Minutes of the Aug 14, 2023 Trustees Meeting

The meeting began at 7:30 p.m. in the library.

Present: Cindy Binzen, Miriam Newman, Marty Frank, Kevin Lynch, Carol Wilson, Melissa Strayton,

librarian, and Diane White (for the Friends).

Minutes from the July trustees meeting were accepted.

Friends Report: Diane said the Friends will be meeting on Wednesday. Otherwise there was nothing to report.

Librarian’s Report: The summer series of children’s programming ended tonight. Melissa described attendance as hit or miss. She did receive some feedback from parents that the programs might be starting too late. The notebook containing our various policies has been scanned into the library’s computer. Having struggled mightily in the past to obtain a UEI (Unique Entity Identifier) number,  Melissa is now experiencing the joys of trying to register that number, which will be necessary to obtain future government grants. 

A book order is about ready to go. The application for a new round of funding from Turrell has been submitted; Melissa has requested $3,900. We probably won’t hear back from the foundation until November or December. Melissa reported that she has come to work a few times and discovered that the building had been left unlocked. She was wondering if we should maintain a sign-in sheet to help keep track of who is using the building. The trustees thought it might be easier to just contact the various volunteers who use the building and remind them to make sure the door is locked when they leave. 

Jessica Brown has missed the last two scheduled dates for cleaning, meaning that the library hasn’t received her attention since the book sale. Part of the problem has been illness in her family. She’s due to come to the library this week, and the hope is that she’s able to resume a regular cleaning schedule. A slate tile was dislodged during a recent windstorm and was blown to the ground. The public computer farthest away from the circulation desk has become glitchy and may need to be replaced soon. Our service with QuickBooks will need to be renewed soon.

Treasurer’s Report: Rachel distributed copies of the most recent profit-and-loss statement before the meeting.

Other Business: Kevin said he’d like to continue serving on the board. Marty reiterated his desire to step down from board. The trustees discussed some possible replacements.

Website improvement: Carol was under the impression that she had sent out the revised logo but none of the trustees could recall seeing it. The graphic will be sent out again and the committee will meet soon to discuss the changes. Preschool storytime is going quite well, regularly drawing as many as 20 participants. Two more sessions are scheduled, and Melissa will ask parents if they’re interested in having us continue after school starts. 

Adult programming: Carol called Herb Goertz after the Homestead was flooded to inform him that we had lost our venue. He’s still interested in doing the program, and Carol will check in with the church to see if we might use the parish hall on a Sunday afternoon. Marty will call Matt Hongoltz-Hetling to see if he’s still interested in reading from his new book in October and will also touch base with Laura Ogden about a November program .

Marty moved to go into executive session for the purpose of discussing personnel. Miriam seconded. at 8:45.  The board returned to regular session at 9:15.

The next meeting will take place at 7 p.m. on Sept. 13.