Board of Directors Meeting Minutes from March 27, 2023
NORTH DAKOTA ASSOCIATION OF THE BLIND, INC.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING MINUTES
March 27, 2023
BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: Trampes Brown, Lexee Steffan, Rebecca Anderson, Helen Baumgartner, Doug Stip, Milissa Miller, Gerald Byron, Allan Peterson and Zelda Gebhard
GUESTS PRESENT: Mary Stip, Paula Anundson, Michelle Zentz, Rick and Char Feldman
CALL TO ORDER: Trampes called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm via Zoom.
ROLL CALL: Helen took roll call.
REPORTS:
President: Trampes was on an ACB call explaining how NDAB conducts the state convention in comparison to other states.
Secretary: On January 17th, Doug made a motion to approve the January 16th board minutes, seconded by Missy. MC The minutes were approved on February 13th.
On March 3rd, Gerald made a motion to approve the Special Board Meeting minutes, seconded by Lexee. MC The minutes were approved on March 4th.
On January 30th, a sympathy card was sent to Robert Moore, NDAB member, for the loss of his wife, Evelyn Moore.
On March 2nd, a sympathy card was sent to the family of Cheryl Brooks.
On March 9th, a sympathy card was sent to the family of Mickey Teubner.
Treasurer’s Report: Helen made a motion to accept the Jan & Feb, 2023 Treasurer’s report, seconded by Zelda. MC Allan made a friendly amendment to the motion at the Special Board meeting to invest the Ohnstad donation for 13 months rather than one year. The interest will be 4.1% for a 13-month investment.
Development Director: Allan reported that GHD donations and Bonus Bucks totaled $17,344.90, the match fund totaled $25,186, with a grand total GHD funds being $42,530.90. For additional details, see the attached report.
Membership: Lexee presented a new applicant: Brian Osvold, sighted, Minot. Zelda moved to approve the applicant, seconded by Allan, MC With the approval of the new applicant, there are currently 142 active members. Chelsa Faber-Sherwood and Lexee’s stepmother have been volunteering to help get the membership list updated.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Communications: Trampes reported Emily Stenberg Brown has been posting NDAB news on Facebook. The website is being updated.
Sports and Rec: Trampes reported the Urban Retreat is March 31 – April 1 in conjunction with NDVS/SB Family Weekend. There are 17 people registered.
Awards: The Ed Christensen and Advocate of the Year awards have been selected. Friend of NDAB is Tami Purcell. Lion Russell Doe from Reeder has been chosen for the Bob LePage award. Gerald made a motion to approve the nomination of Lion Russell Doe, seconded by Allan. MC
Camp: Missy reported the dates of camp are August 6 – 13, 2023. The theme is “All Roads Lead to Camp”. Gerald Byron and Janelle Olson are planning the banquet. The entertainment for Friday evening will be provided by Tiffany Krum & Kellee Black. A Risk Waiver is being worked on by the staff at Elks Camp Grassick. There will not be an auction again this year. It will be replaced by a picnic and campfire. Classes and instructors were shared. There are still some classes and instructors being pursued.
Convention 2023: Trampes reported the committee is finalizing the registration packet. It should be going out in the next couple of weeks. Transportation has been worked out for Friday evening. A donation was received in memory of Cheryl Brooks which will be used to sponsor one of the snack breaks.
Constitution and Bylaws: Michelle reported the committee consists of Zelda, Trampes, Allan and herself. There are 8 proposed amendments. The committee received and thoughtfully considered an article submitted by Char and Rick Feldman to change the role of the Immediate Past President (IPP). The submission led the committee to evaluate current IPP duties and to consider adjustments. Amendment 7 was the result of this discussion. Amendment #7 was read. Char stated this amendment, as read, was not what was suggested. The suggested change was to limit the immediate past president’s time on the board to one year. Char and Rick were informed that, to have their suggestion addressed by the bylaws committee for an amendment proposal, they would need to bring this forward to the Convention body to be considered and voted on in 2024. Helen requested an explanation of Amendment #1. The membership dues amendment was discussed. The committee recommended a do pass for all 8 amendments. Gerald made a motion for a do pass, seconded by Allan. MC
Nominations: The slate of candidates for 2023 are: Secretary – Helen Baumgartner; Development Director – Allan Peterson; Vice President – Lexee Steffan (1 year); Board Director – Brant Adams; Editor – Emily Stenberg Brown; 2024 ACB Delegate – Amy Osvold; and 2024 ACB Alternate Delegate – Mary Stip.
Legislative: Allan gave written and oral testimony to the Senate and House Appropriations Committees in support of NDVS/SB, the Talking Book Program and the OIB Program. The four legislative priorities at the ACB Legislative Seminar were: The Medical Device Nonvisual Accessibility Act; The Website and Software Accessibility Act; Communications, Video and Technology Accessibility Act; and the Exercise and Fitness for All Act. He will be visiting with the offices of our congressional delegation requesting support of these legislative priorities. Allan and Zelda represented NDAB with a table at the NDDAC sponsored Disability Awareness Day held at the Capitol on March 7th. A computer monitor and cables were purchased and used to enable them to share our NDAB promotional videos for public relation/awareness presentations such as this. While at the Capitol, they encountered visually inaccessible elevator controls. After bringing this to the attention of her District Representative, Zelda was asked to testify that afternoon before his committee about this issue. Zelda attended the four virtual days of the ACB Leadership Conference and the in-person sessions as well.
Life Enrichment Committee: Consists of Zelda, Trampes and Mike Beck. Deb Johnsen, Peg Hanson and Mike Beck are on the Life Enrichment Selection Committee.
NEXT MEETING: Monday, May 15, 2023 at 7:00 pm.
ADJOURN: Allan made a motion to adjourn, seconded by Lexee. MC The meeting adjourned at 9:31 pm.
Respectfully Submitted, Helen Baumgartner, NDAB Secretary