Jed Drew, Charles Dalmer, Mark Pettit, Hazel Hewitt.
 

   Moved by George Hodgson and seconded by Tom Ramsay that the minutes of the last Board Mtg., 
August 6, 2011, in Tillsonburg, as circulated be approved - CARRIED.
 

Since our last meeting, correspondence and communications with me have been as follows:

• Late August and September - Communications related to setting up and running our NAP unit 
  final in Tillsonburg on November 5th, including distribution of an information flyer and collection 
  and distribution of qualifier lists. 
• September 24th - Request for sanction for Special games to be held at the Tillsonburg Club 
• October 6th - Request for me to complete an online application for sanction for a Special Game 
   to be held at "The Coach House" in Waterloo from Liz McDowell
• November 1 - Note from Richard proposing two potential new board members, Mark Pettit and 
   Hazel Hewitt
• November 6 - Financial report rec'd from  Bob Burns for the Unit NAP Final held November 5th 
• November - Correspondence related to investigation of a 'phantom' Unit 249 split regional 
   erroneously advertised in the Winter Kibitzer 
• November 13th - Notice of changes to location(s) of the Tillsonburg Duplicate Bridge Club to 
   take place beginning in January, 2012
• November 21 - Notice of new Goderich Bridge Club manager: Barry Gerth, berth67@me.com, 
   77794 Orchard Line, jRR#1, Box 113, Bayfield, ON. N0M 1G0, ph. 519 449 9929 
• November 28 - Correspondence in relation to investigation of failure to procure a sanction number 
   for Liz McDowell's special game request
• December 4th & 8th - communication from John Lightfoot reminding us of his travel plans and 
   directions for email and snail mail communication with him during his time out of country; 
   also forwarding of information relating to changes to Windsor's Fiesta Bridge Club and the 
   Goderich Bridge Club managers
• January 3 - Notice of cancellation of the Cambridge Duplicate Club, #238303
• January 5 - Notice of application for sanction for a new Windsor bridge club, Sun Parlour Bridge, 
   1075 Ypres Ave. Windsor, ON., N8W 4W4, Ph. 313 585 5187
• January 8th - Information relating to announcing our January board meeting and mentioning 
   potential board member nominees to receive notice, including Mark Pettit, Hazel Hewitt and 
   Charles Dalmas 
• January 9th - Notice of intent to resign from the board of directors rec'd from Mavis Refell and 
   Chris Punter
• Also I had a verbal communication with a tournament manager requesting that honorariums be 
   sent out in a more timely fashion once financial statements have been submitted and approved by 
   the board,  without requiring one or more inquiries or direct requests as this places those 
   tournament chairs in an awkward position.

• Membership in Unit 249 stands at 1136.  This is slowly increasing in spite of our missing snowbirds; 
   resignations attributed as follows - 2 deaths, 4 loss of interest, 2 health reasons.

• The only problem for this year - do we have enough supplies for the London Regional. We may have 
   to borrow some bidding boxes. Whoever takes over, I would be more than willing to give that person 
   my opinion on what supplies we require!

• All tournaments have been approved for 2012 with the exception of Stratford! If Perry is running the 
   tournament I would appreciate a e-mail with times and location!  Budget for the 2014 London Regional 
   will need to be sent to Tom in time for the District meeting.

• If Richard is not able to make our meeting - I will bring a cheque book so that I can pay expenditures for 
   Mileage and Honorariums. 

• There is nothing new to report about the website. Things seem to be operating as they should.
• I'm happy to see that the Owen Sound Tournament has been sanctioned and is on the ACBL calendar. 
• A suggestion about tournament sanctions ... It would be a good idea to have tournament managers submit 
   their tournament flyer/ad with their sanction application and have it posted on the ACBL website. This 
   would be good for both sectionals and regionals but it is especially important for our Regionals ie. London.
 
 

• Stratford report is in. 
• Tillsonburg reports a profit of $211.
• St. Thomas has completed their tournament but it is unknown whether their report is in.
• Sarnia tournament site has been changed to the government building on Davis Street. 

Moved by George Hodgson and seconded by Tom Ramsay that honorariums be sent out to tournament 
chairs of Stratford, Tillsonburg and St. Thomas tournaments. 

Approval of Committee Reports: Moved by Chris Punter and seconded by Norma Ingram that all committee reports be accepted - CARRIED.

