STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT: Jill Hall, Phil Bryan and Mary Fleischer The minutes from the March 16, 2004 meeting were accepted.
TREASURER'S REPORT: A report for the month of March 2004 was presented. Copies will be forwarded to the city's Mayor and Council. STANDING COMMITTEES: A. Budget: Receipts are doing very well. Expenses are high under miscellaneous because of the donation to the softball team. Otherwise expenses are okay. We are getting a lot of donations for the Dining Room - $9,660.00 to date. B. Ways & Means: Baskets are on display by the front office and we are selling raffle tickets. C. Bing We are doing very well. The large jackpot has not gone yet. D. Correspondence/Memorial: Joyce Staub sent a letter thanking RSI for the $600.00 donation for the softball team. $525.00 paid the registration fee. The remainder will be used for uniforms needed for new players. We have received $110.00 in February for memorials and $10.00 in March. We have received $1,175.00 in memory of Estelle Berberian. We need to ask Ruth Hanessian if she would like the money to be spent on anything in particular. E. Gift /Thrift Shop: The Gift Shop is doing very well. F. Publicity: We will run an ad for the Spring Bazaar & Yard Sale in the Gazette. The ad for crafters generated eight responses. G. Senior Citizens Commission: The Town Center Club is disbanding. The Housing Forum went very well. We hope to have a draft of the results of this meeting soon. We are trying to get information to the members on changes in Medicare. GROWS had a program at Holiday Park on the pros and cons of Medicare changes. We are going outside of the city to attend county and state meetings. We have four commissioners attending the federal rally on May 12. Winston Lark moved to Sykesville and will no longer be on the commission. We are still attending the United Seniors of Maryland meetings. H. Hispanic Services Report: Citizenship Classes: These classes have been canceled during the summer. The reason is a lack of funds due to cuts in the Baltimore College budget, which is our partner in this endeavor. Classes will resume in the fall. Currently 18 Hispanic students are attending these classes. Entertainment: The Hispanic group participated in two recreational events: A trip to Baltimore where they visited a museum, and a trip to see the cherry blossoms in Washington. Unfortunately, the weather was not ideal the day of the blossoms with a cool, arctic air blowing all over. However, the trees still held the blossoms and the seniors could enjoy the view… from the car. May Bazaar Basket: The basket that the Hispanic group is contributing for the May Bazaar is already at the main entrance of the Center. The basket contents are grouped in three categories: Coffee time, Teatime and Chocolate time. So, whoever wins this basket will find inside everything needed to enjoy a great coffee, tea or chocolate time with family and/or friends. Support Group: It has come to my attention, and I have seen it, how much the Center helps our Hispanic seniors, and I assume all others too, to break their solitude by providing different programs and facilities. Sometimes, however, the emotional burden many of these seniors face: solitude, sadness, shyness, feeling uprooted, lost within a strange environment, family betrayal, etc. is kept deeply inside and affects the enjoyment of the facilities the Center offers, their lives and even their health. Many of them take refuge in Miriam’s office looking for somebody that pays attention and listens to their stories. This consumes precious hours of Miriam’s time, which she feels she could dedicate to other administrative chores. So, here comes the suggestion: Would it be feasible and positive to develop steps to create in the Center some kind of support group to which Seniors in these conditions could be referred to? In my opinion, what many of these Seniors need is to speak out the emotional burden they face, created by circumstances in their families, their health, their economic situation etc., to some one they feel is listening, to experience peace and wellness. Maybe, this kind of support group program, if properly developed, could fill a vacuum and provide the emotional healing that these seniors need. What do you think about this idea? The Board thought that Juan should approach Lorraine Schack to discuss this type of program. I. Asian Services Report: No report.
OLD BUSINESS: We had a lot of good applications for the Volunteer of the Year Award. The award will be announced at the Volunteer Appreciation Party. George G. did a great job on the plaques for the Estelle Berberian Award and the corporate award for Suburban Hospital.
Three nominations for Lifetime Memberships were presented to the Board. Louise G. made a motion to honor Lois Darling, Frances Loveless and Frances Martin with a lifetime membership to the senior center. Ron B. seconded the motion. Motion carried. This will be announced at the Volunteer Appreciation Party. Ron B. will call the honorees. So far the following will be on the ballot for RSI elections: Mary Barber, Betty Briscoe, Marjorie Costa, George Galasso, Louise Gregory, Theresa Harn, Betty Hughes, Ines Reed, and Chu Shen. The following will be appointed by the Mayor and Council on May 10, 2004: Ron Barber, Juan Gascue and Mary Ryan. The deadline for accepting applications is April 26, 2004. The executor of Norman White’s estate will be finished cleaning out the house by the end of April. We need to select a realtor. Jill H. spoke with Burt Hall and he will allow a city crew to come out and spruce up the property. NEW BUSINESS: The Annual Health & Fitness Fair is on May 26 from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. There is a fitness walk from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. It is National Senior’s Health and Fitness Day. We usually have health screenings but the local hospitals no longer have funding to sponsor them. Mary Fleischer has arranged for osteoporosis screenings and has to pay the technician and she may have to pay for additional screenings. We do have vendors who are paying for space at the Fair. The fee is $100.00 for profit companies and $25.00 for nonprofit. Mary asked for additional money from RSI to pay for screenings and refreshments. Louise G. made a motion to donate $500.00 to the Health & Fitness Fair. Mary R. seconded the motion. Motion carried. Karen L. notified Mary R. that she would need to go over budget for the birthday parties because they had to purchase additional gifts. Marty R. made a motion to allow Karen L. additional money for birthday gifts. Louise G. seconded the motion. Motion carried. Betty H. made a motion to allow $300.00 for the purchase of additional DVDs for our lending library. Juan G. seconded the motion. Motion carried. We have a member who is running for Ms. Maryland Senior America this year and asked if we would make a donation to the advertising she has to purchase. The board decided that we cannot make donations like this and that we would put a request in the newsletter to see if any members would like to sponsor her. We need to replace one of the artificial trees in the lobby. Juan G. made a motion to purchase one more tree for the lobby. Betty H. seconded the motion. Motion carried. STAFF REPORT: Jill H. received a call from Mr. Caseman from Community Ministries. Community Ministries worked with Norman White during his lifetime. Mr. Caseman was interested in having Community Ministries partner with RSI to provide programs using either the house on Wade Avenue or funds from the sale. He was told that we have made no decision on how the money will be spent and it was suggested he come and talk to RSI about his ideas. Louise G. made a motion to purchase a computer and printer for the Front Office at an estimated cost of $2,500.00. Mary B. seconded the motion. Motion carried. There are upcoming work sessions for the city regarding the budget. These are open to the public. If you would like to support the budget or have questions about particular items, please attend the meeting. Joyce S. will be charging a $25.00 annual fee for the Fitness Club membership. You would pay on the same day that your center membership is due. This will be announced in the May newsletter and it will show the high rates charged at other health clubs. The Fitness membership dues will go toward the repair and maintenance of the fitness equipment. The men’s room in the back hallway has been retiled. The construction has been delayed. Jill H. will find out the progress at a meeting on Thursday. We have sent out invitations to the Volunteer Appreciation Party. All of the staff reviewed the list. If you hear from someone that they did not receive an invitation please ask them to check in the office. The meeting was adjourned at 2:50 p.m. The RSI Elections and Volunteer Party is on May 18, 2004 at 1:00 p.m. | 
