South Portland Music Boosters
Membership Meeting Minutes
January 9, 2007
Christina Davis, President, called the meeting to order and introduced the Executive Board.
Minutes: A motion to dispense with the reading of the November minutes was made by Gene Swiger, 2nd by Sue Mortenson, and approved by all.
Treasurers report: Lee Mortenson reported on the Music Boosters budget. John LaPointe asked if the Boosters are on track for making the estimated amount of money, and Lee said he believes so. He explained the process by which money is transferred from one account to another to cover expenses. A motion to accept the report as read was made by John LaPointe, 2nd by Gene Swiger, and approved by all.
Bingo report: John LaPointe reported that last Saturday night 210 patrons came to play bingo. He explained that the state police have made a drastic reinterpretation of the laws regarding pricing for teds and paper tickets, which must have an equal charge. The Boosters currently pay an extra $12 to cover the lease of the Teds. There is an attorney working to resolve this issue through the Golf Boosters. John expressed concern that there will be some unhappy patrons due to the increased cost of paper tickets. The game technician who leases the machines to the hall and to the Boosters has agreed to take a $3 reduction per Ted in the lease, so the Boosters will only lose $2 each. There are only 5 bingo halls in the state that use Ted machines. John noted that we may lose some patrons to Lewiston, and added that our main competitor (4 Seasons in Westbrook) has the same pricing structure. He suggested that the Boosters host a Bingo Appreciation night with special, bigger prizes, to help boost patron sales. The number of bingo volunteers has increased, so Basketball Booster volunteers have been reduced from 5 to 4, saving us $150 per week. As we increase our number of skilled volunteers we can rely less on other booster groups. The Boosters discussed whether it would be possible to have a rental agreement for Teds. (Undetermined at this time.) Hopefully, the price increase will satisfy the State police without causing too much disruption. It is a complex issue, and several options are being investigated.
Many more volunteers are needed to help with bingo. If you would like to volunteer, please let us know. A motion to accept the report was made by Lee Mortenson, seconded by Mike Fletcher. Discussion: Lee Mortenson added that 2 weeks ago we didn’t know what we would do regarding this pricing issue, and now we have a plan. Craig Skeffington asked whether this affects just South Portland or everyone in the state. Several members expressed concern that if the pricing and rules continue to change, we may not be able to continue making funds through Bingo, and if we didn’t have Bingo money, we wouldn’t have a budget, as almost all Booster funds come from Bingo. How else would we get money? John encouraged members to talk to Lynn Bromley, Jane Eberly, Kevin Glynn, etc about their concerns. We would be hard pressed if we lost Bingo, as would many other groups. Motion to accept the report carried.
Membership report: Chair Cindy Fletcher noted that the new brochure is out and available for distribution. Motion to accept made by Mike Fletcher, 2nd by John LaPointe, and approved by all.
Old Business:
Craig Skeffington shared that Bev Hosic has about 95% of students on board for the Choral Trip to New York City in April. Lee Mortenson confirmed that 26 students and 7 chaperones have submitted requests for sponsorship.
Upcoming Special Events will be held on 2/28, 3/10, and 3/11. Three groups of volunteers are needed. For the 6th Grade honors festival, Jean Quinn shared that they will send out a note to parents asking for help. Boosters need to help with the teacher luncheon and setting up. Parents will donate for the remainder. Christina asked whether this would include concession and lunch. The Boosters discussed the best way to organize the food. Christina asked for committee chairmen for each event, and Jean offered to get a 6th grade parent volunteer to chair the honors festival committee. Craig will contact Tara to get 4 parents for the Color Guard event. Also needed: a DJ, concessions, kids as runners and greeters, and fewer adults than other events. The Jazz festival is more labor intensive. Mike Fletcher and Michelle Powell offered to help with the Jazz Festival. Jean Quinn offered to get the 6th grade parents to involved. Cindy Fletcher will contact them. All parent volunteers are Boosters… help them feel welcome. John LaPointe said that the 6th grade Honors Festival is well worth going to. Jean said she and Sandy could only nominate 8 6th graders. Judges for the Jazz Festival will be paid out of School fees ($75 each). Incidental fees: blank tapes, mailings, etc. This event is twice as big as the MBDA last year. That event didn’t make as much money because parents didn’t stay, as they will for the upcoming event. John LaPointe made a motion to fund up to $500 for concessions and incidentals per event. Discussion: be sure there are
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enough funds. Mementos for participants (pencil, pin, or bumper sticker) will add up to approximately $200-300. Jean feels $500 will be enough. Christina offered the template of the certificate created last year. 2nd by Debbie Farr. Approved by all.