• A Unit 249 member has asked that on our website, all Unit members including non-life masters be 
   ranked according to the points they have earned both in “on line” and “live” tournaments.  Discussed 
   but no resolution was arrived at.
• Proposal that we amend our constitution, Article IV, to require a general meeting of the membership 
   called by the Board of Directors, or the Board President, or a petition of 20 members instead of 
   requiring the holding of an annual general meeting.  See appendix A.
• Concern at lack of interest demonstrated within our Unit in participating in the NAOP events.  Many 
   clubs don’t offer NAP games at their clubs and even in those that did, qualifiers weren’t interesting in 
   competing further this year.
• Jed has agreed to take over the role of Treasurer for the board. 
• George has agreed to give up the role of membership chair and take over the role of supplies manager; 
   Norma has agreed to resume the role of membership chair.
• Tom has agreed to be Acting Tournament Chair and will take over the Assistant Treasurer role.
• Nick Wong has advised that our District 2 Grand National Team events will take place online through 
   BBO (BridgeBase Online).  Unit 249 strongly disagrees with this plan.  George moved and Hazel 
   seconded that our Unit position on this be brought forward at the District meeting in April.  Lee to 
   contact David Boley to confirm that he plans to attend the district meeting.

Elections of Officers:
• Norma took over chairing the meeting for Jim.
• George nominated that Jim be elected president and Jed seconded that nomination. 
   Jim has agreed to stand but will not run again after this term (2 years).
• Mark nominated George as Vice President and Charles seconded his nomination.  George has agreed to 
   stand for Vice President.
• Chris nominated Lee for secretary and Tom seconded the nomination.  Lee has agreed to stand.

1. General meetings of the members shall be held within the boundaries of Unit 249, as the Unit Board of Directors may 
    determine and on such a day as the said directors shall appoint and normally in conjunction with a unit tournament.
2. At every general meeting in addition to any other business that may be transacted, the president will report the activities 
    of the Board of Directors.
3. The members may consider and transact any business, either specific or general, without notice thereof at any general 
    meeting of the members.  The Unit Board of Directors may choose to defer this business to a future meeting.
4. Special meetings of the members may be called at any time to consider specific subject matters by the Unit Board of 
    Directors, by the President or by petition of twenty (20) of the members.  Notice of the time and place of a special meeting 
    shall be given at least ten (10) days before any such meeting.  The notice of any such meeting shall contain an agenda of the 
    matters to be taken up.  No other business shall be acted upon at such a special meeting.
5. A quorum for the transaction of business at any general or special meeting shall consist of ten (10) members.
6. No proxies shall be permitted.

• The Unit for the period 1/1/2010 to 12/31/2010 showed a total revenue of $26,157.88                    with operating expenses of $19,810.56 for net income of $6,347.32.   Adjustments to the previous report:  the Unit received a cheque for a refund because we were apparently overcharged for some directors travel expenses and we received a cheque for the STAC held in November. 
        .
• The London Sectional reported a surplus of $488.75 plus $358.75 Unit fees but before it could be deposited the money including a return of a $1000 advance was stolen during a break in at the Treasurer’s Bridge Club.  Moved by George Hodgson and seconded by Tom Ramsey that this loss be written off.  Moved by George Hodgson and seconded by Norma Ingram that all monies submitted to the Unit be required to be submitted in the form of a cheque. 

• The 2010 Owen Sound tournament showed a profit of $346.87.

• The Sarnia tournament reported an approximate loss of $770.64 plus. 

• For the period ending April 7th, 2011 the Unit 249 bank balance is at $4517.23.
 
 

Since our last meeting, correspondence and communications with me have been as follows:

January 26 - 31, 2011 - Pat Simpson forwarded tournament coordinator information and database for use by Chris and whomever takes over should Chris not continue as tournament coordinator.

February 11, 2011 - Mini-McKenny medallions ordered and subsequently received

February 28th, 2011 - Malcolm McAlister asked that we take treasurer@standrewsguelph.com off of our mailing list as Jim Rife retired several years ago.

March 14th, 2011 - Norma asked that a Director's Exam be ordered for Innes Grantmyer of Cambridge

April 30th, 2011 - Randy Breuer requested that the District 2, 2011/2012 NAOP Conditions of Contest and specifics as they relate to Unit 249 be made available to club managers prior to the timeline running out for qualifiers to be scheduled at those clubs 

April 30th, 2011 - Pat Simpson mentioned that he continues to receive board related email and suggested that all board members remove him from their board group in their email address book 

May 1, 2011 - Randy Breuer complained about a negative exchange with a board me
mber as he was leaving the Sarnia tournament

May 6, 2011 – correspondence with Butch Campbell at ACBL making arrangements for access to the tournament sanctions site 

New Business:

• District 2 board meeting follow up:  John Lightfoot is not able to attend; David Boley offered to join Tom Ramsay and George Hodgson as Unit 249 representatives.

• It was determined that we will follow a bi-annual schedule for Regionals; we will have our London Regional in 2012 and it is yet to be determined exactly when the bi-annual schedule will begin; Unit 249 would prefer that we go with even years so that we don’t have back to back regionals in 2012 and 2013.  George Hodgson moved that we request the even number year schedule; seconded by Norma Ingram – carried.  Tom will contact District 2 to request the even number year schedule and ask that we be notified as soon as the decision is made so that sanctions can be applied for.

• It was suggested that we consider conducting a split regional so that other Units within our district could have a regional every year (because our regional would not present a conflict).  Tom will communicate that our Unit is not interested in holding split regionals.

