Voting Members Present: Jerry McDaniel, Jennifer Hay, Jeanne O’Kon, Peg Griffin, Mary Jean Yon, Mark Tombrink, Jo Lena Pace, Mark Priddy, David Yon, Tom Perkins, Chris O’Kelley, Judy Alexander, Debbie Peters, Lisa Unger. Voting Members Absent: Robert Skrob, Allen Blay, Tina Bahmer, Eric Trombley. Non-Voting Members Present: Bill Lott, Carter Hay, Paul Guyas, Herb Wills, Mae Cleveland, Myrna Hoover, Toma Wilkerson.

I. Opening and Introduction:

Jerry McDaniel opened the meeting at 7:00 p.m. A motion was made to approve the minutes of the June 14, 2023 meeting, Motion was seconded and passed.

II. Old Business:

a. Great Pot Luck Bash Closeout: David Yon reported that the awards from the Chenoweth Fund don’t come out of the club’s account. That amounts to $3000.00 for the scholarship awards. The total revenue was $3,375.00. Total expenditures were $3,307.69. The net revenue was $67.31 with $550 in direct donations to the Chenoweth Fund. The social part of the event comes out of the social budget. Motion was made and seconded to approve the closeout. Motion passed.

III. New Business:

a. The Rex Cleveland Magic Mile: Mae Cleveland described the Rex Cleveland Magic Mile one-mile race that has been directed by Myrna Hoover and Toma Wilkerson. Mae indicated it may be time to retire the race. Rex Cleveland served as Fleet Foot editor from 1983-2000. Rex always wrote a “Legacy” column in the newsletter when appropriate. Mae proposed putting a section on the website that was titled “Remembering Rex.” Last year, four GWTC members passed away (Rod Anderson, Tony Kronenberg, Bill DeGrummond, and Larry Workman), and all made contributions to the club. The Legacy section could be updated on the web page periodically. Board members agreed that the Legacy section is a nice idea. Motion was made and seconded to retire the race and add a Legacy section “In Memorium” on the web site. Motion passed.

b. Facebook page monitoring/privacy: Herb Wills, Paul Guyas, and Judy Alexander monitor the GWTC page. Herb pointed out that people from south Asia have tried to join the group so they can spam the page—up to 25 a day. The people who use the group don’t see this. Previously, people trying to join the group had to answer three questions in order to be accepted into the group until Facebook changed their policy. Now people can get into the group, but the first post gets flagged. One alternative is to have a private rather than a public page, but that wouldn’t allow promotion of club races. The club website was created earlier than the Facebook page.Herb started the Facebook page 17 years ago, and he continues to monitor who wants to join. There are 3,329 subscribers to the GWTC group now. The club has always been an open club, and the Facebook page advertises the club races.

c. Pine Run at Tall Timbers 20K 2023 Proposed Budget: Carter Hay discussed the proposed budget. A gross profit of $4300 is anticipated with $3,455 in expenditures. A net income of $844.72 is anticipated. Half of the proceeds will go to Tall Timbers and half to GWTC. The registration fee was increased by $5.00, and the RunSignUp credit card fees are paid by the runners. The GWTC discount is $5. About 30 people get awards in the race. Tall Timbers pays for the emergency vehicle. Motion to approve the proposed budget was made and seconded. Motion passed.

d. Turkey Trot 2023 Proposed Budget: Mary Jean reviewed the Turkey Trot budget proposal, starting with a comparison to the 2021 and 2022 budgets. The anticipated 2023 revenue is $94,204. The race directors are planning to stay with the 2022 registration fees, which is when the fees were increased. There is a lower price for early registration, and there are family discounts. Capital Health Plan is one of the sponsors. Revenues will be split among the same four organizations: GWTC, The Shelter, Refuge House, and Boys and Girls Club. Motion was made and seconded to approve the budget proposal. Motion passed.

e. Training Groups: Jennifer Hay indicated there is a Facebook page for existing GWTC training groups. Herb Wills and Keith Rowe are administrators on the page. She would like to make this a private, members-only page. Group runs would be posted on the private page by members only. This would create a member benefit and privacy and safety for the runs. The intervals (speedwork) run at Maclay track at 6:30 a.m. is promoted on the webpage and is open to non-members and is not handled through Facebook.

f. Member Benefits: Jennifer discussed possible ways to develop the club community and support the running community. There is a tri-fold brochure listing the club’s benefits. The club puts on good quality races for members and non-members. Members can participate in the year-long Grand Prix. Members get race discounts and some store discounts.

IV. Announcements from Officers: None.

V. Reports:

Treasurer: Peg Griffin presented the report, indicating that as of June 30, 2023, the club has $228,598.77 in assets, and net revenue to date of $5,279.26. The 990 is due to the IRS on November 15, and Peg will prepare a draft for approval at a future meeting.

Triathlete Club: No report.

Race Director Coordinator: Nothing new to report.

Newsletter: No report.

Membership: Jo Lena Pace reported that there are 1183 members currently, with 1268 members last year at this time. There are now 679 families; there were 701 last year at this time.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion: Nothing new to report.

Education and Lecture: Mark Tombrink asked for ideas for an upcoming lecture session, possibly at REI.

Website: There will be a new section on the website called “Memorials.”

Chenoweth Fund: Nothing new to report.

Merchandise: Nothing new to report.

Equipment: Bill Lott reported that a new, still-in-the-box Chronomix was donated to the Club by Jeff Starks via Paul Guyas. The internal battery needs to be replaced and it will cost about $4-$5. There are no other equipment issues to report at this time.

Chip Timing: In June, two GWTC races were chip timed (Great Potluck Bash 4-Mile Prediction Run and Summer Trail Series Race #2 – Maclay Gardens) and one non-Club race (Monticello Kiwanis Club Watermelon 5K Run). During July, one Club race (Summer Trail Series Race #3 – Swamp Forest Trail) and one non-Club race (Capital City Kiwanis July 4th Firecracker 5K) will be chip timed. Scheduled to be chip timed in August will only be three Club races (Breakfast on the Track 1 Mile, Miller Landing Madness 8K/5K/3K, and Summer Trail Series Race #4 – Cadillac Trail).

The training materials have been completed for the new timers. Information will be provided on the website, and the Facebook page has an announcement recruiting new timers. A training session may be held, or possibly one-on-one training. The new system is involved but less complicated. The new timers need to be committed to timing 3-4 races per year.

Grand Prix: Lisa reported that the Grand Prix points have been updated, as well as the Summer Grand Prix. There may be some discussion in the future about stopping the Summer Grand Prix because there is only a small number of GWTC participants. The Summer Track series itself is very popular with many kids and adults participating.

Social: No report.
Meeting adjourned at 8:28 p.m.

Jeanne O’Kon, Secretary