New Business
March is Music in our Schools month. Jean Quinn noted that last year’s publicity and events were marvelous. Last year, the Boosters and Music Teachers gave awards to students at Booster meetings and a concert. Jean shared that she preferred to present them at a meeting. The 7th and 8 th grader Honors Festival is the previous week, so it would be appropriate to recognize students at the March meeting. A few refreshments would be nice. John LaPointe made a motion to fund up to $300 for Music in our Schools Month Honors Festival participants recognition at the March 13 meeting. Seconded by Cindy Fletcher, all in favor. On March 19, Casco Bay Concert Band will play with the Wind Ensemble. It would be nice to have a membership table at this event. Jean Quinn would like attendees to see what the Booster do. Cindy Fletcher will take care of this. The Boosters discussed the possibility of a Jazz Appreciation night or Music Boosters Party in April. This could be a potluck, icecream social or cookout. It would be a pleasure to call people together to have fun and not just to work. It was decided to table further discussion until the March meeting.
Budget Requests
Mahoney requests a new tenor sax for $1300. Motion to accept made by Gene Swiger, 2nd by Lee Mortenson, no discussion, all in favor. The SPHS requests $1100 for Winterguard travel to 3 events. John LaPointe noted that Polly Ward at Central Office increased the amount to $3 per mile (from $2) so the $7500 in the Field Trip account is almost gone. Jean Quinn added that the busses Marshwood cost a lot of money as well. There was some discussion about why music department has to pay for bussing, while sports (football) doesn’t. A suggestion was made to have a group of music and other club parents attend meetings during the school board budget process to share this concern. A motion to accept the request for $1100 for Winterguard travel was made by John LaPointe, seconded and approved by all. A request for Winterguard equipment, props, and fees was made for $500, motion to approve made by Marc Galbraith, seconded by John LaPointe, and approved by all. A request for Jazz program travel and lodging for $3865 for the Millinocket State Jazz Festival. This is for Coachline busses, 2 days lodging, etc. John LaPointe made a motion to accept, seconded by Sue Mortenson. Discussion: This is a State Jazz Festival, Craig explained it is held 2 years in Southern site, then mid-state, and then in a northern site. It takes 4 hours to drive up, and the bands play early on Friday and Saturday, so he plans to go up the previous night. Going back and forth each day would cost as much as staying over. The motion was approved by all. A request for a Donation for the SPHS musical Footloose of $1000, motion to approved by John LaPointe, 2nd by Gene Swiger, all in favor. It was suggested that the Boosters request some tickets for Bingo prizes. A request for seed money for prizes for Bingo appreciation night: $1000. Motion to accept made by Cindy Fletcher, seconded by Lee Mortenson. All in favor.
GRAND TOTAL: $10,265.00
Other Business:
School Board meetings are on the first Monday of every month. Members are encouraged to attend. The members also discussed the donation of the Marching Band tractor, which has not been completed. Cindy Fletcher restated the Executive Board meeting discussion regarding the tractor. The Boosters also want to donate the credit card machine (value $500) to the auditorium or the box office. This was originally purchased to tie into the website, and it is not being used for this purpose. Members felt that John York should be contacted. After contacting Wendy Houlihan, she learned Booster programs are held by parents, and their donations are not held to the same stipulations to get approval. Members felt it would be very helpful to show the school board what we have done for the Music Departments each year, perhaps in September, as was done in the past. Marc Galbraith asked when policy changed as a formal letter used to be sent to the chairman for each donation. Cindy Fletcher shared Wendy’s feeling that the Boosters need to develop some consistency. The same practice should be held by all booster organizations. John LaPointe offered to read the information about we donate to the city and what will happen if Bingo funds cease. We can get on the agenda in advance or just get up and speak. Craig said we used to script what we would say. It was suggested that teachers and a Boosters spokesperson meet, and agree on what to say. The group discussed the importance of parental support at the School Board meetings. Sue Mortenson mentioned that music parents are a powerful voting block. We don’t have to do a formal letter of donation for the tractor to the school board, just state that it was given to the music department, like the instruments we fund.
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Marc Galbraith noted that in the past all funding from the Boosters had to go through the town for payment. We need to publicize and advocate for our kids. To come up with $100,000 per year to donate is incredible. Members recommended a visit to the Board at the beginning of the school year stating our intent and a report of the past year. Sue Mortenson agreed people think all this money comes from the city. A 7th grade parent shared that last year she was shocked to discover that the boosters donate all this money!
Motion to donate the credit card machine to the box office/auditorium was made, seconded and approved by all.
Motion to adjourn made by Mike Fletcher, 2nd by Sue Mortenson, approved by all.
Next meeting: Tuesday, March 13, at 7:00 p.m. at Mahoney Middle School. Respectfully submitted by Maggie McNeice, Secretary.