• North American Pairs District Finals locations; looking at eventually holding District finals online that everyone can play in.  No decision was made but it sounded like they’ll probably hold ‘A’ District finals in Winnipeg and Barrie or Toronto. 

• John Lightfoot moved that Tom Ramsay be appointed Unit 249 NAOP Coordinator, seconded by Lee Easterbrook – carried.  It was decided that an appropriate site for the Unit 249 District 2, flight ‘B’ ‘C’ finals would be Tillsonburg, date to be announced. 

• District Board meetings could be held over two days, or in a different location, because it has been difficult to complete meeting business in time for participants to play bridge afterwards.  Our Unit feels that the meetings should be able to be completed in a timely manner, in Toronto in order to avoid extra expense other alternatives would entail.  Preference would be to agree not to play on the afternoon after the meeting.

• We need to look for additional members to join the Unit 249 Board of Directors, likely from Tillsonburg area.

• George suggested sending out a memo to all of our clubs to remind club managers of the importance of enforcing the ACBL zero tolerance policy at clubs.  At tournaments our directors announce our zero tolerance policy but there have been instances at clubs where that policy is not announced or enforced, and when not enforced, enjoyment of the game is compromised for all players. 

Present: Jim Brimner,, Lee Easterbrook, Richard Fokes, George Hodgson, Norma Ingram, John Lightfoot, 
             Tom Ramsay, Pat Simpson, Chris Punter, David Boley

Meeting:
           A quorum being present, the meeting chaired by the President, Jim Brimner, was called to order at 8:30 am.

Approval of previous Minutes:
           Moved by Chris Punter and seconded by John Lightfoot that the minutes of the last Board Mtg., August 8, 2010 
           in Tillsonburg, as circulated and amended be approved - CARRIED.

Business Arising from the Minutes:

            In the early summer of 2010 there arose a dispute around the organization of the NAOP contests in Unit 249 
            and the NAOP District 2 Finals. This dispute resulted in a series of increasingly emotional and accusatory 
            e-mails that continued to escalate. John Lightfoot proposed that we set up a sub-committee of our most 
            respected and experienced board members past and present (namely: Jim Brimner, Bob Burns, and Norma
            Ingram) to look into the issues that surfaced as a result of this dispute. This sub-committee (whose composition 
            could be altered at its discretion) would:

            1) Identify and define the issues at the centre of this dispute

            2) Gather information and examine the substance (if any) to the charges, and

            3) Present to the Unit 249 Board of Directors its findings and recommendations as soon as possible but not 
                later than the Board of Directors Meeting preceding our next Annual General Meeting."

            •   Moved by John Lightfoot, seconded by Lee Easterbrook. DEFEATED.  (3 yes, 4 no,). 
 

TREASURER'S REPORT: Richard Fokes

            • The Unit for the period 1/1/2010 to 12/31/2010 showed a total revenue of $24,291.66 with operating expenses 
              of $18,943.31 for net income of $5,348.35.   Revenues are up $11000 plus and expenses are up $3600 plus. 
            • Moved by Norma Ingram and seconded by Tom Ramsey that the board and tournament chair honorariums 
              for 2010 be approved. 
            • Concerns with the financial reporting regarding the 2009 Windsor tournament were discussed.  Although 
              $1000 was advanced to the tournament chairperson, this amount was not accounted for in the financial report 
              received following the tournament.  Efforts to discover the whereabouts or use of that advance through 
              communication the Windsor tournament chairperson were unsuccessful and as yet no honorarium has been 
              issued.  Moved by George Hodgson and seconded by Chris Punter that the discrepancy between actual funds 
              used and what was noted in the financial report of (-$733) be written off as a loss against the tournament 
              and no honorarium paid.
 

EX-EXECUTIVE SECRETARY’S REPORT - Jan 2011

             What a wonderful opportunity it was to have served on the Board. I thank each and everyone for the 
             friendship and support extended over the years. Lee is an excellent replacement and has quickly adapted 
             to the Executive Assistant/Secretary role. You are in capable hands.

              Over the years we have accomplished a lot as a Board - the ongoing support for membership (education 
              and  representation at higher levels of competition) and tournament supplies being notable. There are areas 
              I feel need continual work - Unit charity, championships, and communication for example.

               This was a very frustrating experience initially. The lack of District direction with a complete outline of 
               Conditions of Contest caused the biggest problem. This is a grass roots event and the ACBL and District have 
               lost sight of this concept. Why the excessive table fees by the ACBL? Why the prizes? Why the elitist attitude 
               from the bigger Boards? I had in excess of 150 e-mails cross my desk over one thing or another.

              The final outcome for Tillsonburg worked out satisfactory. I was pleased with the opportunity it afforded 
              players in our area. We even had a couple come in from Hamilton. This made it worthwhile for me.

              In recent e-mails from Nick Wong the District is hinting at constricting participation for us in this event even 
              more rather than keeping it open.

