Greater
Seattle
Aquarium
Society Board Meeting Minutes: November 20, 2003
(at the home of Bob Holmes)
Board Members
Present
Bob Holmes
Rick Rose
Sandu Simion
Susan Welenofsky
Paul Winchester
Absent
(None)
Membership Observers
June Olberding
Preliminary Business
* (None)
Executive Committee Reports
* The Minutes of the previous Board meeting (October 23, 2003) were
accepted and approved.
* The Treasurer's Report:
1) Current Bank Balance: $3398.99
2) Cash Box: ??.00
3) No Outstanding Bills
Meeting & Program Schedule
Month Topic / Activity
Fish-o-the-Month
SEP 9th Introduce yourself and your fish, solicit ideas, Nominations
($30 Dave-Dwarf/Pygmy Coreys)
OCT 21st Dave Sanford - Intro/Spawning of Killifish, Elections
(Dave & Bob)
NOV 11th Erik and Kathy's trip [or, plan B, the Nat'l Geographic
Video] ($40)
DEC 9th Christmas Party
(None)
JAN 13th
(__________________)
FEB 10th Plant Auction
(None)
MAR 9th
(__________________)
APR 13th General Auction
(None)
MAY 11th
(__________________)
JUN 8th
(__________________)
(2004-2005 Club-Year)
SEP 14th
OCT 12th
NOV 9th
DEC 14th Christmas Party
JAN 11th
FEB 8th Plant Auction
MAR 8th
APR 12th General Auction
MAY 10th
JUN 14th
(*) Tentative, Special Dates
Special Dates (in Red)
List of possible speakers:
* Pam Chin
* Steve Lunblad (African Cichlids)
* ____________ (Livebearers, Rick will contact possible speakers
proposed by Frank Tomko.)
* Steev Ward (Freshwater Fish Diseases from a Practical Standpoint)
* Wayne Liebel - Cichlids, or History of the Aquarium Hobby
* Paul Louiselle
* Bob will ask Erik to explain how Manufacturer-Sponsored Speakers
work
* Bob will contact GPAS to see if they want to share
* Bob will contact Van Couver to see if they want to share
* Mel O'Meare (sp?) - Large Central American Cichlids (Dave)
* South American cichlids (broad selection. could be subdivided into
dwarf,pike etc.)
* Anabantoids (again, subdivide into bettas, gouramis etc.) -Catfish
(Lee Finley?)
* Asian fish (loaches, barbs, rasboras etc.)
* Gold Fish
* Lee Findley - Catfish
* Steve MacDonald - Discus (Paul will contact - possibly for January)
* Yohan Fernando - Wild Bettas
* David Spector - Show Bettas (possibly for January)
* Loaches (requested by Don Rudee)
Meeting Ideas:
o Field trip to African NW (Sam is willing to set up - let him know
when ready)
o Videos from Erik's library
o Double-feature Night with popcorn, etc..
* National Geographic video - Jewels of Tanganyika - tape ordered and
on the way
* Collecting on the Rio Negro
o Home Video Night (10 minute presentation by various members)
o Rain Forest Aquarium Presentation by Sandu
o Erik and Kathy's collection trip in the Amazon [Dwarf cichlids,
Corey cats, tetras]
o Florida Aqua Farms Presentation
o Anthony Calfo - from Pennsylvania - Saltwater (friend of Sandu)
o Advanced Killifish Presentation - Dave Sanford/Kate Breimayer
o South Park (industrial area) possible weekend activity
Next Meeting: December 9, 2003
* The December General Meeting topic will be our annual Holiday Party
and this year we have a Holiday Party Chairperson, Cheryl Winchester, who is
planning the entire evening. This takes a great deal of pressure and
responsibility off of the Board - Thanks Cheryl! Cheryl reports that there
will be...
o Our standard Holiday Potluck
o Aquarium-related Gift Exchange ($15 limit)
o Kids' Coloring Contest (organized by Tori Craig)
o Fish-O (organized by Erik Olson)
o Prizes!
o Decorations
o Holiday Music
o ...and more!
Old Business
* Recap of November General Membership Meeting - Matt Kaufman showed
his slides from various activities and events he attended in 2000,
including...
The West Coast Weekend in Hayward
The AKA National Convention in Florida
Some random collecting trips
The French National Aquarium in Am Boise, France
* 27 members signed in, plus 3 visitors for a total of 30 in
attendance.
