and Chris Bukata doing Streaming Sound.  There was a walk-through of the new setup in Chu Hall on March 13th and a successful Open Stage in Chu Hall the following night with no major hiccups. He reports that he is finally over his CoViD infection.

Elizabeth enquired about a future sound workshop for new volunteers.  John said he is still planning it but needs to refine the training with all of the equipment.  Jean asked that John talk to her and Amy to see if anyone in the volunteer pool is interested in the training.  Mark said he will introduce John to Wayne, who has some technical expertise and is a potential volunteer.

Newsletter

George sat on his report.

Publicity/Web

Sam wanted to point out the great work being done by the Publicity team.  He wanted to especially point out Barry, Faith, Sena, Mark and Olga.

What he wanted to highlight was that the Folk Project History book (edited by Laurie Riley) is a real thing and is being proofread now.  It will be full of great memories and will require a big publicity push.  The plan is to have the book available by the Birthday Show this summer.  Mike has some concerns about the cost and outlay, but Sam pointed out that it will be set up to make money for us.  Laurie has an on-demand printer that will make it possible to do runs as small as one copy.  Sam says that stage of planning has not yet been reached.  Bob suggested adding some blank pages for people to write comments or memories, but Sam said it is too late for that.  Pamela pointed on that print on demand has become very cost effective.

Swingin’ Tern

Doug wanted to add to his report that last month had a bigger loss and they will being going to some kind of sliding scale for dance tickets like other venues have gone to.

Doug also pointed out that we are nearing the end of a four week campaign where he produced videos for Facebook and other sites to promote the dances.  Some people report having seen them while browsing.  Sam pointed out that Facebook and Instagram ads have gotten some traction.  Jeff pointed out that he used to use MeetUp and Doug replied that most of the new beginners coming to Swingin’ Tern come through MeetUp.

Future Planning

Robin stood on her report but wanted to add two things.

They had been looking for a Merch volunteer and found one in Sena Stein, who will bring merch up during some Troubadour shows for selling it during the shows.

Robin and Jeff Canter spoke with Eitan about grants and they came to the conclusion that, for most grants, the fact that we have money in the bank makes it not worth applying.  There are three family grants which will still be applied for: Morris Arts, Midatlantic Arts, and Martin Foundation.  We did get some funding $4500 from Morris Arts for 2025 . 

Special Events and Troubadour

Mark reports unexpectedly low registration numbers for the upcoming Getaway (less than 40 out of the negotiated 100 places of which we committed to a minimum of 80).   Mark is concerned about potentially losing $12,000 if attendance remains low.  He and Pat will be meeting to discuss a phone campaign to increase interest.  Several board members emphasized the importance and value of the Getaway experience, suggesting increased outreach efforts to boost registration.  Ideas include having multiple people make personal phone calls to past attendees, highlighting the quality of performers and overall experience, and reminding people of the unique community aspects of the event. There was discussion about whether to invest more heavily in a "big name" performer for future Getaways.  Some members noted that they had gotten the impression last year that the Getaway was dead and had not made plans to go because of that.  Mike pointed out that he went to Trad Mad last year and it was sold out, so there is hope.  The board agrees this is an important issue requiring further discussion and strategizing.

Troubadour Staffing

Jean reported on recent troubadour staffing developments. The Songwriters Summit was a success despite last-minute venue changes, demonstrating the team's adaptability. Jean noted that upcoming events, particularly the Jeff Daniels show, will require setting up chairs, which she hopes might encourage more community involvement and volunteering. She also mentions ongoing challenges with venue changes at MUUF and the need to maintain privacy in the new green room space.

Horses Sing None of It

Sandy stood on her report but wanted to also thank Paul for his suggestion to create a new email alias for Horses that would not conflict with Ralph’s use of the current one.  She also thanked John Lamb for implementing it.  It has saved her a lot of time going through emails.

LAST MINUTE DISCUSSIONS

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting  proper was adjourned at  10:00  PM. Next month’s meeting is May 6th, at 8:15 PM, via Zoom. 

Submitted by Paul Fisher

TREASURER

OPEN STAGE

PUBLICITY

SOUND REINFORCEMENT

STREAMING CONCERTS

SWINGIN’ TERN

FUTURE PLANNING