              One disappointing side affect was the bitter in fighting that erupted from this event and the hanging of dirty 
              laundry out where all could see. I have mentioned before that the Board lacks a Conduct and Ethics 
              Committee.  There were lines crossed with inappropriate behavior. Whose job is it to address this?

              You have several challenges ahead of you as Board Members. They are not going to be easy to resolve.
               I’m confident with the talent on the Board that the resolutions will be in the best interest of bridge for 
               Unit 249

               Bob Burns
 

SECRETARY: Lee Easterbrook

               Other than the flow of e-mails re: Kibitzer stats, ACBL reimbursement rept, and the usual end of the month 
               IN/OUT, and notices of game sanctions applied for and received, correspondence has been:
            •  a request from Dianne Aves to be heard re: funding for bridge education program; added to agenda
            •  a request from Robert Hanly, Unit 246 re: our policies for fostering bridge education programs
            •  application for Sanction for a new club in Kincardine; granted
            •  a notice from Nick Wong indicating District 2 Sanction policies relating to regionals and Sectionals are not 
                being adhered to,
            •  a series of correspondence between board members and a club manager related to a dispute around NOAP 
                issues included on agenda 

                I have ordered and received name badges as directed at our last meeting.

                Bob Burns has been awesome in providing guidance to me in my new role; even so given that I have only 
                been with the board less than a year, there are likely to be things that I miss so please don’t hesitate to 
                advise if you feel that you are not receiving information I should be forwarding, or if there is something 
                that I need to attend to that I have not, as yet done.
 

COMMITTEE REPORTS:

1. MEMBERSHIP: George Hodgson
              •  Membership in Unit 249 stands at 1088 members, down a bit. Reasons for decline: 7 (no longer 
                 interested), 4 (failing health) and 3 (deaths).

2. TOURNAMENTS:
               • Financial Reports were received from: Tillsonburg showing an attendance of 235.5  tables, a surplus of 
                 $1063.98, and unit fees of $588.75 ; St.Thomas Jumbo Sectional showing an attendance of 160 tables, a 
                 surplus of $1095 and unit fees of  $400.; Stratford Festival of Bridge showing an attendance of 214 tables, 
                 a surplus of $794.40 and unit fees of $535 and Port Franks with 123 tables, a surplus of $1492.66 and unit 
                 fees of $307.50.
               • Moved that the honorariums be paid for these tournaments by George Hodgson and seconded by Chris 
                  Punter- CARRIED.
               • The London Regional showed an attendance of 1243 tables and a profit of $12,062 (minus supply cost 
                  of $587). 

TOURNAMENT CHAIR REPORT:  Pat Simpson 2011-01-10
               Unit 249 ran one regional and eight sectional tournaments in 2010 with the events producing the levels of 
               success we expected. I am aware of only one sectional report outstanding (Owen Sound) and conversations 
               with the tournament chair requesting the report, a budget and a sanction application for 2011 have led to 
               assurances that all reports and submissions will soon be available. 

               The ACBL national office and District 2 officials have sent several letters and emails stressing the policy of 
               having tournament sanctions in place one year prior to the starting date for sectional tournaments and 
               three years prior to a regional event. The sanction for the 2012 regional has been received and six of the 
               eight sectionals have received their 2011 sanctions also.

               The Windsor sectional tournament was not held in 2010 and after a telephone conversation with David 
                Boley, it appears there is little interest among the bridge community in Windsor to hold this tournament in 
                the future. This is another step in a disturbing trend where we see tournaments fade away either due to 
                lack of enthusiasm in the local players to produce the event or a set of conditions that cause the table count 
                to drop to a dangerously low level – a level where it is financially unsound to continue sponsoring the 
                event. I can remember attending tournaments in Guelph, Simcoe, Woodstock, and Chatham but many of 
                them depended on the hard work of a Howard Allison or a Len Lucier to keep them viable. I ask members 
                of the BoD to offer suggesti    ons regarding new sites and new tournament chairs. I think we can run nine 
                or possibly ten sectional tourneys in our unit without generating too much conflict or draining the pool of 
                players willing to attend such games. 

                Several clubs are taking advantage of the Unit Championship games allotted to us by the ACBL, but there 
                is room for more if we can find interested club managers. The application process is easy and the only 
                requirement is a check of the district tournament schedule to assure there is no conflict with a previously
                scheduled event. Most club owners can access the application form at the ACBL web site and unit 
                authorization can be granted by any BoD official. 