* June Olberding (from the membership) requested that the kid's
coloring contest winning entries be displayed on the table near the
entrance. Rick will do this. (Outstanding)
* Susan's name is now on the checking account (as well as Bob's)
* Susan is considering the BAP Committee Chair. She will research the
BAP requirements and present a proposal for restarting this program. -
Tabled until the December 2003 meeting.
* Paul is considering the General Auction Committee Chair - Tabled
until the December 2003 meeting (Paul will ask Erik if he wants to do it.)
* Sandu - a presentation to introduce his idea for an "Aquascaping
Award Program." Brief discussion highlights from last month's meeting are
as follows: - Tabled until December 2003
o Submissions/entries would be pictures
o Entrants should have the option of being/providing their-own
photographer or requesting that a "club photographer" (one person, to be
determined) take the pictures. This would alleviate the potential problem
of "blaming" a non-winning entry on "which photographer was assigned to take
their picture."
o The contest could accept entries during the entire club-year,
culminating in a slide presentation at the June meeting, at which time the
membership would judge the entries and vote for the winner(s).
o Sandu will asked if there is enough interest in this idea at the
last general meeting.
New Business
* Newsletter Update
1) November Newsletter Status - June Olberding
o Deadline will always be the Monday after the board meeting
(11/24/03.)
2) Several of the board members expressed an interest in receiving
their copy of the newsletter electronically (via email) rather than as
printed material in the mail. - June is continuing to research the
possibility of providing a PDF file to Erik.
3) Response form post-card inquiring about Exchanges -
* We received one back from a cichlid newsletter from Florida (or
Texas?) who wanted June to "apply" if we wanted to begin receiving their
newsletter in Exchange for ours. The board supported June's decision to
reject this one.
* As previously decided, we will pursue GPAS and Vancouver, Canada to
promote good relations with our neighboring clubs.
* We will continue exchanging newsletters with the four clubs that
have been participating
* All the rest will be dropped.
* New Members since last meeting - Bob
* Frank Slusser
* Ben Messina
* Holly Jackson
* Leon Braginski
* Jeff Stewart has volunteered to fill the "Shows" Chair - Unanimously
approved.
The following is an excerpt from a subsequent email
responding to Jeff's questions:
Regarding some of the questions that you asked
(about prizes, categories, entry fees, and submission limits) the board
discussed this for quite a while and, in light of the fact that one of the
other proposals already being planned for this year is "on the competitive
side," ultimately decided to promote home show(s) as a "for fun,"
non-competitive event. So, we are suggesting no prizes, categories, entry
fees, or limits - just fun, friendship, and encouragement.
-----Original Message-----
From: Stewart, Jeffrey [mailto:jeffs@amazon.com]
Sent: Monday, October 27, 2003 2:34 PM
To: Rick Rose
Subject: RE: Volunteering to organize a GSAS Home Show
Well, I guess if there are no expectations besides what I'm
already planning, sure. I'll be a chair.
Jeff Stewart
-----Original Message-----
From: Rick Rose [mailto:rick-rose@comcast.net]
Sent: Monday, October 27, 2003 2:15 PM
To: Stewart, Jeffrey
Subject: RE: Volunteering to organize a GSAS Home Show
Hi Jeff,
At this point, since we haven't had a home-show of any kind
for several years, and since the "official committee chair" hasn't been
filled for probably longer than that, "what all it entails" would probably
be whatever YOU want to make of it. One of my many projects is to gather
written descriptions for each of the committee chair positions from those
who have done the job in the past, but I haven't progressed very far on that
project and I certainly don't have anything formal for the "shows" position
- maybe you could be the guinea pig and then after you've done it for a year
you can write up a description for me :-)?
I won't try to influence your decision (Do it! Do it! Do
it!) in any way (Do it!) so just give it some thought (Do it! Do it! Do
it!) and let me know what you decide.
Thanks,
Rick
(Do it! Do it! Do it!)
-----Original Message-----
From: Stewart, Jeffrey
[mailto:jeffs@amazon.com]
Sent: Monday, October 27, 2003 10:34 AM
To: Rick Rose
Subject: RE: Volunteering to organize a GSAS
Home Show
Rick,
I was only planning on doing a one-time
event... but might consider the "shows" chair, if I know what else that
would entail? I'm not sure if I'm up for planning a regular show, as I've
never been to one, and I'm not sure what really needs to be arranged.
