Loess Hills Audubon Society Meeting Parish Hall, Redeemer Lutheran Church (3204 South Lakeport Street) March 7, 2019

BOARD MEETING AGENDA 6:15 pm

Members Present:  David H., Paul R., Randy W., Jeri W., Leesa M., Donna P., Anne S., Rex R., Bill Z., Jerry V., Dotty Z.

Members Absent:  Carol B., Dawn S., Gary H., John P.

Honored Guests:  Jan N., Anna R., Maria R., Jon N., and Tyler, Heidi, Gary and Roxanne Flammang.

      I.        Call to Order at 6:22 PM

     II.        Approval of minutes from the February meeting.

    III.        Secretary’s Report – Randy W.

a.     Bird Friendly Iowa – A report was e-mailed to board members prior to this meeting.

b.     Discussion tabled to a later meeting to provide time for bylaws discussion.

c.     A copy of the full report will be sent along with the minutes of this meeting.

   IV.        President – David H.

a.     Northwest Iowa Sierra Club looking for a list of items to keep people involved and active over the summer months

                                          i.    Do we have any suggestions to keep people involved over the summer months?

                                         ii.    Field trips are one option

                                        iii.    Check the LHAS Facebook page for updates

                                        iv.    Check the LHAS Website for updates

b.     Nominating Committee

                                          i.    Volunteers?

                                         ii.    This committee asks LHAS members to see if they wish to volunteer to help with the board or with LHAS committees

1.     Paul R.

2.     Maria R.

3.     Rex R.

4.     Motion and second to have these 3 members serve as our nominating committe- passed

    V.        Vice-President – Paul R.

a.     Bird Friendly Iowa - see Secretary’s report, above

b.     Speakers for 2019-2020 (report for Leesa M.)

                                          i.    Will need someone to coordinate speakers next year

c.     Extensive VP report was sent by e-mail to board members prior to this meeting

                                          i.    Secretary’s apology for not having printed copies

                                         ii.    Copy of the report will be sent to board members along with the minutes from this meeting.

d.     NAS/LHAS membership issues

                                          i.    Faster updates by NAS on reports for LHAS membership

                                         ii.    NAS to contact us as soon as we get a first-time member

                                        iii.    Will provide clarification of the renewal process and prices for LHAS via website and newsletter.

e.     LHAS membership updates

                                          i.    93% of our e-mail contacts are not members of LHAS

                                         ii.    Based on the most recent list from NAS, 70% of our roster has an expired membership or their membership will be expiring shortly

                                        iii.    Email people on our list who are not members, but attend meetings, to remind them that we have them on our rolls and encourage them to improve their participation with the chapter.

f.      Bylaws and Constitution

                                          i.    No real progress on the bylaws or constitution since 27 Feb board meeting

                                         ii.    Wish to have first revisions in place for general membership voting in May

                                        iii.    Revision working group (David H., Paul R., Jerry V., Randy W.) to meet at 3:30 PM on Friday, 15 March.

                                        iv.    The original LHAS articles of incorporation have been found, scanned and distributed to the board.

g.     Name tag experiment with greeters tonight

                                          i.    Thanks to Jan N. and Anna R. for helping with this tonight

                                         ii.    Start use of name tags

                                        iii.    Re-start the use of sign in sheets

   VI.        Treasurer – Jeri W.

a.     Credit - $25 birdathon

b.     Debit

                                          i.    $100 to Iowa Young Birders for field guides/notebooks

                                         ii.    $250 Monona County for Loess Hills Prairie Seminar support

                                        iii.    $4.95 to Paypal for website

c.     Balance - $5502.99

d.     Will have to donate to Redeemer Lutheran for temporary use of their facilities.

  VII.        Membership – Donna P. See above as part of the Vice-President’s report.

 VIII.        Conservation – Bill Z.

a.     House File 542 – did not go to committee. It is technically active but probably not going anywhere.

b.     Senate Study Bill 1221 – still active with revisions in progress

    IX.        Naturalist/Education – Bill Z. for Jody M.

a.     Acorn Woodpecker prepared by Bill for DPNC

b.     Bill provided a short natural history of the species

c.     Will also present for the general membership meeting.

     X.        Outings – Jerry V.

a.     Saturday, 23 March at 7:30 AM at Super Walmart at Singing Hills.

b.     Weather cancellations for January and February

    XI.        Publicity – Dawn S., no report but it was noted by other board members that information was available regarding the change in venue as well as the cancellation of the February meeting.

   XII.        Social – Carol B., no report.

  XIII.        Audubon Adventures – Gary H., no report.

 XIV.        Old Business

a.     Nature Center Construction & Meetings

                                          i.    March 7 and April 4 in Parish Hall of Redeemer Lutheran Church, 3204 South Lakeport Street

                                         ii.    There have been construction delays

b.     International Owl Festival, March 2, at International Owl Center, Houston, MN - John and Sharon Polifka

c.     Constitution and bylaws

                                          i.    A review of the purpose for these revisions.

                                         ii.    Examples of bylaws and constitutions from other chapters were e-mailed to board members

                                        iii.    Proposed revisions (with comparison to current bylaws) also sent

                                        iv.    Perhaps another special meeting of the board devoted to just this topic

1.     REMINDER:  with a special meeting, whoever shows up is a quorum

2.     Will review with the full board in April

3.     Working group to meet Friday, 15 March at 3:30 PM to continue with the revisions.

4.     Others are welcome but please let Paul R. know that you wish to attend.

d.     Registered agent for State of Iowa

                                          i.    Change from Chuck J. to Jeri W.

1.     The registered agent must live in Iowa

2.     This is the “official contact” for the State of Iowa

3.     The board felt that the agent should be an elected member of the LHAS board.

4.     At some point we should have instructions for

a.     What to do every other year to perform the registration process

b.     How to change the agent when the term limit of the elected officer transitions to a new person.

                                         ii.    Report required every other year by 1 April to meet State of Iowa requirements

                                        iii.    Also IRS filing to be completed by Jeri W.

  XV.        New Business

a.     IA DNR Wildlife Volunteers – Leesa M.

                                          i.    Citizen-science to monitor Iowa wildlife

                                         ii.    Also programs for water quality testing and clean up

b.     Email to Dave and Dave will send to rest of Board

 XVI.         Tabled Business

a.     LHAS manual - Dave, Paul, Randy, Jerry - Proposed edits/revisions

b.     Holiday protocol discussion

c.     Potential VP to President transition

d.     Format for General Meetings

                                          i.    Share sightings, questions, announcements, thanks, etc.

                                         ii.    Annual meeting format

1.     Formal presentation of this past year’s activities/accomplishments to general membership?

2.     Elections

3.     Program presentation as well.

XVII.         Adjourn at 7:10 PM per motion and second

GENERAL MEETING AGENDA

7:30 pm

      I.        Call to order at 7:30 PM

     II.        Change of meeting place for March and April

a.     March 7 and April 4 in Parish Hall of Redeemer Lutheran Church, 3204 South Lakeport Street

b.     Back at DPNC in May?

c.     Proposed bylaws changes for May

    III.        Membership update

a.     Clipboard and nametag night

b.     Want to keep our lists updated

c.     NAS membership provides membership in LHAS

d.     Bring a friend to the next meeting

   IV.        Birds and other sightings?

a.     Acorn Woodpecker by Bill Z.

b.     Other sightings in the area.