                Recently, Jack McFadden contacted me to assist in sanctioning a non-Life Master tournament to be held at 
                a club site in Guelph. We have both spoken to ACBL staff in Horn Lake and it seems this event could be 
                easily accommodated. Because of the type and site of this game, Jack will be able to use club directors to 
                run the event, ACBLScore  (each session setup as a single session STaC event) and pay a reduced table 
                fee to the ACBL. Jack thought he might need a limited amount of unit supplies (pairs and teams pickup 
                slips) and he thought he might also need a Swiss Team seating board to make the game easier to 
                manage. The tentative date is the first weekend of December, 2011 and we hope the sanction application 
               will move through the system quickly. If any board member has a question or suggestion, we would hope 
               you would contact us as soon as possible while basic preparations are still flexible. Jack would also like 
                to know if the board requires a budget, a report and the money generated in excess of expenses. I did 
                not feel I could make these decisions for the board and hope we can locate an existing or determine a 
                new policy at the next meeting.

                There is a new Tournament Coordinator for District 2, Graham Warren from Newmarket (Unit 246). I hope 
                we can build a good working relationship with Graham to help solve some of the tournament schedule 
                problems we have recently experienced.

3. WEB SITE ADMINISTRATOR: John Lightfoot
               There have been no fundamental changes to the Unit 249 Website since our last meeting. However, there 
                is one suggestion for the managers of our tournaments. Submit your ad to the ACBL when you submit your 
                application for sanction. This ad is easily copied and can be placed on websites around Ontario and across 
                North America with a minimum of technical gymnastics and we all want as much publicity as possible. Ads 
                only submitted to the Kibitzer require a couple of steps to lift it from its PDF format and sometimes the 
                reproduction is less than satisfactory and some website operators won’t be bothered going to the extra 
                trouble. You may also submit your ads directly to me but, if you submit it in PDF format, remember that I 
                cannot add maps or make other changes that you may want to add later without a complete remake of 
                your ad.

                Everything else appears to be functioning well with no real problems to report.

4. BRIDGE SUPPLIES: Chris Punter
               There will be no expenditures this year for bridge supplies except for some score cards etc. I do, however, 
               have lots of plastic boxes which do take up space. I was wondering if the Board would consider renting a 
               storage unit – I was thinking about 30.00 – 40.00 per month. I am only guessing at this price but I thought 
               it would make it easier to keep all the supplies in a central location and it would save me from storing the 
               supplies in my garage. Prior to the tournament I could pick up whatever I needed for the tournament.

               Also we did buy supplies for the London Tournament and perhaps some amount should have been paid 
               by the London Tournament so as to more accurately reflect the Net Income from this tournament.

Approval of Committee Reports: Moved by Lee Easterbrook   and seconded by Chris Punter   that all committee 
               reports be approved - CARRIED.

NEW BUSINESS:
               • Jack McFadden has proposed a plan to arrange a sanctioned non-Life Master tournament.  Moved by Pat 
                 Simpson and seconded by Richard Fokes to accept this proposal. - CARRIED
               • Dwight Bender and Sue Edwards joined us to discuss the 2010 London Regional financial report.  Richard 
                  Fokes suggested an ammendment to the supplies costs; the bottom figure will be reduced by $970 and the 
                  amount of funds coming into the unit is not changed. Concerns have been raised regarding the handling 
                  of hospitality for the tournament; alcohol being offered at a cost; prohibited from offering it free, etc.; 
                  Dwight indicated that the intent is to eliminate the hospitality suite and look for different ways to offer 
                  hospitality to all of the tournament participants (instead of just a select few).  Dwight plans to seek a 
                  reduction in the cost of parking, and arrange for reduced soft drink and coffee charges.  Richard 
                  mentioned that costs associated with the location may suggest looking for another site, given the drop 
                  in attendance from past years.  Dwight and Sue suggested that this might be considered if current efforts 
                  to negotiate with the host site regarding parking and beverage costs are unsuccessful.  Numbers were 
                  down for this Regional but consideration must be given to the reduction in U.S. participants possibly 
                  being related to the date change (not involving their July 4th holiday).
                • A sanction for a Regional is to be applied for 3 years in advance and this seems unreasonable when 
                  issues from the current regional are still being addressed.  Pat Simpson plans to contact ACBL to 
                  clarify expectations in this regard.
                • Pat Simpson has resigned from the board.  The board reluctantly accepted Pat’s resignation.  Chris 
                  Punter has agreed to act as temporary tournament chairperson until a board member who is willing to 
                  take on this  responsibility more permanently can be found.  Pat has offered to assist Chris in any way 
                  necessary until he becomes comfortable with the job.
               • On April 23rd Unit 249 will need to send representatives to the District 2 meeting.  Tom Ramsey plans to 
                  attend along with George Hodgson and John Lightfoot.
               • Dianne Aves spoke on behalf of KW’s efforts to revive an interest in bridge through youth education in 
                 several groups, series of classes and a potential summer camp.  They are appealing to the Unit for costs 
                 to be covered for such endeavours not just for themselves but for others who may undertake similar 
                 efforts within our Unit.  They will be applying to the ACBL Educational Foundation for funds that might be 
                 covered that way.  Dianne is asking the Unit to cover expenses not covered by ACBL Educational 
                 Foundation funds. Unit 249 supplies can be taken for use within Dianne’s youth programs.  Other expenses 
                 such as gas for travel to youth sites, and 25% of marketing costs (those not covered by ACBL Education 
                 Foundation funds) could be subsidized by Unit 249.  Dianne was encouraged continue to avail herself of 
                 any subsidizing available through ACBL education programs.  Richard moved that Dianne be compensated 
                 for expenses already incurred and provided an advance of $1000 to be used at her discretion for materials 
                 and set up costs for future endeavours, asking only that receipts be provided for all expenditures. 
                 Seconded by Tom Ramsey.  CARRIED. 