Jeff Stewart
-----Original Message-----
From: Rick Rose
[mailto:rick-rose@comcast.net]
Sent: Friday, October 24, 2003 10:30 PM
To: Stewart, Jeffrey
Cc: GSAS Board
Subject: RE: Volunteering to organize a GSAS
Home Show
Hi Jeffrey,
This is a very well thought-out proposal -
Great Job!
We have a vacant chair position for "Shows."
I don't know if you were just intending to volunteer to organize a one-time
event or if you might consider volunteering for the "Shows" committee chair
- either one would be appreciated. If you would like to go that extra mile
and volunteer for the committee chair, please let me know. Either way, the
Board would have to approve your request (or more likely, through a banquet
in your honor!)
The October board meeting was last night, so
I'll put this on the agenda for the November Board meeting. (Again, please
let me know whether I should present it as a one-time event or as you
volunteering for the committee chair.)
Thanks again,
Rick Rose, GSAS Secretary/Historian
-----Original Message-----
From: Stewart, Jeffrey
[mailto:jeffs@amazon.com]
Sent: Friday, October 24, 2003 9:04 AM
To: rick-rose@comcast.net;
jbholmes@nwlink.com
Subject: Volunteering to organize a GSAS
Home Show
Rick and Bob,
After the meeting the other night, I was
thinking about volunteering to set up a home show.
Here are the basic I think we would need:
First, we would need to get people to
volunteer to show off their tanks. We could advertise this at a meeting or
two, on the website, through the e-mail list, and possibly drop off flyers
at different fish shops.
Next we would need a panel of judges and a
photographer. When I spoke with Clay about this, he mentioned that Steev,
Clay and the Elliots were all certified as judges in the past, so maybe we
can get them to volunteer, and maybe we could get Erik to do the photographs
since he has all the equipment and takes good tank photos (from what I've
seen).
Once we have the names and addresses of
everyone who wants to enter, I could plan out a route, that included a place
to meet up (for carpooling purposes), a route to go to all the houses, and
possibly stopping for meals as needed. Then, on a prearranged weekend, the
judges, photographer, the board and I could go around to all the houses,
doing the judging. I imagine this part would take the better part of a day,
if not two.
After that, at the next meeting, we could
present the winners, and possibly a slide show of the tanks we saw. Maybe
having the members speak about their tanks?
A few questions that would need to be
addressed are:
* Do we want to have awards/prizes
for the winners?
* Should it be broken down into
categories based on fish type, tank size, planted or not, etc? If so, how
many categories do we want?
* Do we want to charge an entry fee
to raise money for the club, or have it free to possibly attract new member
and ensure participation?
* Do we want to limit the number of
tanks entered per person overall or in each category?
Of course, we would probably need to discuss
this at one of your board meetings with all the new members (I could only
get your two off the website). I know the board meetings are usually on
Thursdays, but I hang out with a group of friends every Thursday, so I'm not
sure if you'd be willing to have the board meeting a different day to
discuss this, or just have a separate meeting for it.
Let me know if you like the idea, or have
any ideas for it,
* Jeff Stewart - Library donations... will be received at the December
general meeting. Bob will send a thank you card and June will publish in
the newsletter.
Oh, and Bob, you maintain the library for the club don't
you? Do you know if the library currently has and of the small Barron's
books in the "A Complete Pet Owner's Manual" series? I have a bunch of them
I can contribute if they aren't in there already (I just keep forgetting to
bring them to the meetings...)
The ones I have are:
Catfish (ISBN: 0764123971)
Cichlids (0764119567)
Tetras and Other Characins (0764121480)
Aquarium Fish Breeding (0764122088)
Gouramis and Other Labyrinth Fishes (0764121057)
The Barbs Aquarium (0764121162)
Goldfish (0764119869).
Jeff Stewart
* Victorea Earnest - Seattle Fish Show?
Subsequent email to Victorea explaining the board's decision on the
inquiry below:
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-gsas-board@thekrib.com [mailto:owner-gsas-board@thekrib.com] On
Behalf Of Rick Rose
Sent: Sunday, December 07, 2003 12:49 PM
To: 'Victorea Earnest'
Cc: GSAS Board
Subject: RE: Question about GSAS shows
Hi Victoria,
The GSAS Board discussed your question/suggestion about hosting an Aquarium
Show in the Seattle area (similar to the Portland Show hosted by GPAS.)
