Minutes

Eclipse Board Meeting 3-21-2004, 4-6pm

Farthest North Girl Scout Council meeting room (Old Steese Hwy)

Meeting Started at: 4:10

Members Present: Larry Bright, Kathy Port, Barb Stockwell, Hope Swoffer, Sara Alden, Gary Bender, Bruce Gard, Colleen Kowalchuk, Brian Luoma, Howard Maxwell, Linda Colang, Mark Gramstad, Sharon Gramstad, Bev Luoma, Suzi Nicolai, Cindy Vredenburgh, Jennifer Templeton, Ron Templeton

Review of Minutes: Kathy Port moved to approve the minutes as written. Gary Bender seconded. Motion passed.

Financial Update: All Carlson concession revenue has been received and checks have been distributed to the teams. Deposit from FAC Lock-In being held until estimate for damaged ceiling tile has been received. Checking balance is $13,778.90 of which $11,000 is tournament fees and $500.00 is Soccerships. Refunds were made to players leaving the Eclipse Soccer Club. (Refunds may be made prior to the first game.) Hope requested permission to purchase a two-drawer filing cabinet, due to requirement to keep seven years of records. Howard Maxwell moved to allow Hope to purchase a file cabinet for the treasurers records. Gary Bender seconded. Motion passed.

New Team: Kathy Port introduced Jennifer and Ron Templeton. They wish to start a '94 Phoenix team. Jennifer has coached in FYSA for two indoor seasons and three outdoor seasons. They have both attended all Youth Modules. Jennifer is planning to attend the E License clinic in May and the D License clinic in 2005. After making a statement and answering questions from the Board, the Templetons left; Kathy Port would inform them of the Board's decision.

Kathy Port moved to accept Jennifer Templeton as coach for a U11 Phoenix team. Cindy Vredenburgh seconded. Concern was expressed that a decision should not be made to meet time constraints for tournament fee payment Discussion included what items are provided to a new team, try-out support, and coaching support. Kathy Port will check references and talk with parents of former players. The motion was amended to include: provided Kathy Port (as CRAD chairperson) does not have any real concerns from discussing coaching skills with parents. Motion passed.

Old Business:

Soccerships Recommendations from the Committee: Cindy Vredenburgh reported that three applications were received. All three were approved for $250.00 each. She will send acceptance letters to the players. Hope Swoffer will write checks to the appropriate teams, using the $500 donation and $250 matching from the savings account. This funding will go into the Individual Player’s Account.
FAC Lock-in final report: 90 players/guests attended. One player was injured early in the night and went home. Ceiling tiles were damaged in the Family Fitness Room by a large ball being bounced hard enough to hit the ceiling. The deposit will be reduced by the cost to repair.
Soccer Symposium – final plans, help needed? Cindy Vredenburgh reported that no additional help was needed. A tentative schedule is out. She suggested that people pre-register. The registration form lists fees for players 12 and up; all players attending need to pay. The minimum age was added because they would prefer that younger players not attend. All Eclipse players are invited, no matter what their age. Coaches will be reimbursed only with a receipt.
Summer Clinic teams participating: Larry Bright has been in contact with Franklin of Georgia Coaches. They are planning to bring up coaches for seven teams. Larry will inform them of the new U11 Phoenix team.
Club Manual any progress: Nothing to report.
RST Fundraising update & instructions: Mark Gramstad has been in contact with Ginny Ohdersk; she is waiting to hear from RST with the list of vendors. Expected distribution of cards is mid-April with everything turned in prior to the summer season.
CRAD: Coaches are paid according to their license as of April 1.

Licensing: Gary Bender reported that only two Fairbanks coaches have sent in applications for the licensing clinic to be held in May. If there is not enough interest, the clinic will not be held.

Summer Registration: Packets for the summer season are due to Amber Zellweger by April 2. One check per team should be give to Hope Swoffer, she will then write one check to cover all Eclipse Soccer Club teams.

President's Committee Rec Plus: The meeting was not well attended – only three people showed up. Larry Bright said the focus was on U11 teams – especially for boys. Rec Plus was discussed to prepare players for comp teams. Interested players would participate in rec games, attend extra practices, and play in a game each week with teams formed prior to the game. Discussion included need for additional coaches (maybe university students), would there be enough players committing to the additional time requirements, and that the program should be available to older players.

New Business:

Fitness Equipment: Gary Bender started a discussion on equipment that would be beneficial for all the teams. Should equipment be purchased by the club or by individual teams. Some equipment would be difficult to share due to storage and practice times. Teams could fund raise specifically for equipment. Larry Bright added that local community organizations are always looking for ways to support youth sports.
U17 Boys Team: Gary Bender has been approached by parents and players about forming a U17 boys team. The team appears to be intact, but there is not a coach.
Team Fundraising Board approval, gaming permits, policy: The club policy is not intended to slow down fund raising. It is primarily in place to cover all legal issues. The 94 team participated in a raffle with Arctic Man without prior knowledge of the board. The raffle did not involve the Eclipse gaming license and will be considered a donation to the 94's with all tax ramifications handled by Arctic Man. Hope Swoffer needs a letter describing the donation for the Club records. Larry Bright stressed the fact that all fund raising has to have board approval prior to any activity.
Raising Revenue for the Club general discussion: Communication is the key and many things can be accomplished at the same time. The Club does need to raise additional revenue. Many ways to support the coaches and teams have been discussed in the past. Expenses are increasing: tournament fees, coaches receiving higher licenses, symposium attendance, and equipment allowances. Dues were increased and the Club is not buying new socks for the players this year these changes were made this year to cover additional expenses. Hope Swoffer reminded the board of our non-profit status and money should not be raised and then not spent. Our balances need to be kept low for the IRS. Bottom line is we are bringing in enough revenue to cover our expenses, but the actual amount will not be known until after the cash raffle has ended. The Club would like additional funds to do more in CRAD, develop coaches, licensing, clinics, and equipment. The Soccerships should also be continued. All ideas should be sent to Larry Bright and this discussion will continue.
Phoenix uniforms: Bev Luoma asked about Board approval for the Phoenix uniforms – especially due to the newly added team. Kathy Port informed the Board that black and gold uniforms have been selected and will be ordered. These uniforms should reduce the confusion between players and referees on the field. Bev Luoma moved to approve Diodora Morros as the uniform for Phoenix, with colors of black and gold. Suzy Nicolai seconded. Motion passed.

Laura Bender stocks extra Eclipse uniforms for emergency use by new players. Also, players have donated used uniforms. These will be given to Bert Boyer for temporary use by his players.

Next meeting is April 18.

Suzy Nicolai moved to adjourn. Gary Bender seconded. Motion passed.