    V.        March field trip Satruday, 23 Mar, 7:30 AM at the Singing Hills Walmart

   VI.        Rex R., for Brian Hazlett

a.     Galapagos Islands trip announcement for January 2020.

b.     Visit with Rex if you have questions.

  VII.        Intro of speaker, Tyler Flammang - Leesa McNeil

 VIII.        Adjourn at 8:55 PM

Attendance:  27

Loess Hills Audubon Society Meeting Parish Hall, Redeemer Lutheran Church (3204 South Lakeport Street) April 4, 2019

BOARD MEETING AGENDA

5:30 pm

Members Preset:  David H., Paul R., Randy W., Jeri W., Donna P., Anne S., Rex R., Bill Z., Jody M., Jerry V., Dotty Z., Carol B., Dawn S., Gary H.

Members Absent:  Leesa M., John P.

Honored Guests:  Anna R., Maria R., Chuck J., Bob N.

1. Call to Order at 5:45 PM.

2. Minutes from the March meeting were approved as corrected.

3. Secretary’s Report – Randy W.

   1. Best wishes cards were sent to:

   2. Phyllis Nickolson

   3. Art and Kay Huser

4. President – David H. See the presentation regarding bylaws and constitution, below.

5. Vice-President – Paul R., submitted by e-mail

   1. Visited with NAS upper level people--Elaine from NYC office NAS and with Bill Heck (board member at large). Working on getting NAS to move towards much faster updates (viewable to by us at Chapter Services). It currently takes more than a month before we can see new changes.

   2. The issue of being notified immediately by email when person moves or signs up in our territory—not sure how yet but….

      1. Roxanne and Gary Flammang are 1^st time members of NAS

      2. $100.00 which should come back to the LHAS.

   3. Let’s work on actively inviting people to our meetings.

   4. “Greeter” program is going into 2^nd month. Anna Roisen and Donna Popp will help tonight.

   5. Name Tags will be used—PLEASE fill out one for yourself and wear it tonight.

   6. Renewal information will be shared.

   7. Recruitment of potential First-Time NAS members will be actively pursued.

   8. It is essential that the “clipboard” get all the way around. We are asking everyone to complete the “Attendance form”.

   9. Excellent work from the By-Laws Revision Committee. There have been two meeting and lots of emails. We will look at the progress during the April 4, 2019 Board Meeting

   10. Suggest some thought towards getting through the report parts of our board meetings more rapidly so we can actually get some time to discuss old and new business.

6. Treasurer – Jeri W.

   1. Iowa Biennial Report has been filed

   2. IRS tax form has been filed

   3. No credits

   4. Debits

      1. $75.00

      2. $4.95

   5. Balance:  $5423.04

7. Membership – Donna P. See above, Vice-President’s report.

8. Newsletter – Ann S. Need to have newsletter submissions by 23 April.

9. Iowa Audubon – Rex R. via e-mail

   1. Iowa Audubon Meeting March 24, 2019 Boone, Iowa

   2. Minnesota Audubon has become the National Audubon regional office and is renamed Audubon Minnesota and the Upper Mississippi River. Minnesota, Iowa and Missouri are included in this region.

   3. Pleasant Hill, Iowa, was designated as Iowa’s second Bird Friendly Iowa (BFI) community of February 12, 2019, joining Waterloo which was the first. Other communities seeking this designation are Fayette, Peterson, Ames and Madrid. Grants from REAP and IOU have helped fund an ISU grad student in Landscape Design who is assisting communities seeking BFI designation.

   4. A 120-acre addition has been made to Falcon Springs Wildlife Area northeast of Decorah. Iowa Audubon, Quad Cities Audubon, and Upper Iowa Audubon assisted financially with this project.

   5. Discussions have begun with a donor who would like to contribute a large fund for some type of bird related project along the Iowa River corridor. This will hopefully be discussed more fully at the Iowa Audubon July meeting.

   6. The proposed Iowa Audubon 2019 Budget was presented and approved.

   7. Iowa DNR is seeking support from Iowa Audubon for acquiring an addition to Fen Valley WMA in Clay County.

   8. Five grant projects were reviewed and approved for 2019 ranging in amounts from $400 to $1000 dollars. A total of $2986 dollars was awarded.

   9. Iowa Audubon membership is now facilitated by joining online through the Iowa Audubon website:  www.iowaaudubon.org

10. Conservation – Bill Z. No report to allow for bylaws and constitution discussion.

11. Naturalist/Education- Jody M. No report to allow for bylaws and constitution discussion.

12. Outings – Jerry V.

    1. March outing with 10 people and 56 species

    2. April outing is scheduled for Saturday, 27 April at 7:30 AM at the Singing Hills Walmart parking area.

    3. Website is up-to-date with

       1. March outing highlights

       2. March meeting minutes

       3. April Bird-of-the-Month:  Eastern Bluebird

13. Publicity – Dawn S. via e-mail. I sent press releases to all media and key members to announce the general membership meetings and program in January, February, March & April.

14. Social – Carol B. No report to allow for bylaws and constitution discussion.

15. Audubon Adventures – Gary H. No report to allow for bylaws and constitution discussion.

16. Old Business

    1. Constitution - Ad Hoc Bylaws Revision Committee

       1. Loess Hills Audubon has no constitution

       2. A constitution was drafted by the above committee

       3. The proposed Constitution was presented to the Board

       4. Minor revisions were made based on the ensuing discussion with the full Board.

    2. By-Laws - Ad Hoc Bylaws Revision Committee

       1. The articles of our by-laws are as follows

          1. Article I – Membership

          2. Article II – Meetings

          3. Article III – Board of Directors

          4. Article IV – Officers

          5. Article V – Nominating Committee

          6. Article VI – Elections

          7. Article VII – Committees

          8. Article VIII – Commitments

          9. Article IX – Discontinuance

          10. Article X – Dissolution

          11. Article XI – Parliamentary Authority

          12. Article XII – Amendments

       2. The first three articles were presented to the Board at the 7 March 2019 meeting.

          1. Minor revisions were made based on that discussion.

          2. These revisions will be sent to Board members for review along with any revisions proposed tonight for the remaining articles.

       3. The remaining Articles, IV through XII, were reviewed.

       4. Articles VIII through XII only required minor revisions and were quickly reviewed. The minor revisions will be made and sent by e-mail to Board members for further review.

