STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT: Phil Bryan The minutes from January 17, 2006 were presented. Marty made a motion to accept the minutes. George seconded the motion. Motion carried. TREASURER'S REPORT: A report for the month of January was presented. Copies will be forwarded to the city's Mayor and Council. George made a motion to accept the treasurer’s report. Marty seconded the motion. Motion carried.
STANDING COMMITTEES: A. Budget: Rusty handed out the financial report for the month of January 2006 and wanted to know if there would be any large expenses coming up besides the $20,000.00 we give to the city at the May Gala. B. Ways & Means: The Spring Bazaar is on May 20. Betty B. and Rusty will be out of town. Peter Kach asked if RSI would like to sell annuals at the May Bazaar and he would take care of all of the arrangements. He asked if we would advertise in the newsletter for someone with a covered truck to pick up the flowers. He would place the order, setup and sell annuals that day. The board took a vote and all were opposed to selling annuals. Rusty made a motion that we have raffle prizes of $500.00 and $250.00 and any baskets that are donated. Louise seconded the motion. Motion carried. Hispanic Services, Asian Services, George, Young In Heart Club and RSI will donate baskets. We need the baskets by April 10. At future bazaars, RSI board members will call the names of the raffle winners and call anyone who is not present to notify them of their win. C. Bingo: Betty H. thanked everyone for the cards and flowers she received. Bingo did very well in the month of January and we have lots of new volunteers. D. Correspondence/Memorial: Louise read a copy of the letter that RSI sent to Betty Briscoe for all of her hard work during the Holiday Bazaar. Louise sent out 60 acknowledgements for memorial donations. We also received a $500.00 donation designated for the Game Room from the Coyles in memory of Frank Skopec. Rusty spoke with the pool players and they would like new felt on the tables and also the table leveled. Rusty will talk with Chris Klopfer to see whether this is needed. Louise reminded staff that she needs copies of all donations. E. Gift Shop: In January we made $953.00 and paid out $338.00 to consignors and netted $579.37. F. Thrift Shop: The Thrift Shop made $614.10 in January. There was some concern as to why the Thrift Shop is not accepting clothing until mid March. Ron will talk to Harriet regarding accepting donations of clothing. (Note: Clothing is now being accepted). G. Publicity: George will place an ad for crafters wanted for the Spring Bazaar in March in the Gazette. H. Senior Citizens Commission: Boston and Beacon Hill provide assistance for seniors living in private homes for a yearly fee. The commission is going to investigate this process and see if it could be done in our area. They provide handy man services and other services. It is possible that the housing at Heritage House will become converted to condos for assisted living. The major concerns of the commission are traffic, driving and pedestrians. There will be two vacancies on the Senior Commission Connie Farrell has resigned and Marty will resign at the end of the month. I. Hispanic Services Report: No report. J. Asian Services Report: In the January newsletter it was reported that Asian Services donated $200.00 to the Senior Assistance Fund but it was $300.00. They would like a correction in the next newsletter. (The April newsletter has the January RSI minutes which mention the donation). They provided entertainment at the Chinese New Year celebration and at the monthly birthday party.
OLD BUSINESS: Rusty asked if there had been any decision made regarding long time members who have volunteered and then moved out of the city. It was tabled for the March meeting. At the last meeting we discussed the staggered terms for the board. Teresa M., Theresa H. and Ron are not up for election – next year will be their second year. Whoever is appointed by the senior commission is appointed by the Mayor and Council. Rusty as Treasurer is appointed by the Mayor and Council. George and Betty H. can only stay if appointed. Marjorie, Betty B., Mary and Louise are up for re-election. There will be four positions for re-election. At the last meeting George was asked to check with Steve Chappel regarding his plans for future meetings with CPAs and attorneys. George called him and he said he would give a list to Ron. He has not done so and George will call him again.
NEW BUSINESS: Rusty received a bill for the new chairs in the Carnation Room and we were charged for tax. Rusty took off the charge before paying the bill and Jill called the company to tell them. George is a member of the Senior Services Long Range Plan Task Force and gave an update. Former Mayor Jim Coyle chairs the meetings, with assistance from city staff and there are 18 community members on the task force. They are all volunteers and have indicated an interest in the future of senior services. The Task Force will make recommendations to the Mayor and Council about how the Senior Services Division should provide activities and services for seniors – both at the center and in the community. This is not about senior housing – that is the concern of the Senior Citizens Commission. There have been three meetings so far and he is impressed as to how it is being handled. The Task Force is looking into what programs/services should be dropped, what should be added, or any expansions and improvements. The city needs to be prepared for services that will be needed for a larger volume of seniors. The focus of the Task Force group is the services that the city offers through the Recreation and Parks Departments’ Senior Services Division. The Task Force was divided into 4 groups by cost center (i.e., Senior Center Operations, Senior Social Services, Senior Recreation, and Senior Sports and Exercise). Issues include do we need to go offsite with our programming, do we provide transportation, do we change the age of participants, etc? We need ideas from RSI – so let George know so he can present your ideas. The Piecemakers Club asked if RSI would donate $100.00 to help them purchase supplies to make a quilt for the raffle in December. George made a motion to approve $100.00 for supplies for the Piecemakers Club for the raffle in December. Mary seconded the motion. Motion carried.
STAFF REPORT: Phil distributed a draft Participant Satisfaction Survey to all of the board members and asked if the board had any comments or changes. Suggestions were offered and will be forwarded to staff. The survey will be sent to members as well as distributed to users. It will be in English, Spanish and Chinese. The board felt that there is not enough information available detailing the volunteer opportunities at the center and there is a need to identify better what the jobs entail. George made a motion that RSI create a volunteer handbook that lists descriptions of all volunteer jobs at the senior center. Rusty seconded the motion. Motion carried. Rusty and Mary will work with staff on the handbook. RSI’s role in the Volunteer Appreciation Party was discussed and tabled until the next meeting. We need mats to scrape the dirt off people’s shoes as they enter the building. In total we need 8 mats – they are 4’ x 8’ and will go by each door plus the entrance to the Carnation Room. This will help keep the carpets cleaner. Each carpet is $119.40, but we get a 5% discount so the total would be $907.44. Louise made a motion to purchase mats for the senior center. Betty B. seconded the motion. Motion carried. Kathleen Moran, the Assistant Arts Specialist has found a place to move the Community Chorus filing cabinets (the top floor of the Mansion), but they need to check and see if the floor can support the weight of the cabinets. She is trying to find this out. No date for when the cabinets will be moved. There doesn’t seem to be much consensus on what to buy for a volunteer gift. We usually spend $5.00 per person. We need to decide fairly soon since many items sell out because National Volunteer Week is in April. The board decided to buy the 7 piece desk set. The CCACC volunteers have vests that they wear to show that they are volunteers and staff wondered if RSI thought we should we purchase them for our volunteers. The cost could be shared between the city and RSI. The board decided that they would not like to purchase the vests and that no one would wear them. We need to promote the Estelle Berberian Volunteer of the Year Award. Ask around and try to identify people who would be good candidates. We are advertising a logo and slogan contest in the March newsletter. Entries must be received by the end of March. Winners get a $25 Gift Certificate. The purpose is to try and convey the notion that when you think of aging issues, programs and services for older adults, etc. you should be calling the Rockville Senior Center. We need a slogan/logo that conveys all that we do here and encourages people to check us out! Phil distributed Fundraising Ideas for Senior Community Centers to all of the board members.
The meeting was adjourned at 3:30 p.m. The next meeting is scheduled for March 21, 2006 at 1:00 p.m. | 
