(as submitted)
Members present: Anne Benson, Ilga Vise, Amy Welden, Tulli Kerstetter, Silvia Fleitz, Koko Smith, Miriam Dunbar, Laurie Webster
1. Call to order at 4 pm
2. Minutes from July meeting as emailed – Motion to approve was made by Miriam and seconded by Koko. All approved.
3. Guest requests — none
4. Proxy/e-mail votes — none
5. Correspondence — none
6. Financial report — No interest this month (quarterly). Amount in savings is $4222.96; in checking $8987.01. Deposits for memberships, Englehart cards sales, Becktel Charitable Trust ($1000), hat sales, in-library book sales, and in-library donation box. The book sale garnered $890.20 from books sold as well as $325 from memberships. End-of-July total balance is $13,209.97. Tulli moved to approve the financial report and Amy seconded. All approved.
7. Library Director’s report — Anne read Lee’s report into the record in Lee’s absence (see report for details).
Highlights: Concern for the Covid-19 Delta variant is spreading, and Lee is monitoring CDC and Colorado Department of Health guidelines regarding future library protocol.
Numerous grant applications are in the works: $4000 IMLS to host “Nasa at Your Library”; $10,000 American Recovery Plan Act from the state library to support technology and Covid-related services such as Zoom subscription, ebooks and audiobooks; $5000-$10,000 SIPA grant for tech- related expenses including improved security and a kiosk digital system.
Jody has resigned as tech manager, but Lee has some promising candidates to replace him.
Silent Auction donations during Half Marathon are requested.
Outdoor classroom work is coming along. Some of the prep work has been donated so the funds approved by Friends in April ($2000) have not yet been spent. $1500 is still unused, and Lee asked Friends to approve using the remaining funds for structural work. Amy moved that $1500 remaining on the outdoor classroom funds cover any aspect of the project Lee feels is necessary. Ilga seconded. All approved.
The Gear Lending Library has been a great success. Open Sky donated some equipment. Storage, insurance and donations still needed total about $5000. Is Friends willing to donate $1000 toward this project? Koko moved to donate $1000 to this project, and Tulli seconded. Amy asked about any donations from Colorado State Parks such as binoculars and backpacks. When Lee finally came online via Zoom, he stated that Colorado Parks is not involved in the gear-lending, but instead issues two-day passes to any state park; the passes include a small backpack. All approved the funds for the Gear Lending Library.
8. Old business
Mancos Days Book Sale – Friends agreed there was a very good turnout from the sale ($890). Tulli felt that the signs indicating pricing could be in larger type and distributed around the room next time.
Book donation to Canon City prison library – Miriam stated that three boxes of paperbacks have been sent to the prison.
Regarding book donations, Miriam stated that 12 boxes of books were donated on Saturday – a lot in bad condition. Some have been deemed suitable for Better World Books, and three boxes went to the free stand. Library staff go through all the books first to see if any are suitable for the library and then Miriam looks over the remaining for possible Friends book sales and donations. – Correction from Miriam “I have only gone through half of the 12 boxes. 2 boxes of books are going to Better World Books, 1 box to our free shelf, 1 box to the Mormon Church, and 2 boxes went into the garbage.”
Trivia Night? — Ryan from the library attends this function at Mancos Brewery every Wednesday. Lee will check with Ryan to see what the possibilities are for Friends to be involved. Anne will meet with Lee and Ryan on this issue.
Hats — Tulli is willing to purchase 14 hats as a donation to Friends (two sets of 7) and take them to Brand Central to be embroidered at Friends’ expense ($9 each). Amy moved to authorize Tulli to purchase the hats and embroidery, with Friends reimbursing her for the embroidery not to exceed $140. (Seconded by Koko?) All approved.
9. New business
September election of officers –Amy sent a letter to Anne stating her intention to step back from Second VP duties. Koko and Anne are up for re-election in September. The Bylaws were amended to loosen term limits, but election needs to be undertaken at each September meeting. Anne is willing to stay on (President), as are Laurie (Treasurer) and Koko (First VP). Tulli agreed with Amy that there is a need to get a different system for tracking memberships. Lee will research this. Anne will need to advertise if no one wants to take over the Second VP position. A slate for executive positions will be presented at the September meeting.
Holiday Book Sale – Miriam suggested same for Anne to bring up at this meeting. Discussion ensued over past sales and how they were conducted. Koko suggested waiting to see how the Covid situation progresses before deciding. The Chamber is not sure about a holiday event either. It was decided to table this issue until later in the year.
Meeting times and date – Lee suggested meeting at 6 pm near the fireplace or in the morning, as another organization has the community room for the rest of the year. All agreed to meet outside for a couple more months at 4 pm.
10. Adjourn at 5 pm.
Next meeting: September 13, 2021 (postponed due to Labor Day)