       5. Articles IV, V, and VI

          1. These required more explanation and review by the Board.

          2. Minor revisions will be made based on the discussion by the full Board

          3. The revisions will be sent to Board members via e-mail for review.

       6. Article VII – Committees

          1. This Article garnered extensive revisions and reorganizations by the By-Laws Committee

          2. Committees were reorganized and redefined

          3. More work will need to be performed to further refine the duties and processes of the reorganized committees.

          4. Proposed committees are as follows:

             1. Membership Committee

             2. Chapter Activities Committee

             3. Conservation Committee

             4. Conservation Committee

             5. Communications Committee

             6. Projects Committee

       7. Following discussion by the Board

          1. Suggested revisions will be incorporated into the proposed by-laws and constitution

          2. A motion was made by Maria Rundquist to approve the above proposed and revised Constitution and By-Laws

          3. Second by Carol Blair

          4. No further discussion ensued.

          5. The motion was approved by voice vote.

          6. There was no opposition to the motion, motion passed.

          7. The revisions will be made and sent to all Board members.

          8. The approved revisions will then be sent to all Loess Hills Audubon chapter members for review prior to the 2 May 2019 Board and General meeting.

17. New Business

    1. Nominating Committee:  Paul Roisen, Maria Rundquist, Rex Rundquist

       1. We have nominees!

       2. David Hoferer for President

       3. Paul Roisen for Vice-President

       4. Randy Williams for Secretary

       5. Jeri Watkins for Treasurer

       6. Director 1 – Jerry Von Ehwegen

       7. Director 2 – Donna Popp

       8. Director 3 – Anne Shaner

       9. Director 4 – Rex Rundquist

       10. Director 5 – Dotty Zales

    2. Siouxland Earth Day Booth – Dotty Z.

       1. Sunday, 28 April at the Delta Center, South Sioux City, NE

          1. We will be a part of the sustainable agriculture and natural resource management exhibits

          2. Set up at 1100 with the LHAS display panels

          3. Volunteers needed

             1. To set up and take down the panels, and

             2. From 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM to staff the displays and information area.

             3. Bring items to give to visitors to the display.

       2. Graham McGaffin, Associate Director of Conservation / Loess Hills Program, is coordinating the event.

    3. Siouxland Garden Show – Dotty Z.

       1. Friday, 5 April and Saturday, 6 April.

       2. LHAS brochures were distributed at this show along with information about Siouxland Wild Ones.

    4. The Thursday, 2 May board and general meetings of Loess Hills Audubon will be back at the Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center.

    5. There was a motion and second to officially recognize Jerry Von Ehwegen’s 80^th birthday tonight.

18.  Tabled Business

    1. Holiday protocol discussion

    2. Potential VP to President transition

    3. Format for General Meetings

       1. Share sitings, questions, announcements, etc.

       2. Annual meeting format

          1. Formal presentation of this past year’s activities/accomplishments to general membership?

19.  Adjourn at 7:05 PM

     

     

    GENERAL MEETING AGENDA

    7:30 pm

1. Call to order at 7:30 PM

2. Back to the Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center for the May meeting

   1. History review of Spirit Mound

   2. Birding at Spirit Mound

   3. Vote on the Constitution and revised By-Laws

   4. Election of officers for LHAS

3. Reminder on our Membership Services by Paul R.

4. Birthday wishes for Jerry Von Ehwegen!

5. Birds and other sightings

   1. Heron rookeries in Sioux City, Le Mars, and Moville

   2. Male and female mink study skins

6. Intro of speaker - Mike Greiner - “Siouxland Critters” - Leesa McNeil

7. Adjourn at 8:20 PM

   Attendance:  48

Loess Hills Audubon Society Meeting Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center May 2, 2019

BOARD MEETING AGENDA 6:15 pm

Members Present:  David H., Paul R., Randy W., Jeri W., Rex R., Jerry V., Dawn S., John P.

Members Absent:  Jody M., Carol B., Anne S., Leesa M., Donna P., Bill Z., Dotty Z., Gary H.

Honored Guests:  Sharon P., Gracie W., Anna R., Maria R., Bob N., Phyllis N.

      I.        Call to Order 6:24 PM

     II.        April meeting minutes were approved as corrected

    III.        Secretary’s Report

a.     Printing bill submitted for copies of the Constitution and By-Laws for tonight

b.     Copies of agenda for tonight are available.

   IV.        President – David H.

a.     Siouxland Earth Day Recap

                                          i.    We did well.

1.     Sierra Club has sign up sheets and we borrowed some blank copies.

2.     4 new potential members to add to e-mail list at least.

                                         ii.    Busy 2.5 hours at first

                                        iii.    Panels were set up with a little delay

b.     Prep for Constitution and By-Laws Votes

                                          i.    Change of order for tonight

1.     Announcements

2.     Program

3.     Then member voting

a.     To approve Constitution

b.     To approve By-Laws

4.     Nominating committee and nominees

a.     Nominations accepted from the floor

b.     The nominated person must be present in order to accept or decline the nomination.

c.     June Retreat if new bylaws pass

                                          i.    New officer training

                                         ii.    Lay out budget for the new fiscal year

                                        iii.    Set goals for the next season of meetings and fiscal year

                                        iv.    Possibly open this to anyone who may be interested in participating.

    V.        Vice-President – Paul R.

a.     Birdathon!

                                          i.    Goal of $3000 for this year

                                         ii.    Get support from outside of LHAS

                                        iii.    Four-day time frame from 5/10 through 5/13

b.     Not-for-profit PayPal account for LHAS

                                          i.    Cost of 2.2% plus $0.30

                                         ii.    Add button/link to website

                                        iii.    This can be used for Birdathon or for potential chapter-only memberships and renewals.

c.     NAS National Convention

                                          i.    It looks stunningly wonderful

                                         ii.    A little expensive for some

                                        iii.    Lots of good information and opportunities

d.     Members numbers

                                          i.    Still more names than people coming to meetings

                                         ii.    Still trying to make contact with some of the names to encourage them to show up

   VI.        Treasurer – Jeri W.

a.     No credits

b.     Debits

                                          i.    $75 – Mike Greiner, program

                                         ii.    Redeemer Lutheran Parish Hall - $80

                                        iii.    PayPal for website - $4.95

c.     Balance – $5263.09

d.     New bills

                                          i.    Newsletter

                                         ii.    Printing cost for Constitution and Bylaws

                                        iii.    DPNC for use of the facilities for this last season, 9/18 through 5/19

1.     It was noted in discussion the DPNC should officially close by 10 PM.

2.     LHAS should make every effort to get out by 9:00 PM

                                        iv.    Moved, seconded, and approved to have the bills paid

e.     We have 2 presenters tonight. One check will be provided to the Spirit Mound Trust which will cover both of our speakers.

  VII.        Membership – Donna P. See Vice President report, above.

 VIII.        Conservation – Bill Z. No report.

    IX.        Naturalist/Education – Jody M. No report.

     X.        Outings – Jerry V.

a.     Birdathon! Is coming up. See Vice President report, above.

b.     Intended summer schedule

                                          i.    June 8

                                         ii.    July 13

                                        iii.    Aug 3

c.     Website is up to date

    XI.        Publicity – Dawn S. Will provide information regarding Birdathon!

   XII.        Social – Carol B. No report

  XIII.        Audubon Adventures – Gary H. No report.

 XIV.        Old Business – None listed.

  XV.        New Business/Open Discussion

a.     Need to get outside LHAS to try to bring new people to the meetings and outings

b.     Partner with other groups (Woodbury County, Sierra Club) to have some joint programs

c.     Try to make people welcome

d.     Discussion with proposal to have chapter-only membership

                                          i.    Problem has been bookkeeping

                                         ii.    We’re starting to work around that to open this up.