Next meeting:
               • The next Board of Director’s Meeting is scheduled to be held at the Bridge Fokes club on Saturday, 
                  May 7th, 2011 at 10:00 AM.  Richard has offered to set up a club game to be held at the club in the 
                  afternoon, for those board members interested to attend following the meeting.

Adjournment: Moved by Norma Ingram that the meeting be adjourned - CARRIED.
 
 

Present: Jim Brimner, Robert Burns, Lee Easterbrook, Richard Fokes, George Hodgson, Norma Ingram, John Lightfoot, Tom Ramsay, and Pat Simpson.

Absent: Chris Punter.

Resignation: A letter of resignation was received from Robert Burns.

Meeting:
A quorum being present, the meeting chaired by the President, Jim Brimner, was called to order at 9:50 am.

Approval of previous Minutes:
Under Committee Reports, Tournaments, it was noted that Sarnia after auditing actually loss $137.10 and Owen Sound reported a profit of $506.80 (Richard please confirm this and do you have the table count). Moved by Robert Burns and seconded by Norma Ingram that the minutes of the last Board Mtg., Jan 22, 2010 in London, as circulated and amended be approved - CARRIED.

Business Arising from the Minutes:
• Windsor reports were received. Moved by Richard Fokes and seconded by Robert Burns that the reports be tabled to the next meeting - CARRIED.
• Richard Fokes has been appointed Unit 249’s NAOP coordinator for 2010. The location of the site(s) for the District 2 multi-site Final in UNIT 249 is to be announced. The schedule for the District Finals is: Flight B (0-2000) Oct. 23, 2:00 pm & TBA; Flight A and C (open and NLM) Oct. 24, 12:00 & TBA. The Unit is still pursuing the feasibility of more than 1 site in Unit 249. It was noted that Unit 166 has 2 sites listed. It was also discussed that the success of grass root events, like the NAOP, relies in part on their Coordinator, Club Managers, Club Owners, and Directors to sell the concept in their areas. Conditions of Contest may be found at the ACBL website shown here: http://www.acbl.org/assets/documents/play/NAP/NAP20102011.pdf
• 2006/7 StaC overpayment has been resolved.

Treasurer’s Report: Richard Fokes
• The Unit for the period 20091231 to 20100102 showed a total revenue of $13 180.59 with operating expenses of $15 337.06 for an operating loss of $2 156.47.
• Current Income Statement, 20100101 to 20100731 shows revenue of $4 500 with expenses of $5 200.48 for an operating loss of $699.60. Tournament honorariums, Windsor’s final financial statements, and kibitzer fees are still to be included in these figures. This operating lost is consistent with previous years as the Regional Financial Report is yet to be received.
• Moved by Lee Easterbrook and seconded by Tom Ramsay that Treasurer’s Report be accepted - CARRIED.

Executive Secretary: Bob Burns

Other than the flow of e-mails re: the NAOP, free plays for tournament deliveries, Kibitzer stats, ACBL reimbursement rept, and the usual end of the month IN/OUT, correspondence has been a request from Richard re: Director’s Course, Pat Simpson re: David Boley ( Windsor tournament), and John Lightfoot re: Bridge by the Bay’s financial rept.

Due to health issues I am retiring from the Board. I will complete the business from this and the AGM mgts as well as relay the monthly correspondence in the usual fashion till the end of this year.

Working with the Board has been a very enjoyable experience.
 

ACE of Clubs
Cost to date: 168.59
Outstanding: London, Windsor (had no expenses I understand), and KW.

Float

Balance on Hand      $39.26
Expenses
 Ink cartridge   21.27  $21.27
Balance on Hand (20100807)    $17.99

ATTENDANCE
Name Lon08 Sar08 Till08 Lon09 Sar09 Till09 StT09 Lon10 KW10 Till10 
Brawn ? ? R 
Brimner ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? 
Burns ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? 
Easterbrook        N ? ? 
Fokes ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? A ? 
Hodgson ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? a ? 
Ingram ? ? ? A ? ? ? A ? ? 
Lightfoot ? A A ? A ? ? ? ? ? 
Punter ? A ? ? A ? ? ? ? a 
Reffell N ? ? A A A ? R 
Simpson N ? ? ? ? ? A ? ? ? 
Ramsay    N ? ? ? ? ? ? 
N newly appointed, A with notice, a absent without notice
**** This won’t be in the final draft.

