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DAIRYLAND WALKERS BIMONTHLY MEETING HILLDALE MALL CONFERENCE ROOM DECEMBER 7, 2003  Officers Present:  Jerry and Pam Wilson (Co-Presidents); Jo and Bob Sparks (Co-Vice Presidents); Russ Crane (Treasurer); Karen Reger (Secretary); Barb Borde (Member at Large)  In Attendance:  32  Holiday Party  Board members brought various kinds of chili, and club associates brought side dishes.  There was eating and conversation.  Many went to the main floor of the mall and looked at the decorated trees and listened to the live music.    Meeting  Welcome  Jerry Wilson called the meeting to order at 6:50.  He thanked everyone who brought food.  One person who was attending a meeting for the first time was Don Stoffels, the new Devil's Lake walk box coordinator.  Secretary's Report (Karen Reger)  Karen had brought paper copies of the last three regular club meeting minutes and these were displayed on a table.  The minutes for the October 21, 2003 meeting were approved with no discussion.    Treasurer's Report (Russ Crane)  The balance as of the last Board meeting of November 13 was $2,899.59.  Since that time, income has totaled $164.00.    Expenses totaled $957.88, and of that amount, $129.52 was for year-rounds and seasonals, the vast majority being for participation fees.  There was an expense of $330.41 for special events.  One notable item was an expense of $200.00 as a donation to Camp Wawbeek.  We were able to use one of their buildings as the starting point for that walk, and it was an extremely nice facility.  The majority of the $363.60 under Inventory was for purchasing record books.  Newsletter cost totaled $134.35.  As of today, the balance amounts to $2,105.71.    The sanction fees for all the year-rounds and seasonals have already been paid for next year, plus the fees for two special events.    Participation fees are that portion of the $3.00 credit fee that the national AVA gets.  Out of the $3.00 that credit walkers pay, national gets $1.25.  When using a frequent walker coupon, that coupon actually cost the walker $2.00, but the AVA still gets their $1.25.  A question was raised as to whether using coupons was better for the club's income or not.  Russ said that that was hard to say, but perhaps without the coupons, a walker may not do the walks quite as often.  These participation fees are paid on a quarterly basis.  A question was also asked as to whether an estimate could be made as to how much it costs to run the club on a calendar year.  Russ said he didn't know, but stated that the club has been maintaining a balance of $1,500 to $2,000.    Starting in January of this year, the AVA increased the credit fee from $2.00 to $3.00, and we followed suit.  The sanction fees remained the same.    The report was accepted after this discussion.    Stores (Russ Crane)  1.   The 2004 frequent walker coupons are now available.  He will have them at meetings and events, or people can contact him.  It costs $20.00 for ten coupons, and for 2004 they are green in color.  The 2003 coupons expire at the end of this month.    2.   The checking account name has now been changed.  The old name was Madison AVA Walking Club, but now the new name is Madison Area Volkssport Assn.  This is the name checks should be made out to.    3.   He has placed an order for 15 Starting Points, which he's fairly certain he can sell.  This year the books were sold for $12.00 apiece, having the club absorb the cost of the shipping and handling.  After some analysis, he decided it was necessary to charge $15.00 for the 2004 books.  For the first order, the club will make a small amount on the sale of each book.  If any more are ordered, the club may either make or lose a small amount on the sale of each book.  Russ noted that the books can be purchased directly from the AVA for $15.00, plus $4.00 shipping and handling, for a total of $19.00.  People can pay Russ for a book in advance, whereby their name will be put on a list to receive a copy.    4.   Russ is also the webmaster for the club website at www.dairylandwalkers.com, and he encourages everyone to log on and explore what's on it.  He tries to have a complete calendar of events such as meetings, walk events, the Tuesday night walks, and the Thursday Walk and Eat schedule.  At the moment he is trying to redesign the site so it's easier to get at the information.  Hopefully this will all be done by January 1.  The question was raised as to whether it would be possible to put newsletters on the site, and he said that yes, it would be possible to put past newsletters on it.  