                                        iii.    This would be a calendar basis for us, Jan to Dec.

 XVI.         Tabled Business

a.     Holiday protocol discussion

b.     Format for General Meetings

                                          i.    Share sightings, questions, announcements, etc.

                                         ii.    Annual meeting format:  Formal presentation of this past year’s activities/accomplishments to general membership?

XVII.         Adjourn motion and second. 7 :20 PM

GENERAL MEETING AGENDA

7:30 pm

      I.        Call to order – 7:34 PM

     II.        Announcements

a.     Membership

                                          i.    Update of membership renewal versus donation for National Audubon.

                                         ii.    How to limit the number of e-mail from National Audubon

b.     Birdathon!

                                          i.    Pledges from family and friends.

                                         ii.    Goal for $3000 this year. This is the primary fundraiser for our chapter.

                                        iii.    New four-day period:  5/10 through 5/13.

                                        iv.    Bird anyplace you want!

                                         v.    Only track the species found.

c.     Summer activities with outing dates (see above, “Outings”)

                                          i.    Birdathon! – 5/10 through 5/13.

                                         ii.    Jun 8

                                        iii.    Jul 13

                                        iv.    Aug 3

    III.        Leesa McNeill:  Introduction of speakers - Meghann Jarchow & David Swanson - “Spirits of the Mound” program.

   IV.        LHAS Constitution – David H.

a.     Review of chapter history and reasoning for constructing a Constitution

b.     Motion and second to discuss the constitution

c.     Motion to approve

d.     Unanimous voice vote for approval; no nay votes, no abstains

    V.        Changes to By-Laws – Dave H.

a.     Review of chapter history and reasoning for revisions

b.     Motion and second to discuss the changes to the bylaws

c.     Begin to provide a chapter-only membership

                                          i.    Need to have infrastructure in place to handle bookwork and billing

                                         ii.    Committee revisions (see below) and technology can better facilitate this option.

d.     Board of Directors

                                          i.    4 officers and new terms

                                         ii.    5 directors with staggered terms – even number, even election year; odd number, odd election year

e.     Committee revisions:

                                          i.    Committees were reorganized and redefined

                                         ii.    Proposed committees are as follows:

1.     Membership Committee

2.     Chapter Activities Committee

3.     Conservation Committee

4.     Communications Committee

5.     Projects Committee

                                        iii.    More work will need to be performed to further refine the duties and processes of the reorganized committees.

f.      Unanimous voice vote to approve the changes to the By-Laws; no nay votes, no abstain.

   VI.        Elections - Nominating Committee Maria R.

a.     Announcement of nominations:

                                          i.    David Hoferer for President

                                         ii.    Paul Roisen for Vice-President

                                        iii.    Randy Williams for Secretary

                                        iv.    Jeri Watkins for Treasurer

                                         v.    Director 1 – Jerry Von Ehwegen

                                        vi.    Director 2 – Donna Popp

                                       vii.    Director 3 – Anne Shaner

                                      viii.    Director 4 – Rex Rundquist

                                        ix.    Director 5 – Dotty Zales

b.     All have agreed to serve the specified terms

                                          i.    Secretary and Treasurer for 2-year terms beginning with this election.

                                         ii.    President and Vice President for 1 more year

                                        iii.    Any nominations from the floor for:

1.     President

2.     Vice President

3.     Secretary

4.     Treasurer

5.     Director 1

6.     Director 2

7.     Director 3

8.     Director 4

9.     Director 5

                                        iv.    There were no further nominations from the general membership for any of the positions listed above.

                                         v.    Move by Leesa M. and second by Maria R. to accept the nominations as presented by the Nominating Committee.

1.     Unanimous voice vote to accept the nominated individuals as presented by the Nominating Committee.

2.     There were no nay votes and no abstains

  VII.        Motion and second to adjourn at 9:13 PM

General Meeting Attendees:  28

Chapter Planning 15 June 2019

Present:  David Hoferer, Paul Roisen, Donna Popp, Chuck Johnson, Bill Zales, Jon Nylen, Leesa McNeil, Dotty Zales, Ed Sibley, Jane Sibley, Jerry Von Ehwegen, Jan Null, James Bailey, Jerry Probst, Ann Shaner, Jeanne Bockholt, Jane Hay, Dawn Snyder, Randy Williams

Absent:  Jody M., Jeri W., Carol B., Gary H.

      I.        Call to order:  0907 by David H.

     II.        Introduction

a.     Need to submit mission statement and goals for the year.

b.     Wish to modify our goals as appropriate.

c.     Need to sign the new constitution and bylaws for all of the board members present.

d.     Review of mission statement to see if there are any changes that need to be made.

e.     Review of proposed Chapter Goals and Action Plans

f.      Look for educational links to other Audubon chapters or other sources to use materials available from other sources

    III.        Promote conservation of birds and natural environments.

a.     Support of projects and programs in the local area along with conservation boards, state groups, private groups.

b.     Promote improvement of habitats

c.     Purchase and re-sell native plants for birds?

d.     Bird Hotline or other form of communication system for quick notifications of bird sightings.

                                          i.    Communication list to share sightings and observations or to request assistance in identification and still remain privacy of members.

                                         ii.    Provide reports to IOU SDOU NOU and/or to eBird for local sightings.

   IV.        Increase and manage membership and member lists.

a.     Chapter-only memberships. New sheet available with the choices.

b.     Focus on how that money is utilized.

    V.        Review of Goal Activities List

a.     Need to narrow focus a lot of stuff needs to be done but only so much can be accomplished.

b.     Climate change / Important Bird Areas / Protection of small wetlands, temporary wetlands

c.     Plantings to help clean carbon

   VI.        Budget

a.     No budget has been set in times past.

b.     Budget model for 2019 – 2020 Fiscal Year – All values are APPROXIMATIONS!

                                          i.    Fixed expenses approximation

1.     $225 for LHAS advertising in _Woodbury Wanderings_ newsletter

2.     $270 for use of DPNC facilities for meetings

3.     $60 for website hosting

4.     $800 for program presenters

5.     $70 for post office box rental

6.     ?? – for postage and hard copy newsletter

7.     Total is about $1500

                                         ii.    LHAS funds approximation

1.     Need to maintain a $2000 minimum bank balance

2.     $6000 approximate current balance

3.     $1500 for approximate fixed expenses

4.     About $2500 available for projects.

c.     PO Box may still be necessary for chapter-only members. Provide timely response to these new people.

d.     Set a budget to provide funds for worthy activities, inside and outside of the chapter.

e.     We did make money this year!

f.      Some monies will be provided to the new committees as well as to the 4 officers for normal operating costs. The amount would only be an estimate based on previous records.

  VII.        Break at 1025 with breakout sessions to resume at 1040

 VIII.        Committee Sessions – general information for individual sessions

a.     3 members minimum on every committee

b.     Try to get together and share the work and the responsibilities.

c.     Try to have a basic idea of what to do for September.

d.     Need a chair of the Project committee.

e.     General information about the committee to be completed today and given to Paul R.

f.      The committee chair will appoint other members by end of summer.

g.     Need to have a program coordinator to make sure dates are aligned. Ideas for programs can come from any other individual or committee. Should come out of the Chapter Activity Committee.

