STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT: Jill Hall The minutes from the June 14, 2004 meeting were accepted after corrections. TREASURER'S REPORT: No Report. STANDING COMMITTEES: A. Budget: No Report. B. Ways & Means: No report. Betty Briscoe has agreed to chair this committee. C. Bing Bingo is doing very well. Last year we made $21,049.86 profit. Numbers are down slightly. Need to find a new Bingo Chairperson since Ron would like to retire from this position. Jill will advertise in the monthly calendar and on Rockville Reports. D. Correspondence/Memorial: Two memorial donations totaling $265 in honor of Sue Eng Lee and Estelle Berberian. Also received $450 in donations - $400 from the Rockville Lions Club and the rest from Juan Gascue and Mr. & Mrs. Berman. E. Gift /Thrift Shop: The Gift Shop is doing very well. We had $1,533.10 in total sales in June and paid consignors $583.28. The Christmas in July sale will continue through the end of the month. F. Publicity: No Report. G. Senior Citizens Commission: No Report. H. Hispanic Services Report:
Focus Group: A Hispanic group of eleven people participated in a focus group organized by the National Safety Council, under the auspices of the Center for Disease Control. The group discussed different topics related to Senior’s health with special emphasis in physical safety and fall prevention. The meeting lasted over two hours. Participation was very intense, and, at the end, everybody left with the feeling that the experience had been very positive. Hispanic Heritage: Preparations for this event are under way. This year, Argentina will be the host country. Ms. Miriam is being very busy organizing the program and coordinating events for the day. Next month we will be able to provide some more specific information as different ideas are being discussed. I. Asian Services Report: No report.
OLD BUSINESS:
Bocce Sunscreen – Jill talked to Parks staff on Saturday. They indicated they were waiting for the utilities company to check for buried lines. Jill will follow up with this. Alzheimer’s Memory Walk – Joan Galasso is chairing the Committee. Need participants and sponsors (forms at front counter). There will be two bake sales: August 30 and September 20. There will be bus transportation from Senior Center to Town Center on the morning of the event. Make sure people add NCA to their checks to ensure the donation stays in the National Capitol area. RSI will be asked to sponsor walkers with visors. September 23 is the cut off point for getting money in if they want a t-shirt (need $75 in donations). The settlement sheets for the Wade Avenue property were distributed. The property was sold for a net profit of $207,126. $140,000 of the money was put into CDs to get interest and the rest was put into a savings account. NEW BUSINESS:
Forms Requesting Funds: Jill made up a new form for staff to use when they request funds from RSI. This form will make it easier to track the commitments, especially if they are for CIP items, which may take many years before the money is needed. All staff have been given this form to use. Petition for Gude Drive Opening: George just wanted everyone to be aware of a rumor that the residents on Aster have started a petition to remove bus traffic off Aster and route it from Gude Drive into the Senior Center. The Woodley Gardens Civic Association doesn’t know anything about it. The RSI Board strongly opposes any kind of entrance from Gude, which would allow traffic to get through to the neighborhood. The Board asked the status of the Assistive Listening Devices. They wondered why they are not being used. Jill said she’d remind the staff to set these up for programs. STAFF REPORT:
Jill presented the proposal from Electric Advantage that Mike Critzer had received regarding the installation of a new pole light at the base of the steps of the center island walkway. The proposal was for $6,741.00. Motion was made by George Galasso and seconded by Juan Gascue to approve the lighting proposal providing that there is no other alternative that is less expensive and that the Mike guarantees that the walkway and steps will be lit. Jill said she’d talk to Mike further regarding the light. Jill talked to Mike C. July 22, 2004 – He said he can’t do better on price and that there is no other viable alternative. Because of the tree roots, we cannot trench the conduit. Instead we have to do “directional boring” which shoots the conduit down below the tree roots. We can’t do overhead wires because of all the branches. We could make the light at the gazebo stronger, but with all the foliage this wouldn’t work very well. The pole and light alone cost $2000. It will be 16’ tall, the same lights as are currently around the circle driveway. Having smaller lights like at the front of the building would not be suitable to light the area and people standing at the top of the stairs would be looking into a light bulb.
Motion to approve light pole will be accepted. Jill proposed that the Board picture be taken at the start of the August meeting. George asked why the terms are not 2 years long. After discussion a motion was made by George to establish a committee to review the by-laws to see whether 2-year terms would be possible. Betty Hughes seconded. Jill said we’d have to check with City Hall since the Mayor and Council appoint 3 of the members. George was asked to chair the committee. Jill distributed a draft of an article that will be posted on the Senior Center website and in Rockville Reports that talked about the Senior Centers’ Living Legacy planned giving program. The goal is to create an endowment of $1,000,000 so that funds for future improvements will be guaranteed. George suggested that once the CDs mature from the Wade Avenue sale that they go into the endowment fund, as well as future large donations. Jill also suggested that the Board members promote the endowment campaign and encourage funeral home directors, estate planners, etc. to mention the Senior Center as a place to donate. The brochure for the planned giving campaign will be redone in the future. Jill explained the Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) plan for the Senior Center through 2009. There was confusion regarding the commitments to the CIP for the center renovation/expansion versus the $20,000 contributed annually toward operating expenditures. The next major expansion project is proposed for the fitness area of the building. The nutrition group would like larger carts to serve the handicapped since this group is growing. Jill asked for funds to buy 2 Rubbermaid carts. The maximum expenditure would be $648 (the actual purchase price was $400). Betty Hughes moved to buy the carts and Louise Gregory seconded. Motion approved. The Lions Club donated $400 to the Center to be used for a hearing or vision item. The Board agreed to put this money toward the new light at the steps. Betty Hughes will let the Lions Club know how their donation will be spent. Jill passed out an informational article on Baby Boomers as Volunteers. The Baby Boomers don’t have the same interest in volunteering as the seniors of the past and this will pose problems for the fundraising areas of the center. Jill updated everyone on the progress of the renovation/construction. We are working on a completion date of August 31. The meeting was adjourned at 2:55 p.m. The next meeting is scheduled for August 17, 2004. | 