• Moved by Robert Burns and seconded by Norma Ingram that this report be accepted - CARRIED.

Committee Reports:

1. Membership: George Hodgson
• Membership in Unit 249 stands at 1098. This is an increase of 18 from March, 2010.

2. Tournaments:
• Financial Reports were received from: London Sectional showing and attendance of 156½ tables and a profit of $457.83 and KW Sectional showing an attendance of 140 tables and a loss of $153.42. Pending Reports are still pending from the London Regional and Pt Franks Sectional.
• Moved that the honorariums be paid to Sarnia and KW by Tom Ramsay and seconded by George Hodgson - CARRIED.
• Discussion re: hospitality expenses at tournaments resulted in appointing Pat Simpson, Unit Tournament Chair, to contact Tournament Chairs with the view of formulating Board Guidelines.
• Discussion re: supplies and free plays resulted in a decision to review the current practices.

Tournament Chair Report:

There are only a couple of items since the meeting at KW in June. A sanction application for Sarnia in 2011 has been submitted and approved, with Charles Dalmas as the new tournament chair. I think the BoD still needs to discuss this event regarding declining attendance. In the past, Sarnia had a significant contingent of American players to fill out the game numbers but current border conditions and competition from District 12 events have drastically slashed their numbers. Also, because of Sarnia's distance from the centre of the unit and the apparent apathy of the "C" flight players in this area, recovery is doubtful and it may be time to move this event to a new location. We should also discuss how many tournaments a Unit such as 249 can run before we reach our saturation point.
     The Windsor tournament is lost for 2011 but David Boley expressed interest in chairing the event in 2012. He also seemed interested in joining the BoD, representing the Windsor area if we think additional Board members are required. I passed this information on to the Board President for follow-up.
     I don't know if it was necessary, but I re-applied for the Tillsonburg insurance because the contact name at the game site had changed since the time we made the original application. Other than this situation, all Unit 249 tournaments have received notification of ACBL insurance coverage.
     A new volunteer has come forward to chair the 2011 KW Summerfest. Ted Boyd will be replacing Cindy Mahn, who has done an excellent job over the past few years. I would like to see the Board vote to write a letter of thanks to Cindy for her good work in the past. The 2011 event sanction has not been submitted yet because the new committee has not decided on the site for the tournament. Once this barrier is past the 
wheels will start turning.
     David Baker requested BoD acknowledgement of his application to run two sanctioned team leagues in KW and I sent him my information to use when he applies to the ACBL for the sanction.

3. Web Site Administrator: John Lightfoot

Since our last Annual General Meeting in August, 2009, there has been a reworking of the format of the website to make its front page more informative and a ‘Hall of Fame’ has replaced the top 249 masterpoint standing but essentially the website has retained its traditional features.

The one major change that took place this year was the switch from www.unit249.ca to www.unit249.com for our website address. But even that was accomplished with a minimum of disruption.

All other aspects of the website are working well.

Approval of Committee Reports: Moved by John Lightfoot and seconded by George Hodgson that all committee reports be approved - CARRIED.

New Business:
• A Report from the Unit Recorder indicated that issues in Pt. Franks and KW were resolved. The Board reminds Tournament Chairs that it is policy that DIC’s are to make a clear statement re: Zero Tolerance at the beginning of each session in all Unit 249 tournaments and when there is an issue to provide a written report to the Tournament Chair and Unit Recorder.
• Discussion re: establishing an award in Unit 249 in the memory of Gary Whiteman recognizing a player(s) in the Unit who best epitomize the qualities of sportsmanship for which Gary stood and that Gary Whiteman is the first recipient. Moved by Richard Fokes seconded by Norma Ingram - CARRIED. 

Next meeting:
• Robert Burns was thanked for the hospitality in hosting this meeting.
• The next Board of Director’s Meeting is scheduled to be held at the London Sectional, Jan. 22, 2011.

Adjournment: Moved by Lee Easterbrook that the meeting be adjourned - CARRIED.
 
 

Call to Order: The AGM was called to order at 12:15 pm by the President, Jim Brimner.

Present: J Brimner, B Burns, D Deaves, L Easterbrook, R Fokes, G Hodgson, N Ingram, D Lord, J Lightfoot, C Punter , T Ramsay, D Rogers, T Smith, and R Williams all members of Unit 249 in good standing. This constitutes a quorum for the purpose of conducting business on behalf of the Membership.

Approval of Agenda: Moved by R Burns and seconded by N Ingram that the Purposed Agenda be approved - CARRIED.

Approval of Minutes of last Meeting: Moved by R Burns and seconded by N Ingram that the minutes of the AGM held in Tillsonburg, August 9, 2009 as circulated be approved - CARRIED.

Business arising from the Minutes: There was no business arising from the minutes.

President’s Message: Jim Brimner

Presently, we have 30 Clubs sanctioned in the Unit. We will have run 8 Sectionals and a Regional this year. These tournaments provide an opportunity for our membership to advance their bridge experiences. Successful tournaments are not necessarily profit generating ventures.