Loess Hills Audubon Society Meeting  Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center  5 September 2019

BOARD MEETING AGENDA

Members present:  David H., by conference call, Paul R., Randy W., Jeri W., Jerry V., Donna P., Anne S., Rex R., Dotty Z.

Absent: 

Honored Guests:  Maria R., Jan N., Bob N., Phyllis N., Dawn S., Anna R., Chuck J., Kathy K., Bill Z., Bill H., John P., Sharon P.

1. Call to Order at 5:25 PM by David H. via conference call

   1. Get committees together

   2. General members can express your preference(-es) for committee(s)

   3. What can your committee accomplish?

   4. Call with any questions

2. Minutes from May meeting were approved.

3. Secretary’s Report – Randy W.

   1. Question was brought up regarding who should receive minutes from the Board Meeting.

      1. Should all committee members receive a copy of the minutes or just the chair of the committee?

      2. Minutes will be sent to board members and committee chairs at this time; not all committees are fully staffed.

   2. The list of committee chairs was reviewed

      1. Donna Popp - Membership

      2. Dotty Zales – Chapter Activities

      3. Rex Rundquist – Conservation

      4. Anne Shaner – Communications

      5. Chapter Projects – open at this time. Need someone to chair the Projects committee and serve as the organizing force for this committee.

4. Vice-President – report sent by e-mail late on 5 Sep and verbal report by Paul R.

   1. Documents to be signed for Constitution and By-Laws

   2. Programs for 2019-20

      1. We still need programs for:  January, February and May 2020! Provide some ideas, please!

      2. 5 Sep 2019

         1. 5:15 Board Meeting

         2. 6:15 Potluck

         3. Meeting 7:30  Speaker: Kathy Koskovich

      3. 3 Oct 2019

         1. 6:15 Board Meeting

         2. Meeting 7:30  Speaker: Terry Sohl

      4. 7 Nov 2019

         1. 6:15 Board Meeting

         2. Meeting 7:30  Speaker: Bruce Ehresman

      5. 5 Dec 2019

         1. 6:15 Board Meeting

         2. Meeting 7:30  Christmas Program  food and Photo Sharing

         3. We may need to enforce a “5-minute rule“ for the member slide show

         4. Or, we need to have another way of organizing the member presentations

      6. 9 Jan 2020

         1. 6:15 Board Meeting

         2. Meeting 7:30  Speaker ??

      7. 6 Feb 2020

         1. 6:15 Board Meeting

         2. Meeting 7:30  Speaker ??

      8. 5 Mar 2020

         1. 6:15 Board Meeting

         2. Meeting 7:30  Speaker(s): Dave Hoferer and Dotty Zales

      9. 2 Apr 2020

         1. 6:15 Board Meeting

         2. Meeting 7:30  Speaker(s) : Warren and Diane Marton

      10. 7 May 2020

          1. 6:15 Board Meeting

          2. Meeting 7:30  Annual Membership Meeting  Speaker ??

   3. Membership

      1. Maybe the most important area we need to fix immediately??

      2. Our official membership is way down amongst our board members, committee members, and long-time dedicated LHAS persons

      3. National Audubon

         1. Not much progress with getting things fixed.

         2. This may be worse since there is a new way for US to enter memberships

         3. This makes us more responsible but it also makes us more busy.

         4. No improvement on the current reporting system from National;  still many, many errors.

5. Treasurer – Jeri W.

   1. Plan to have a budget meeting

   2. May 2019 – Aug 2019

      1. Debits - $647.46

      2. Credits - $1973.05

      3. Balance as of 31Aug 19 - $6588.68

   3. We received monies from NAS this season!

6. Membership Committee – Donna P. and Paul R.

   1. See Vice-President’s report, above.

   2. NAS is perceived as not helping at the chapter level

   3. Trying to have NAS provide telephone numbers and e-mail for new LHAS members that register through NAS

   4. Chapter-0nly membership is in progress. Two are currently as Chapter-only status

   5. Chapter only membership is identical as NAS, however all the monies remain with LHAS

   6. If you choose to join NAS, then you are ALSO a member of LHAS!

7. Chapter Activities Committee – Dotty Z., no specific report but see Vice-President report above for upcoming programs.

8. Communications Committee – Anne S.

   1. Newsletter is out

      1. Let Anne S. or Donna P. know if there are issues in seeing it electronically or downloading

      2. We can send a specific .pdf of the newsletter if someone having difficulties

   2. Good job to Donna and Anne for getting things out via MailChimp

9. Conservation Committee – Rex R.

   1. Still looking for members willing to work

   2. Keep board and public apprised of areas of concern as well as areas of success.

10. Projects Committee

    1. Need to find someone to chair this committee

    2. Projects works with other committees to organize something we can focus on this year

    3. Chair needs to organize while others need to set up the projects

11. Old Business

    1. Bird food - have only looked at Fleet Farm prices – no orders at this time

    2. Is this working for LHAS?

       1. This is quite a bit of work for questionable reward anymore

       2. Is there an alternate?

       3. Could we simply ask for donations to:

          1. Provide bird food to nursing homes?

          2. Another location?

12. New Business

    1. Discussions with those interested in serving on our committees

       1. Eventually we may wish to have committee meetings alternating every other month with board of director meetings

       2. What do we need to cover this year as a chapter?

          1. Chairs to reach out to members/potential members for their involvement.

          2. Ideas for 1-3 tasks reasonable to accomplish this year per committee

       3. Membership - Donna needs 3 members to help out

       4. Activities – Dotty, Jerry, Jan, Carol B., and … .

          1. To help plan the programs and outings and provide amenities for the activity

          2. The food tonight should be part of this, as an example

       5. Communications – Anne S.

          1. Donna P. – MailChimp mass communication

          2. Randy W. – secretary

          3. Dawn S. – publicity

          4. Jody M. – Facebook

          5. Bill H. – bird hotline

          6. Jerry V. – website

          7. Guidelines as to when the next item is coming out – set a basic schedule

       6. Conservation – Rex R.

          1. Will look for info from past reports as a guide for the upcoming season.

          2. Iowa Audubon

             1. Donor for monies for Mississippi River work

             2. Report from the group for support of a carbon tax

             3. Iowa Audubon may be losing their meeting/office location. The group could possibly disband if a new location cannot be found.

