The February meeting of the Garrett County Commission for Women was called to order at 5:05 P.M. by Chair Lisa Thayer Welch. Also present were Erin-Ruth Natividad, Linda Carr, Maureen Sheaffer, Sadie Liller, Caroline Blizzard, Rose Gordy, and Krystal Huber. Rachel Bruch and Cheryl Deberry were in attendance via phone.
A Moment of Silence was acknowledged The Pledge of Allegiance followed.
Secretary’s Report: No report other than the presentation of Minutes from the December 3, 2019 Meeting as prepared by Erin-Ruth Natividad. Sadie Liller motioned approval. The motion passed unanimously. The October Meeting Minutes were also voted on, and the motion passed unanimously.
Treasurer’s Report: Linda Carr reported a beginning balance of $6,182.20. No new deposits or disbursements were made. The account balance is $6,182.20.
Old Business:
1. Hall of Fame Plaque- Lisa Welch identified the previous Hall of Fame plaque is running out of space. Current question is to see if one of the schools or a local artesian could affordably get this project done for the Commission. A decision was needed to be made regarding whether or not to be listed in groups of 3 or individually, and therefore, determine how big of a plaque would be needed for the project. Lisa Welch suggested taking the previous plaque and using it for the Woman of Tomorrow Plaque. A unanimous vote was received. Maureen volunteered and said she could draw it to get an idea of what we are attempting to project. The old plaque is still projected to be utilized for the Woman of Tomorrow Plaque.
2. Meeting Attendance- It was determined that each member would be sent a reminder of the Bylaws, and call in contingencies will be put into place.
3. School Principal Recruitment- Lisa Welch advised she would set up a meeting.
Committee Reports:
1. Hall of Fame- Cheryl Deberry sent in a sample of the 2020 Garrett County Commission for Women Hall of Fame Nomination Form for Constructive Criticism. The Eventbrite needs set up. Cheryl Deberry advised she has access. Last year each person was charged $25 per person, and Cheryl will do a draft. Lisa will call Dutches and get a quote, and will get in contact with local women’s groups to announce scholarships and nominations. Linda Carr is going to give information to Caroline Blizzard about SImon Pierce donation.
2. Scholarship- Lisa Welch is waiting for the Hall of Fame publicity to get some action and request for nominations to be announced prior to amping up the announcements for the scholarship.
3. Legislation- Linda Carr emailed MLAW follow ups to the members of the Commission.
4. Public Relations- Cheryl Deberry said the focus will be HOF. Erin-Ruth Natividad and Rachel Bruch are added as admin to help post content. Erin-Ruth will be creating innovative content to help boost interaction on our page.
5. Membership- Rachel Bruch had nothing new to add.
6. Historian- Rose Gordy was not sure where to store the items. It was identified Kitty had the items. Krystal Huber reminded the group the plan was to go digital. Linda is going to get in touch with Kitty.
7. By-Laws- Maureen Sheaffer had nothing to report.
8. Community Service- Krystal Huber reminded us of our potential project to support Girl Scout Troop 55004 in Oakland, MD. Erin-Ruth Natividad advised she has been in contact with Troop leadership as her children are members of that specific troop. Erin-Ruth to meet with leaders of each level to see which badge work items we could assist with. There was a previous badge that dealt with helping girls know they can do any career. This is something several members identified we could assist with. Along the same lines, it was identified that Linda Carr is still looking for GEMS volunteers to share a topic or talent.
New Business:
1. Election Of Secretary- Erin-Ruth Natividad identified she would be willing to serve in this capacity; however, the vote was tabled to next meeting due to lack of quorum. A quorum was not present at this meeting. Maureen Sheaffer motioned for approval, and Linda Carr Seconded. The motion passed unanimously.
2. Bank Account Signatory- Linda Carr made a request that another commission member be made a signatory on the account at BB&T as Sherri Fredlock is no longer in membership, and should be removed. Erin-Ruth Natividad identified she could send in this capacity. Sadie Liller made a motion to add Erin-Ruth Natividad as an additional signatory to the GCCW BB&T CHECKING ACCT ending in 2671. The motion was seconded by Rose Gordy. The motion passed unanimously.
3. Lisa Welch identified at the October 1, 2019 meeting an update of our strategic plan is needed. Linda Carr identified how the strategic plan had been updated in the past. Strategic Planning Priorities will be addressed February 15, 2020 9AM until around 2PM, location will be announced. Included in the agenda will be membership growth/membership plan as requested by both Sadie Liller and Erin-Ruth Natividad, and events such as Women’s Equity Day August 22, 2020. Linda Carr will contact GIEC for room reservation.
4. Pam Trickett has submitted a resume for voting. Resume was forwarded to Commission Members December 3, 2019 by Linda Carr via email. Resumes for Julie Sanders and Melita Friend were both submitted. All three members were voted in unanimously.
5. 100th Anniversary Celebration for the Ratification of the 19th Amendment- Caroline Blizzard identified the Park Service is planning a service in June. There is an attempt to combine all of the area community groups and civic clubs events and just have one large event in August. There will potentially be a police escort. There will be more information Monday, February 10 in a meeting in which Caroline will be in attendance. Caroline advised that the Commission could participate in a grant proposal for this event. Motion was made by Cheryl Deberry that should money needed that we support, and Maureen Sheaffer seconded. The motion passed unanimously.
6. Caroline Blizzard reminded the Commission that our members should be present at the STEM for Girls Program on March 28, 2020 at 10 am .
7. Erin-Ruth Natividad identified the high level of traffic via email when a question is asked and the members reply individually. It was suggested that anytime we vote electronically or an opinion is needed that a Survey is sent out rather than an email with a question and people press “Reply-All”. It was slated to update this when we go over our strategic planning.
8. Rose Gordy highlighted the Women’s Monologues at Our Town Theater from March 26-29
9. It was noted that the new members need name tags as we have some community events approaching. Linda Carr said she would look into pricing. It was also noted each new member would be highlighted in an article submitted to the local newspaper.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:35 P.M. The next meeting is Tuesday April 7, 2020 from 5 to 6:30 P.M.
Submitted by,
Erin-Ruth Natividad