1) CALL TO ORDER/ESTABLISH QUORUM – called to order 7:02, quorum established
Present: Diane Decker, Diane Kelly (via Zoom), William McLean, Marc Miller, Melissa Bourbon Ramirez (via Zoom), Wendy Scott, Meg Stouffer, Tess Tessier, Shannon Turlington, Grace Johnston
Absent: Mark Alexander
2) L.J. “Tess” Tessier was unanimously elected as the Board’s new Secretary.
3) April minutes approved unanimously
4) TREASURER’S REPORT
Current balance in both accounts is $43,757.10; interest at the end of March was $110.00.
5) MEMBERSHIP REPORT
Currently, we have158 active members; since the last meeting we have received 30 membership gifts totaling $1,195.00. An email to expired members resulted in 6 renewals. In addition, 4 people joined for the first time at the door on the book sale’s members night. There were 20 households in attendance at members night.
6) LIBRARY REPORT
Several new events were announced:
A popup librarian outreach program to the Orange County senior centers and other organizations serving seniors to share information about library resources;
A silent book club for introverts;
Spring and summer board games events for adults on the last Sunday of the month.
The Climate Challenge events were well attended.
Supplies for the Story Walk have arrived and are being stored at Parts and Recreation awaiting the end of fundraising on May 1. The final board will be created after fundraising is complete.
7) BUSINESS
By email vote, the Board has approved an expenditure of $254.46 for new book sale signs.
Bylaws: After minor changes, the Board approved presenting the final revised version of the Bylaws to the Friends membership. An announcement about the Bylaws revision will be included in the newsletter and posted on the website.
Book Sale Review: The book sale raised a total of $4,384.17, broken down as follows: Thursday $676.00, Friday $1811.00, Saturday $1321.00, Sunday $576.17. Auction information will be added.
Book Sale Discussion:
Lower sales total compared to last two sales may be due to a number of factors: Hog Day, post-Covid response, less promotion, possibly fewer items for sale, although Friends Room was at capacity. We may be returning to a more typical sale pattern.
We need to do more outreach and promotion for next sale.
We should consider no longer accepting media items such as CDs and DVDs.
Diane K noted that Hog Day has been rescheduled to 9/13 and 9/14 and suggested that we change the date of our next sale to coordinate with the new schedule. The Board unanimously agreed to set the next book sale for 9/11 through 9/15.
Diane D expressed appreciation for those who helped set up. The majority of the setup was complete by Wednesday. Board agreed to leave the setup schedule as is and notify those who sign up for Thursday setup if they are not needed.
We should consider limiting Thursday volunteers to Board members.
We discussed the possibility of a silent auction on Friends night, possibly starting out with a few items or one grand prize. These could be displayed in a display case prior to the sale.
Raffle Discussion:
After considering a raffle in association with the book sale, the Board agreed that it would be better to do a raffle separately from the book sale, possibly early in December. We need to check out the rules regarding raffles in North Carolina. Tickets could be sold by library staff.
Staff Appreciation Luncheon:
Melissa stated that the event was a success with very positive feedback, especially regarding the food. As usual, we bought too much, but the staff can continue to enjoy the leftover drinks.
Cosby/Pruitt Event Discussion:
Diane K brought up the previous program proposal. After discussion, the Board unanimously agreed to authorize Diane K to approach Shawn and Eryk with an offer of a $500 honorarium each, a stay for Shawn at the Colonial Inn and dinner before the event. The most likely time for the proposed event would be early next year on a Friday evening. If an agreement is reached, Diane K will approach Purple Crow Bookstore regarding a possible division of book sale profits as a Friends fundraiser.
Meeting adjourned.