13.  Adjourn at 6 :10 PM for food – thank you to all of our contributors tonight.

     

    POTLUCK

    6:15-7:30 pm

     

    GENERAL MEETING AGENDA

     

14. Call to order at 7:26 PM

15. Announcements

    1. Paul R. in for David H.

       1. Welcome

       2. Request for committee members

       3. Issues with e-mail newsletter?

       4. Chapter-only membership available

       5. October program teaser with Terry Sohl

       6. Thank you for the great food!

    2. Bird report from general membership

    3. Leesa M. - Prairie Heritage Week at O’Brien prairie for monarch butterfly tagging. Please pre-register

    4. Field Trips – Jerry V

    5. Brian H. – Spirit Mound and Briar Cliff

       1. Spirit Mound Trust meeting this weekend with walks and other activities

       2. Little Reading on the Prairie at Sioux City Prairie about 6:45 on Northeast corner, off of Briar Cliff University on Tues, 9/10

       3. Galapagos trip upcoming with Brian H.

    6. Dawn S. – Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center

       1. Monarch tagging upcoming at Sioux City Prairie

       2. Nature Calls is upcoming.

    7. Siouxland Rock and Gem show upcoming

16. Intro of speaker - Katherine Koskovich - “Geoglyphs in Correctionville, IA”.

     

    Adjourn  - 8:20 PM

    36 attendees

Loess Hills Audubon Society Meeting Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center 3 October 2019

Members Present:  Davd H., Paul R., Randy W., Jeri W., Jerry V., Donna P., Anne S., Rex R.

Members Absent: Dotty Z., Jody M., Dawn S.

Honored Guests: Anna R., John P., Sharon P., Jan N., Chuck J., Bob and Phyllis N., Bill Z., Maria R.

BOARD MEETING MINUTES

6:15 pm

1. Call to Order at 6:20 PM by David.

2. Motion and second to approve minutes from September meeting. No discussion, corrections or modifications noted. Motion approved.

3. Secretary’s Report – Randy W.

   1. Security discussion for board and committee members

      1. Text message from someone claiming to be David H.

      2. Request to purchase seven (7) Amazon gift cards for $100 each

      3. This was a scam

      4. Some cards were purchased before the scam was identified

      5. Card information was not transmitted to the scammer.

   2. How much should we list on the website or Facebook page ?

   3. Do we need to consolidate the information to restrict access but also risk losing contact chances for new members?

   4. Individual e-mail accounts are all ready well known, not just from LHAS-related sites.

   5. An e-mail will be sent to the chapter about the scam and that our board/committee members would not use such a text approach to request funds or services.

4. President – David H.

   1. Grants from NAS are available for various projects

      1. Requirements are available online from NAS

      2. Grant application due date is 15 November

      3. May not be able to take advantage of the grants this year

      4. We need to get committees together first and get them active

      5. Will work with Jody M. when we get to that point.

   2. We do not need to have a board meeting every month. Do we need to have a “Committee Month”? See below in New Business.

5. Vice-President – Paul R.

   1. Report submitted by e-mail.

   2. Paul and Anna will miss the November meeting.

      1. Need someone to introduce our November speaker, Bruce Ehresman, and his program regarding bird nests.

      2. Someone will need to meet him, probably offer him a meal, and arrange the hardware (Computer? Audio? Other connections? Tables or display space?) that may be needed for his program.

      3. Paul R has more specific information for our speaker, contact him if you wish to help

   3. Graham McGaffin

      1. Scheduled as our 6 May 2020 speaker

      2. Topic is:  „Iowa and China:  More in common than Loess“ from the US-China Exchange on Loess Landforms (UCELL), June 2019

   4. 6 February 2020 program

      1. Bill Huser – Please note:  Paul’s e-mail still had a few questions marks surrounding Bill’s name.

      2. The program would be about plant progression to climax community, land management and related topics.

   5. More permanent nametages/badges

      1. They would be more permanent but would also require storage from one meeting to the next.

      2. Motion and second to have Paul R. investigate the cost for more permanent nametags/badges

         1. Guests would still have a sticker name tag available for the program they attend.

         2. Available for all current chapter members and board and committee members

         3. Look at MailChimp to see who is reading the information, look at program sign up sheets and start there with permanent name tags.

      3. It was noted that NAS mailings really do not address membership. It’s about other worthy causes (and donations to help these causes), but they’re not about membership.

   6. Progress being made to

      1. Clean up our membership database

      2. Produce an official roster

      3. We still have quite a few board and committee members that are not official NAS or LHAS paid-up members.

      4. Cheddar Up option for handling dues based on SC Camera Club experience

         1. Randy W. will contact SCCC for more information

         2. This could be possible option for online, chapter-only membership

   7. Need to keep working on committee members and committee duties

      1. The work of the committee should not fall to one person, particularly the committee chair

      2. The chair of the committee is to coordinate the work other committee members are doing for that committee.

6. Treasurer – Jeri W.

   1. Credit - $40

   2. Debit - $104.95

   3. Balance - $6523.73

   4. An idea was suggested to invest in

      1. A “treasurer’s laptop”

      2. Or some accounting software for the chapter

      3. This could facilitate chapter finances

      4. No decision at this time, will move to a future meeting date

7. Membership Committee

   1. Donna P., Maria R., and Paul R.

   2. Emails to welcome new members

   3. Nametag badge work in progress

   4. Chapter only membership is based on the calendar year, January to December

   5. NAS membership is based on the information we receive from National Audubon

8. Chapter Activities Committee – no official report but with the following discussion

   1. Dotty is the chair but other members are not yet determined?

   2. “Committee Month”

      1. Good idea to have committee month to try and get everyone together.

      2. Have the committee chairs to contact people and have these potential committee members come in on the designated date and help chart the course of this chapter.

      3. The work of the committee should not fall to the chair.

      4. The chair coordinates the work others are doing for that committee.

      5. The Committee Pool list from the LHAS chapter retreat from 15 Jun 2019 will be re-sent to the board members and committee chairs. This was a preliminary list of potential committee workers and will be modified.

   3. Paul R. will take care of the programs this season and at least start programs for next season. Any and all ideas are welcome.

9. Communications Committee – Anne S.

   1. Newsletter articles are needed by October 29

   2. The committee seems to be relatively set for website, Facebook, MailChimp, information acquisition and information dispersal.

   3. Website

      1. Information content is wonderful

      2. The site appears to be a little dated

      3. Wish to have more functionality and security, especially if we begin to offer online memberships

      4. Randy will look to see if NAS could provide a site, after all we are a chapter in good standing with NAS

      5. Is there another website host we could use?

      6. Could a new site provide:

         1. A place to greet new visitors?

         2. A secure site for membership transactions?

         3. A separate area for LHAS members?

         4. Still a separate site for committee/board member work?

         5. Faster, more universal, interactive communication of bird hotline sightings?

      7. Digital communications department of Briar Cliff could possibly provide advice for LHAS?

      8. Motion and second to look into a newer website.

10. Conservation Committee – Rex R.

    1. Email request from Rex for ideas

    2. Here are some suggestions :

       1. Provide plants for monarch butterflies and/or other polinators at schools in the area.

       2. Sponsoring and supporting land aacquisition

       3. Support for the Iowa legislature to pass the Land and Water Legacy Act

       4. Grants from NAS/Iowa Ornithologists’ Union to help conduct bird counts and surveys.

       5. Work toward reintroductin of a once common species

       6. Grant to establish a program to help train K-12 students in conservation

       7. Newsletter section on conservation in ‘’More from Loess’’

       8. Research/education/politics to reconnect prairies in the area

       9. Select an endangered species in the area and work for improved habitat

       10. Investigate requirement to make Sioux City a Bird-Friendly City

       11. Ideas to control litter in the Sioux City area

11. Projects Committee

    1. Still needs someone to chair the committee

    2. This committee needs to coordinate the many of the activities of the chapter

    3. This will also include functions for finance.

12. Old Business

    1. Discussions with those interested in serving

    2. Need to form committees

    3. Ideas for 1-3 tasks reasonable to accomplish this year per committee

13. New Business

    1. Security – see discussion above in the President’s section

    2. Will try to designate a committee meeting for November

14.  Tabled Business

15.  Adjourn at 7 :26 PM

     