Could the current newsletter be posted?  He didn't know – some feel that that's a tangible benefit of becoming a member, receiving the newsletter.  The meeting minutes could be on the site.  Russ mentioned that on the AVA website, they have several years' worth of past issues of the Checkpoint.    2004 Event Booklet (Bruce Dewey)  The new 2004 booklet should be finished in early January, when it will then be mailed out and put in the start boxes.  It will be similar to the 2003 booklet, with updated information.  Clean Sweep Book  This program will again be available in 2004.  There's still a little time left yet to do the year-rounds for 2003.  Russ thinks 16 people turned in their completed books this year so far.    Tuesday Night Walks and Walk-and-Eat Gang  If anyone has any ideas or suggestions on improving these events or increasing participation, please let one of the Board members know.    The possibility of having 5K routes was raised.  Tom Doyle indicated that the AVA does not approve of 5K events, only in connection with a special event 10K walk.  People can always cut a walk short and mark in their distance book the distance that they actually walked.  Or it could be possible to do a walk over the space of two days in order to get in the 10K distance.  On the Tuesday night walks, it was mentioned that some people don't walk the whole route due to time constraints or not being able to do the whole distance.    Board of Directors (Jerry Wilson)  Jerry introduced the current members of the Board, consisting of himself and his wife, Pam; Jo and Bob Sparks; Russ Crane, Karen Reger, Bonnie Hamer, Tom Doyle, Bruce Dewey, Don Suloff, and Barb Borde.    Elections for 2004 Officers (Jerry Wilson)  President:  Jerry and Pam Wilson currently share the office.  They are willing to stay in the office for one more year, which would make three years for them.  The Wilsons were re-elected to this office with no opposition.    Vice President:  Jo and Bob Sparks currently share this office.  They will not be running again.  One of the responsibilities is to chair the program committee, which develops six club meetings during a year.  There were no nominations for this office, so it will be left vacant.    Secretary:  Karen Reger currently fills this position.  She takes notes at meetings and types them up.  She was re-elected with no opposition.    Treasurer:  Russ Crane currently holds this office.  He has also stored the club's equipment for several years and orders stores materials.  He was re-elected with no opposition.    Member at Large:  Barb Borde currently holds this position.  She is involved with the possible European trip and helps with the newsletters.  She was re-elected with no opposition.    Non-Elected Positions:  Membership Chair and Liaison to AVA:  Tom Doyle is willing to continue in this position.    Newsletter Editor:  Bonnie Hamer is willing to continue doing this for another year.  Walk Box Coordinator:  Bruce Dewey will continue to do this job.  He needs a second person to help Tom McCrill out with the Tuesday night walks.  If you can help in any way, please let Bruce or Jerry know.    Bruce also mentioned that for several outlying walks, the use of mail-in envelopes may be instituted.    European Trip (Barb Borde)  Barb mentioned that she had brought along maps of Germany and Austria with the cities circled that people would be visiting.  The deposit of $400.00 is due by March 1.    Highway Cleanup (Bob Sparks)  This is something that is done twice a year, and Bob suggested that perhaps someone other than Tom Doyle could coordinate it.  Tom still has the original supplies, but if we needed more bags, there's a stock at any county garage.  After the pickup, he sends a card in to the DOT.  He said that you never know what you might find, including purses and billfolds.  At the last pickup this fall, it was a cold and rainy day, but seven people showed up and collected 13 bags of trash.    Thank You (Jerry Wilson)  Jerry thanked Bob and Jo Sparks for everything that they've done over the years for the club.    Savannah in January (Bruce Dewey)  Bruce is planning on going to this event in 2004.  In the past, a group has gone to the Gulf Shores event in Alabama and there are rooms reserved in the headquarters hotel for anyone who would like to use them.  If anyone is interested, contact him by January 15; otherwise, the rooms will be turned back to the hotel.    The meeting was adjourned at 7:40 p.m.  Submitted by Karen Reger.