Because several of our members are also members of GPAS, we are aware of the
huge amount of time, effort, and equipment that is required to put on a
regional show of that caliber. Also, in light of the fact that the
"Portland Show" is actually billed as the "Northwest" Aquarium Show, we have
made it a practice to support that show each year as several of our members
have volunteered their time and equipment; and, the club has provided
monetary sponsorship.
For these reasons, the Board has decided not to pursue the production of a
Seattle Aquarium Show. We do, however, appreciate your having suggested the
idea for discussion and your interest in making GSAS a successful and
enjoyable organization.
Rick Rose,
GSAS Secretary/Historian
-----Original Message-----
From: Victorea Earnest [mailto:victoreae@yahoo.com]
Sent: Sunday, November 16, 2003 11:51 AM
To: jbholmes@nwlink.com; rick-rose@comcast.net;
welenofsky@comcast.net; bravo454@hotmail.com; simion@comcast.net
Subject: Question about GSAS shows
Hello,
I just joined in June. I have been a member of the PNW betta
society and the IBC for a couple of years. I have been going down to
Portland for the GPAS show and the IBS shows for the past couple of years.
I was wondering why there doesn't seem to be a fish show in the
Seattle area, and what the possibility was of having some sort of joint show
like gpas has with the NW killies and the NW Betta society. Actually, if
there are any guppie breeders in the area that would be cool too... or
cichlids or any other species type fish club.
Is it lack of interest, or not enough fish breeders? Do plant clubs
have shows?
Mostly just wondering, not sure if I'm volunteering at this point,
maybe...
Victorea
* Message Board? - Rick will ask Erik for input - Tabled until the
December 2003 meeting.
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-gsas-member@thekrib.com [mailto:owner-gsas-member@thekrib.com]
On Behalf Of Holly Jackson
Sent: Thursday, November 13, 2003 5:59 PM
To: gsas-member@thekrib.com
Subject: Hello everybody!
...
I am also wondering if any of you would be interested in a message board to
use to communicate with GSAS members. I was thinking it would be a very
easy and organized way to keep track of messages, do searches for specific
topics, share photos, etc. If that interests some of you let me know. I
have a website with quality hosting and it would be very easy for me to set
up a message board for GSAS. The format is actually the same as the one
that PSAS uses if you want to take a look. http://www.thepsas.org/
...
Holly ~
Announcements for the next General Meeting
* June - Articles and photographs needed
* June - We would like to get a show of hands - how many
member-families would like the option of receiving their newsletter
electronically rather than in their mailbox?
* Rick - New Committee Chairperson - Jeff Stewart - Shows
Low-Priority and On-going Issues
(The following issues which may or may not have been addressed above will
continue to be listed here until they are completely resolved.)
* Official Bylaws - Rick
1. Dave has obtained a copy of GPAS bylaws and passed them on to Rick
2. Erik has obtained a copy of AKA bylaws and passed them on to Rick
3. Erik found a copy of the GSAS bylaws, scanned them, and gave them to
Rick
4. Rick has produced an editable text file from the scanned images - a
copy given to each board member and one to June Olberding.
* Promotional Materials for GSAS - Rick
* Poster Boards (for Fish Stores) and GSAS fliers are still
outstanding.
* Business cards will be produced for all board members plus the
Newsletter Editor. All new board members and June agreed to have their
phone numbers and email addresses included on their card. Paul would like
his cell phone number (206-383-2910) used rather than his home phone.
* GSAS Fliers
* Standard GSAS Thank You cards
* Historian Project(s) - Rick
* History of Philanthropy Projects
* Probe the minds of Clay, Dave, Bob, and Erik
* Look for old article (on the 30-years CD), written by Laurie Hess,
about the "Providence Tank"
* Committee Chair - "Job Descriptions" - Rick has no progress to
report.
* Discussion on a future Philanthropy Project - Clay
* Clay has asked Diane Elliot how Rich (a lawyer) would advise us to
proceed with regard to Liability Insurance - Waiting for an Answer.
* Meeting Activities for younger kids - Dave, Bob, and Rick (Tori
Craig)
1. Dave - coloring book update - gave a folder full of artwork to Rick.
2. Rick - pages for the coloring book that promote GSAS
3. Rick - Aquarium-related word searches, puzzles, mazes
Next Board Meeting Location
The location of the next meeting will be at Paul Winchester's home. The
date will be Thursday, December 18, 2003, starting promptly at 7:30pm.
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