    GENERAL MEETING AGENDA

    7:30 pm

16. Call to order at 7:33 PM

17. Announcements

    1. Membership review for LHAS-only and NAS membership

    2. Next program – 7 November, Bruce Ehresman

    3. Outing on Saturday to the Polifka residence and other locations

    4. 2 Volunteers agreed to provide treats for the November meeting

18. Recent sightings?

19. Intro of speaker - Terry Sohl - “Australia Birds and Wildlife”

     

    Attendees:  35

Loess Hills Audubon Society Meeting Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center 7 November 2019

Members Present:  Davd H., Paul R., Randy W., Jeri W., Jerry V., Donna P., Anne S., Rex R., Jody M., John P., Dotty Z.,

Members Absent: Dawn S., Paul R.

Honored Guests:Jerry P., Bill H., Jan N., Chuck J., Bob&Phyllis N., Bill Z., Maria R.,Jeanne B.

BOARD MEETING MINUTES 6:15 pm

I.              Call to Order at 6:19 PM by David.

II.             Tonight is for committees, but we have some general chapter business:

A.     Species on the brink, Survival by Degrees, sent to LHAS by National

1.     Same insert from the most recent Audubon magazine

2.     Will be distributed to members who want a copy.

B.     Photos for Christmas Party

1.     More specific instructions will be sent later

2.     Submit photos on a flash drive prior to the general meeting

3.     All images will be loaded to Paul’s MacBook for projection.

4.     About 15 to 20 images per person.

C.     Treats for next month are a group effort since it is the Christmas party

D.     Chili social with Northwest Iowa Sierra Club from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM on Sunday, 17 November at the First Unitarian Church, 2508 Jackson ST, Sioux City

III.            Please submit committee reports from tonight to the secretary

IV.           Still need a chair for projects committee

V.            Iowa Audubon report from Rex

A.     Bird Friendly Iowa update

1.     Madrid has submitted their proposal for designation

2.     Ames is in the process

3.     Decorah and Fayette have been approved

4.     Peterson is considering

B.     The Pelican Festival at Coralville was successful with 133 visitors. Date for next year is 13 Sep 2020

C.     The amounts of Iowa Audubon small gran awards were increased with board approval:

1.     Two $2600 grants to the Iowa Lakes region

2.     Three $1300 grants from the Reynolds fund

3.     One $1300 undesignated grant

4.     Applications are open after 1 January 2020 and will be reviewed for approval by the board at the Spring 2020 Iowa Audubon board meeting.

D.     A proposed bike trail at Ledges State Park was fortunately blocked as it posed significant habitat destruction.

E.     Iowa Audubon registered disapproval of the proposed opening of Yellow River State Forest to ATV use.

F.     The future of the Iowa Audubon office remains an unknown. Several options were discussed.

G.    The Clover Hills 4H Camp adjacent to the Iowa Arboretum had been put up for sale by closed bids.

1.     Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation subsequently purchased the tract.

2.     This protects a Des Moines River habitat region from further development.

H.     National Audubon has designated an Upper Mississippi Region to include Minnesota, Iowa and Missouri.

VI.           Report from Paul for upcoming programs, see e-mail sent to board members, summarized below.

A.     Greetings from Madagascar.

B.     I have secured a speaker/presentor for the January 9th meeting:

1.     Rob Schultxz began working with Audubon in May of this year out of the Saint Paul Audubon office and will be working to serve the states of Iowa, Minnesota and Missouri.

2.     We have schedule January 9th 2020 for Rob to introduce himself to us and talk about the focus they are taking to integrate conservation and support of chapters in these three states.

3.     I have also invited him to attend our board meeting that even but that has not be confirmed yet.

C.     February 5th is the final date we need to fill for the General Meeting presentation.

1.     I had spoken with Bill Huser about some kind of presentation on plant progression hoping that this might be a something that Bill H, Rex R, and Bill Zales might be interested in preparing for and presenting at the February meeting.

2.     Bill H had some very positive and interesting thoughts.  It seems to me that a topic such as this would be an excellent program involvement conservation and maybe this could stimulate ideas for project the LHAS could adopt as a service to our community.

3.     The point would be for us to partner with the communities in our area to engage in some kind conservation project that would benefit one or more of the habitats in our area.

4.     It would be very helpful if we could get a commitment on filling this date by beginning a discussion and preparation for something in this area.

5.     Strange as it sounds, Feb 5th is not that far away.

6.     We will be returning late evening November 8th so will not be available for the Board or the General Meeting.

VII.   Communications Committee Report

A.     We wish for an inexpensive site, both monetary as well as one that would be easy to maintain and be readily updated.

B.     Jerry V. is good with modernizing the website

C.     How to modernize

1.     Potential class project with Briar Cliff graphic design class?

2.     One example from eastern Iowa (Quad City Audubon) is the Augustana Web Guild, a student-based design class. Does Morningside/Briar Cliff have something similar?

3.     Maria will check with the person who works with her website. This individual may be able to recommend someone else that would be willing to work with us.

4.     AJEndeavors, LLC works with Iowa Audubon, Bird Friendly Iowa, and Big Bluestem Audubon to produce their websites.

5.     Has anyone checked with National Audubon? Do they provide any assistance?

6.     NAS does provide some services. Information is available for requirements and costs.

D.     We may need to find a new web hosting service.

1.     Security features may vary with some internet hosting sites. More features may be more expensive.

2.     How can we maintain cross-platform connectivity? From website to Facebook to Twitter to Instagram to … the next new platform?

E.     Would Jerry V. be willing to maintain the new site? Would we need to find someone else that would be willing to maintain updates?

GENERAL MEETING AGENDA

7:30 pm

I.       Call to order at 7:32 PM

II.      Announcements

A.     Review of membership categories

B.     Local bird sightings

C.     Saturday 11/9 LHAS outing.

D.     Area Christmas Bird Counts with sign up sheets available

E.     Survival by Degrees NAS report available.

F.     Northwest Iowa Sierra chili social FUNraiser on 17 November

G.    Christmas party next month

1.     Images from friends of LHAS.

2.     Send images to Paul R. or have a flash drive available to have Paul load the images prior to the show.

3.     Sign up sheet for treats for December and beyond!

H.     Bruce Ehresman, Bird Nests:  A tour of avian architecture and hidden treasures

I.       Adjourn at 8:45PM     Attendees:  36

Loess Hills Audubon Society Meeting Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center 5 December 2019

BOARD MEETING MINUTES 6:15 pm

Chapter Executives Present:  Davd H., Paul R., Randy W., Jeri W., Jerry V., Donna P., Anne S., Rex R., and Dotty Z.

