Minutes of Meeting of September 6, 2006
President Paul Bradford welcomed the members and guests to the first meeting upon our return to the Quality Inn after our summer meetings away.
Our Treasurer, Paul Turner, reminded the members that the club dues are now due. Invoices have been sent by e-mail. Also, those with prepaid meals have been notified of their current status.
Mike Sheehan gave a brief update regarding BINGO. There is a meeting soon to plan the BINGO schedule for the fall. Our paperwork with city hall is now in order.
Helen Narancsik provided an update about the Terry Fox Run coming up on Sunday, September 17. A duty roster sheet was circulated. (7:00 am for sign set-ups; 8:30 - 10 am and 10 - 12 noon for registration desks; 12 noon for sign removals).
Paul Bradford announced that Rama Murthi will be co-ordinating the day that the Group Study Exchange team from Brazil will be visiting Woodstock (October 18). Anyone with suggestions or ideas should please contact Rama.
President Bradford spoke about the idea of organizing a trip to Oktoberfest in Kitchener for club members, spouses and friends on Friday, October 13. Paul is looking for a show of interest.
Pieter Stam updated the club on the upcoming Outdoor Farm Show. We have a booth on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, September 12 - 14, 8:30 am - 5:30 pm each day. The days have been divided into two shifts for members to cover mornings and afternoons. A duty roster sheet was circulated. We will be raffling a Kubota lawn tractor. Tickets will be $5.00 each or 3 tickets for $10.00. Please contact Pieter if you can help.
Mike Sheehan reported that he had received a community request for funds regarding an amputee from Ingersoll. The person making the request has been referred to the Rotary Club of Ingersoll.
The birthdays and annniversaries of club members for the month of September were recognized.
Our guest speaker was Pat Smith, Executive Director of the Oxford Community Foundation. The Foundation is new in our community, starting just last year. It's purpose is to provide funds for projects where other funding may not be available. There are 155 community foundations in Canada. The Foundation is led by a Board of Directors and includes several commmitees. The Foundation began without funds initally, but were provided some "seed money" from the county and then by the Trillium Foundation. Gifts have now been received from a number of individuals - who may designate their gift to a specific category if they desire (ie. cultural, environmental, etc.). The funds are distributed in the form of grants to registered charities only. The grants are not for operational purposes, but for "one-off" projects instead. As a starting point, last year the Foundation gave five small grants totalling $2415.00. The Oxford Community Foundations looks forward to growing and serving the needs throughout the county of Oxford.