Minutes

WBL Board Meeting

June 16, 2004

In attendance: Don Berman, Winston Edwards, Richard Ferrin, Steve Forsythe, Steve Robinson, Dick Wegman, Ron Zucker, and non-voting members Nadine Wood and Donna Rogall.

President Dick Wegman called the meeting to order at 7:57 PM.

The board approved the minutes, without objection.

Treasurer, Steve Robinson, reported that we have $8285.77 in our checking account as of June 15. The board approved the treasurer’s report, without objection.

The board discussed the July-August WBL Sectional. Jeff Roman will be out of town during the sectional, so the WBL needs a fill-in for Jeff to co-host with Charity Sack the Saturday lecture regarding partnerships. Winston Edwards offered to work with Charity on the lecture. Nadine Wood stated that there would be a picnic lunch for the Saturday game, with fried chicken and watermelon. Nadine is also checking on the availability of chairs (other than the schoolroom chairs) for the sectional events.

The board discussed options for locations of upcoming sectionals:

• Dick Wegman asked Nadine Wood if the WBL had cancellation rights with Newport Mill Middle School. Nadine Wood said that she did not know. The period July 15 through early August is the window for reserving the Newport Mill Middle School for tournaments through March 2005.
• Dick reported that the Kensington Armory is no longer a possible site for the sectionals, because the incumbent Mayor has decided to run for re-election after all, and she is opposed to renting the space out to the WBL.

• Nadine reported that progress is much slower than thought on building the new community center in Silver Spring. It will be four to five years until that building will be completed.
• Nadine also noted that the 4-H Club building is a possibility, but the problem is that the management insists on closing the building at midnight. The 4-H Club management also cannot commit to five tournaments per year at this point. Nadine suggested that the board consider contracting with 4-H for one tournament, to give both sides a chance to see how the arrangement works, and then consider additional tournaments.
• Nadine noted the possibility of scheduling sectionals at a hotel, but they are somewhat more expensive. Rates depend on the time of year; the rates would be lower during the periods where the hotels’ other business is slow.

• Dick suggested that the WBL should reserve the school for the tournaments, and see if there is any flexibility to cancel in case a better location is found. Dick and Steve Robinson suggested that the WBL take steps to reserve the 4-H Club building for the January 2005 sectional.

• Dick suggested a tournament scheduling meeting for July 26 or 27, to be attended by Dick, Nadine, Ron Zucker, and Ted Ying.

The board discussed the location of the unit game. Dick asked whether all of the Board members were comfortable with the current location at Christ the King church. All of the Board members present stated that they were comfortable with the current location. Dick noted that he had received complaints about the women’s restroom and about the lighting. The church says that the women’s restroom problem is temporary and is caused by ongoing repairs to the upstairs restroom. Steve Forsythe suggested that the WBL propose fronting money for repairs, and deduct it from the rent.

The board discussed the start time for the Saturday game at the October sectional.

• With regard to the early start times that are being tried for the July-August sectional, Donna Rogall objected to using those same times for the October sectional. Donna reviewed the start times for sectionals throughout Districts 6 and 7, and noted that a significant number of the sectionals have a late start time for the Saturday events. She stated that already the WBL loses potential attendees on Sunday because of the early start time, and an earlier start time on Saturday might risk losing late risers on Saturday. Steve Forsythe agreed that some people prefer later starts on Saturday. Steve Robinson stated that the WBL should try the earlier two-session schedule for Saturday for two consecutive sectionals, and then consider whether to continue or return to the later schedule. He also stated that the start time is not too early; people show up for the Sunday Swiss even though the start time is 11:00 AM. Steve Forsythe noted that it was important not to change the schedule frequently, because that depresses attendance. Winston Edwards agreed that a two-session Saturday schedule was a good idea. He commented that the question of whether such a move is a “success” cannot be quantified simply by a table count. Perhaps additional measures of success would be appropriate.
• Ron Zucker stated that one of the biggest considerations with the schedule for Saturday is the amount of break time between sessions. He said that two sessions of bridge with short breaks are difficult for all but the most experienced players, and therefore the breaks between session should be of a reasonable length for players to relax and regroup mentally. Steve Forsythe suggested a compromise by extending the break between sessions on Saturday, but eliminating the break in the middle of the Sunday Swiss. Richard Ferrin stated that there should be a 1 ½ hour break between sessions on Saturday. Nadine commented that some people complain about there being too much time sitting around between sessions.
• Ron also addressed the issue of the start time of the second Saturday session, specifically the issue that many of the older members prefer to finish before dark. He stated that a 3:00 PM start time will allowing driving home before dark for a July tournament, but by October, a start time at or after 3:30 PM will not allow enough time to get home before dark.
• Steve Forsythe moved to schedule the start times for the Saturday game for October at 11:00 AM and 3:30 PM. The motion was defeated, four to three. Steve Forsythe then moved to schedule the start times for the Saturday game for October at 11:00 AM and 4:00 PM. The motion passed unanimously. Dick moved to schedule the Sunday Swiss game for October to 11:00 AM, with a one-hour break. The motion passed unanimously.
• Nadine stated that the Board should revisit the issue of the Saturday and Sunday start times after the October 2004 tournament. Steve Robinson recommended constructing an e-mail survey of the membership after the October tournament to see what the membership prefers.