Honored Guests: Dawn S., Bill H., Jan N., Chuck J., Bob and Phyllis N., Bill Z., Maria R., Jan N., Gracie W., Anna R., and Gary H.

1. Call to Order at 6:21 PM by David H.

1. We will juggle tonight’s schedule as necessary

2. Need to provide time for Samuel Padilla Castro regarding website update

1. Approve minutes from October November meeting – moved and seconded to waive the minutes to provide time for Samuel’s presentation.

1. Approve minutes from October meeting

   1. Moved and seconded and approved.

   2. Waive the November minutes

      1. To provide time for Samuel’s presentation.

      2. The November meeting was for committee work with minimal chapter business.

2. Secretary’s Report – Randy W

   1. Information distributed regarding:

1. NAS-approved templates for chapters to use for websites

2. Square Space frequently asked questions and pricing scheme for web-hosting services

3. Samuel’s projected cost estimate for updating our site

4. These are .pdf documents and will be attached to these minutes when they are submitted for review.

1. Still require committee reports from November’s evening for committee work. Will gladly accept reports tonight, written or verbal.

2. Post office box rent is due by 31 December 2019. Bill to Jeri W.

1. President’s Report – David H.

   1. The LHAS Annual Report to National Audubon is coming due

   2. Get appropriate information to David H. covering events and activities from 1 July 2018 through 30 June 2019.

2. Vice-President’s Report – Paul R. is preparing for tonight’s slide show, no report available.

3. Treasurer – Jeri W.

   1. Debits - $154.95

   2. Credits - 0

   3. Balance - $6363.83

   4. Bill submitted for post office box rent of $80 – moved and seconded to pay the rent.

   5. Proposed time change for LHAS meetings

      1. Move board/committee meetings up to begin at 6:00 PM instead of 6:15 PM

      2. Move general programs to begin at 7:00 PM instead of 7:30 PM

      3. This could provide earlier hours for DPNC staff

      4. Any decision to change times will not take effect with this season

      5. Think about this. Further discussion is tabled to allow Samuel’s presentation.

4. Membership Committee – No report - Donna P. is at the welcome table and Paul R. is working with tonight’s presentations.

5. Chapter Activities Committee – Dotty Z.

   1. Publicity for the upcoming Christmas Bird Count in the “Weekender” and subsequent front page headlines in The Sioux City Journal. Thank you to Dawn S.!

   2. All programs for the rest of the season are set, thank you Paul R.

   3. Outings are set for December and January – Christmas Bird Counts in the area!

   4. Paul R. will be taking charge of the upcoming Birdathon!, more information forthcoming.

   5. What can we do for another fund raiser?

      1. Discussion with the Feed Shed to provide vouchers.

1. The vouchers could be used for products at the store

2. Feed Shed has not yet fully committed to this

1. Work with Loess Hills Wild Ones to provide native plants for birds?

2. Should we set something up similar to the Sierra Club chili feed?

3. Look at other Iowa chapter websites for fund raising ideas.

1. Other ideas

   1. Better promote Project Feederwatch participation

   2. Do we need to re-do the Siouxland Bird Guide map. Provide a printed version as well as an online version for the website.

2. The greeters are working well for our meetings – thank you!

3. Still need volunteers for treats for the March meeting. Will ask for volunteers at the general meeting.

1. Communications Committee – Anne S.

   1. Need newsletter articles by 31 December before the partying begins!

   2. See secretary’s report, above, for website revision information

   3. Thanks to Dawn S. for the excellent publicity for the upcoming CBCs.

2. Conservation Committee – Rex R.

   1. Committee members

      1. Rex R., chair

      2. Bill Z.

      3. John P.

      4. Dave H.

   2. Establish goals for our outings, such as data collection or education

   3. Create a recurring LHAS podcast perhaps through Siouxland Public Media.

   4. Develop a bird banding program

   5. Prepare an educational presentation that could be easily repeated and shared at local schools and nature centers

   6. Strategize how to meet Bird Friendly City goals for Sioux City

   7. Educate members and the public about state and local conservation bills and issues.

   8. Contribute regular conservation messages for the newsletter and website

   9. Work toward the reintroduction of some once common species to our area

   10. Help maintain local Eastern Bluebird nest boxes (or boxes for other species).

3. Projects Committee

   1. No committee report available.

   2. Still looking for a chair for this committee

4. Old Business – no further discussions.

5. New Business

   1. Samuel Padilla Castro - new LHAS website

      1. Introduction by Maria R.

      2. Samuel looked at our current website and examples of where we wish to progress with an updated site

      3. Email from Samuel with examples of sites he has developed as well as a general example of how he performs billing for his services.

      4. A brief demo of the sites he has developed was offered but could not get connected to the DPNC system. Brief views were provided on his laptop. Have a look at:

1. https://www.stevenmentor.com/

2. https://lilamaeshouse.org/

1. He will set up the new site

1. Some revisions are included once the site is running

2. He will provide training to at least one LHAS representative in order to perform routine maintenance and revisions.

1. We need to figure out our wants and needs for a new site

1. Start with basic features then see about fancier options, where workable

2. Randy W. and David H. – and others? – will meet with Samuel

1. Wednesday, 18 December at Noon

2. Stone Bru coffee house on the corner of Gordon Drive and Stone Avenue

1. Questions and a brief discussion of wants and needs

   1. Answers may be deferred to a later time when more information becomes available.

   2. Does the Square Space cost seem reasonable?

   3. Which Square Space option might work best for LHAS?

   4. Provide an area for data sightings and have those sightings automatically relayed to interested members.

   5. Maintain membership rolls for NAS-based members and local members.

   6. Work with PayPal for chapter-only membership

   7. Post and automatically distribute our newsletter.

   8. Expand our conservation footprint.

   9. Move data from our current site to the new site as seamlessly as possible.

2. Move and second to work with Samuel and his services to provide an updated website.

3. Announcements

   1. The Garden Club is looking for a speaker regarding attracting birds to backyards

   2. Dawn S. and DPNC is contemplating an outing to Moorhead Park, Ida Grove for saw-whet owls.

   3. There are attacks on funding for Iowa’s water and land legacy in the state legislature.

1. Adjourn at 7:25 PM

   GENERAL MEETING AGENDA 7:30 pm

1. Announcements

   1. Need one or more individuals to provide treats for our March program

   2. Garden Club is looking for a presenter for attracting birds to backyards

   3. Area Christmas Bird Counts

2. Recent sightings?

3. Intro of presenters, slides, & format - Paul Roisen

   1. Carol Blair

   2. Gracie Wagoner

   3. John and Sharon Polifka

   4. Mike Greiner

   5. Jan Null

   6. Paul Roisen

   7. Brian Hazlett

   8. Rex Rundquist

      Attendees:  32

LHAS Chapter Executives

President David Hoferer

Vice-president Paul Roisen

Secretary Randy Williams

Treasurer Jeri Watkins

Director 1 Jerry Von Ehwegen

Director 2 Donna Popp

Director 3 Anne Shaner

Director 4 Rex Rundquist

Director 5 Dotty Zales