Post date: Aug 15, 2012 10:30:45 PM
IBM Tampa Bay Retiree Club
Steering Council Meeting
August 14, 2012 Meeting Minutes
Presiding: Hari Arora
Attendees: Donna Fryza, Susan Gryzbowski, Dianne Hartt, Jim Hughes, Mary Ann McCoy, Ron Rosenblatt
Conference call: Judy Manowitz
Treasurer Report – Hari for Norm
The current account balance is $2078.43. Outstanding expenses: $38.33 to renew website hosting for 3 years and $7.97 for 513 emails from Vertical Response.
Retiree Database and Membership Registration Report – Mary Ann
The number of registered retirees grew by 10 since the last meeting and the database currently has 850 entries. The Vertical Response database for mass emails has 537 email addresses of which 446 have been deemed valid. 41% of the emails sent last March were opened.
Website Report - Jim for Harry
January had the highest access with 603 visits and 511 unique visitors. The lowest access was July with 307 visits and 260 unique visitors. The most visited pages were IBM Discounts followed by IBM Medical Seminar documents, IBM Club, and Related Websites.
Seminars Report - Susan and Ron
The Tax Seminar was held Tuesday, March 6. Doug House assisted by Paul Houser presented again this year. There were 21 attendees and the average rating was 4.8.
The target date for the Financial Seminar is Tuesday, October 16 from noon to 1:30. Sandy Morris will be the presenter and the focus will be on annuities. Donna will confirm the room reservation. Attendance is expected to be 40-50.
The target dates for the Medical Benefits Seminars are:
Monday, November 12 from 10AM to noon, both retiree and spouse Medicare eligible. This 1st session will primarily be for first time attendees.
Wednesday, November 14 - 2nd both Medicare eligible from 10AM to noon, retiree Medicare eligible and spouse non-eligible from 12:30 to 2:00, and non-Medicare eligible round table 2:00 to 3:00.
Donna will confirm reservations for the large conference room.
Volunteering Report - Mary Ann
The IBM Volunteer Council is no longer functioning. Volunteer opportunities can be listed and/or referenced in IBM Demand Community. Participation is expected again this school year at Tinker Elementary where 21 mentors were provided last year and a $5,000 IBM Community Grant awarded to the school.
Golf Outings Report - Dianne
The Spring Outing was held Tuesday, May 4 at Heritage Harbor. The outing was a success with over 30 golfers. The last Monday in April or the first Monday in May are targeted for next year's outing and Dianne has requested a quote from Westchase Golf Club.
Day at the Races Report - Judy
The event was held Saturday, April 28 at Tampa Bay Downs. It was very successful with 60 attendees. Plans are to hold the event again next year either late March or early April.
10 Year Anniversary Picnic - Hari and Judy
2013 is the 10th anniversary of the Retiree Club. Hari suggested we hold an event to commemorate the anniversary. It was agreed that a picnic would be the best option as we haven't had one for several years. Philippee Park in Safety Harbor was suggested as a good location and site. Jim researched pavilion rental and caterer considerations at the Park. Judy will check out potential caterers and expenses. The plan is to partially subsidize the picnic to keep the retiree cost down.
IBM Synergy Report – Donna
Harry has been posting IBM Club discounts on the website. Some retirees took advantage of the MOSI discounts. A special offer for a Cirque du Soleil show of Kooza on December 2 is available and a good response is expected.
Mailing
The mailing will take place following packaging on Tuesday, September 18. The mailing will include a cover letter and flyers for the Financial and Medical Benefits Seminars. All materials for the mailing will be completed by Friday, September 7 to Hari who will forward to Lee.
Next Meeting: Tuesday, January 15 from 11 AM to 1 PM at IBM Harborview.