The Board discussed the partnership assistance program. The WBL will continue to guarantee partners for the unit game and sectionals. Sandy Forsythe is amenable to filling in as a partner. Mike Carroad was supposed to have called other potential fill-ins and confer with Charlene Brand, but nobody knew whether he had done so. Dick said that Barbara Shaw may be willing to help with arranging partnerships, and also Barbara Summers (after she recovers from her illness). Donna noted that at a recent ACBL workshop on sectionals, they said that partnerships and advertising were the most important factors to higher attendance. Dick said that he will put this issue again on the agenda for the July meeting.

The Board discussed holding a party for volunteers. Steve Forsythe said that the issue is when, and whether to invite families. After discussion between Dick and Steve Forsythe regarding dates, they settled on Sunday, August 29, 3-6 PM at Steve Forsythe’s residence. Don Berman moved to approve a budget of $10 per person for the party, assuming 40 attendees, with a cap of $500. The motion passed unanimously.

The Board reviewed the promotional brochures. Dick reported that the printing cost $571, plus $100-$200 at Kinko’s. Alice Wegman will tabulate the exact cost and submit it to ACBL for partial reimbursement. Dick said that he hopes the out-of-pocket cost for the WBL will be a maximum of $200. To save space, the promotional brochure does not list clubs that are invitational only. The targets for the brochure will be libraries, chambers of commerce, community centers, hotels, and Federal agencies. Winston commented that the brochure should be made available to human resources personnel at Federal agencies for insertion in packages to persons about to retire. Dick asked everybody to think about possible volunteers to distribute the brochures.

Dick reported that Ralph Turner, Bob Bell, and Roger Pies accepted their appointments to the Conduct and Ethics Committee.

Nadine Wood reported on the District 6 meeting. There will be a race between Margot Hennings and Lynn Rattinger for Vice President. Kay Afdahl, who is from the southern part of the district, is unopposed for President. There has been a tradition of having one person each from the southern and northern parts of the district for the posts of President and Vice President, so Nadine suggested that the Board members support Margot for Vice President, for balance reasons and because she works hard. Steve Robinson reported that Pat Wilson is unhappy about the August STaC. He pointed out, however, that Baltimore already has a full STaC itself (i.e., receives all the proceeds for a District 6 STaC), the WBL and NVBA each have ½ of a STaC, and other units have no STaC at all, so Pat Wilson’s complaints are unjustified. Nadine suggested that if any unit want its own STaC, the STaC should be confined to clubs within its own unit.

The Board discussed a letter written by a WBL member regarding the recent arrest of one of the WBL members for making a violent threat. The letter urged the WBL to suspend or expel the member who was arrested, and noted that member’s temper on other occasions. Steve Robinson stated that it would be inappropriate for the WBL to take action against the person arrested, because the arrest concerned an event unconnected to any WBL bridge event. Dick noted that the WBL has Conduct and Ethics rules, and the jurisdiction of the C&E rules are limited to conduct at the games or the environs. The conduct in question here does not fall within that jurisdictional parameter. In addition, there has been no legal determination to date that the member in question is a danger to the community. Ron Zucker stated that the Board should be “less flippant” to the concerns of the member who wrote the letter, because the member who was arrested has sometimes acted inappropriately at the unit game. Dick stated that if the member engaged in a pattern of behavior at the table that warrants discipline, the Board could reconsider the issue. Steve Forsythe commented that there needs to be strict limitations on conduct at the table. The Board agreed to take no further action. The next issue of the Bulletin will note that players can file recorder forms with Don Berman if they have complaints regarding behavior at the game.

The Board considered the issue of IRS Form 1099s for pay to directors. Dick stated that he reviewed the law, which clearly requires the WBL to issue 1099s. The NVBA has been doing it for some time. Dick said that the WBL has no choice but to issue the 1099s, even though the directors do not like it. Steve Robinson suggested redistributing compensation by paying a travel per diem and fee, so that less of the total compensation would be taxable. Dick appointed Steve Robinson and Fred King to look into that possibility.

The Board discussed Donna’s request for a raise for her services. Dick appointed Steve Robinson and Fred King to consider this issue further.

The board discussed honoring Michael Carroad’s retirement as director of the unit game, to be announced at the unit game on June 17. Ron Zucker will obtain a gift for Michael. Cake will be offered after the first hospitality break.

Steve Robinson was appointed the new Chairman of Electronics Communication.

Respectfully submitted,

Richard Ferrin, Secretary