Meeting Minutes: January 7, 2025 – The Friends of Hemlock Gorge

Election of Officers
- John is willing to do this for another year. He does want someone to succeed him.
- John elected President.
- John proposed Evan be president-elect
- Evan has committed to being vice president, and does not have the time to commit to do all that the President does.
- Ben proposes a list of duties get recorded to better distribute the work. Examples:
  - Federal 5013c form short
  - State 5013c form must be linked to bank account and must be filled in online
  - set up events at Stone Building
    - Could we recruit Boy Scouts/Cub Scouts to do setup/cleanup?
  - Coordinate Scouts
  - Coordinate with city officials
  - Coordinate with site supervisor from DCR. This is a big challenge.
    - Greg volunteers to maintain this connection, and can work through Ellen – [email protected], his aide, to smooth the communication then.
  - Interface with the bank
- Paul suggested that the village days – harvest fair, highlands, newton upper falls, etc, are excellent places for outreach; can we find 5-6 key people to set up and staff?
- Evan nominated to be VP. Evan accepts the nomination
- The board has elected Evan. Evan accepts.
- Robyn nominated as treasurer. Robyn accepts.
- Karen volunteers to be treasurer-elect (next year). Chris also volunteers to take on the following year.
- Karen and Chris will volunteer to take on additional financial duties that John has taken on himself.
- Amy nominated to continue as secretary. She continues to be married to the webmaster, Ben.
- Amy has accepted the nomination and the position.
- Ben has accepted the nomination and position.
- Board: Paul, Rena, Chris, Karen
- Juanita – board emeritus
Treasurer Report
- Approximately 7000 in the account.
- John currently maintains the PayPal account. This should be transferred to the duties of the Treasurer.
  - Action item: John to meet with Karen, Chris, and Robyn to transfer that duty
- John also currently maintains the database/mailing lists. Ben volunteers to redo/modernize that system.
  - Action item: Karen and Ben to meet to redesign the system
Green Newton
- Karen Osborn offers a sponsorship for FoHG to have a table at Green Newton Gala every October for the next 5 years.
New volunteer!
- Tom has volunteered to help out with hidden jobs that John currently does.
Mirth and Merriment
- Everyone enjoyed delicious food and drinks