At this point Jim introduced the Board Members and gave a brief outline of their responsibilities:
• Pat Simpson is Vice-president and Tournament chair.
• Bob Burns is currently Executive Secretary and Recording Secretary. However, Bob is retiring from the Board at the end of this year.
• Richard Fokes is Treasurer and NAOP Co-ordinator.
• Lee Easterbrook will be assuming the position of Executive Secretary and Recording Secretary.
• George Hodgson is Membership Committee Chair.
• Norma Ingram is a Member at Large.
• Chris Punter is in charge of tournament supplies and the Assistant Treasurer.
• Tom Ramsay is Disciplinary Chair.
• John Lightfoot is the Web Administrator.
• Two ex-officials are our Auditor, Len Lucier and our Recorder, Dwight Bender.
These people along with Tournament Chairpersons and the unknown numbers of volunteers are the people that make Unit 249 function and the Tournaments possible. They deserve a big thank you.

Reports as per Board of Director’s Meeting:

1. Treasurer’s Report: Richard Fokes

Since 1992 the Board has consistently had assets in the range of $45 to $50 000. The last Regional was 2007 and in non-regional years we generally operate at a loss of income over expenses. In 2008 it was -$372.07; in 2009 it was -$2156.47; currently, to July 31, 2010 it is -$699.50

2. Membership’s Report: George Hodgson

We have experienced a growth in membership. In 2008 membership was 1000; in September of 2009 it was 1025; in March of 2010 it was 1076; and currently it is 1098. This is in thanks to the fine efforts of Club Managers/Owners.
I gleaned these from the quip reports George as I wasn’t sure if you also quoted the September figure when mentioning the growth. Was 2008 1000 or 1003?

3. Moved by R Burns and seconded by D Rogers that these reports be accepted - CARRIED.

Appointment of the Auditor
The President thanked L Lucier, auditor, on behalf of the Unit for his service to the Unit. Moved by R Fokes and seconded by R Burns that L Lucier be reappointed as Auditor for 2011 - CARRIED.
I wasn’t sure if this was done or not so I stuck us in Richard?

Confirmation of proceedings carried on by the Board
Moved by T Ramsay and seconded by R Williams that the proceedings of the Board for 2010 be approved - CARRIED.

New Business: There was no new business.

Next AGM
The AGM for 2011 is scheduled for 12:01 pm, August 6th, in Tillsonburg at the Tillsonburg ‘Golden Leaf’ Sectional Tournament.

Adjournment
Moved by T Ramsay that the AGM be adjourned CARRIED.
 
 

Present: Jim Brimner, Bob Burns, Richard Fokes, George Hodgson, Chris Punter, John Lightfoot, Pat Simpson,
               and Tom Ramsay.

Absent with Regrets: Norma Ingram

Resignation: A letter of resignation was received with regrets from Mavis Reffell.

Meeting: A quorum being present, the mtg. chaired by the President, Jim Brimner, was called to order at 9:55 am.

     Approval of previous Minutes: Moved by John Lightfoot and seconded by George Hodgson that the minutes of the last Board Mtg., August 8, 2009 in Tillsonburg, as circulated be approved. - CARRIED.

Treasurer's Report: Richard Fokes

Financial Statement for 2008 is at the auditor's.
Chris Punter as Assistant Treasurer now has full signing authority on behalf of the Board in Richard's absence.
Total revenue $12 431.13. Total expenditures $11 294.64. Net income $1136.49.
Financial statement for 2009 is up to date and balances as of Dec. 31st, 2009.
Richard recommended paying mileage and Board honorariums for 2009. Moved by Pat Simpson and seconded by Chris Punter that the Treasurer's Report be accepted - CARRIED.

Business Arising from the Minutes:
     The Tournament Guideline is still ongoing. Average pairing in stratified tournament events policy has been compiled by John Lightfoot. It needs to be clearly stated in all advertisement. The Tournament Guideline with this recommendation was accepted in principle and given the go ahead for distribution to Tournament Chairs.

Executive Secretary: Bob Burns

     Report is attached.
     Mini-McKenney medallions will be ordered again this year. The Mini-McKenney and Ace of Clubs awards will be handled in the same manner as in previous years.
     Please, check the attached summary of Unit 249's Clubs and advice if there are any errs or omission.
     Moved by Chris Punter and seconded by Richard Fokes that this report be accepted - CARRIED

Committee Reports:

1. Membership: George Hodgson:

     A report was received showing that our membership as of January 2010 is 1,064. This is a 20 member improvement from last mtg.
     George noted the positive influence that the In/Out report has in the hands of the Directors and Club managers is positive to our growth and spirit. 
     Moved by George Hodgson and seconded by Tom Ramsay that this report be accepted - CARRIED

2. Tournaments:

Tournament Chair's Report is attached along with the 2010 Tournament Schedule
     Pat reiterated that sectional sanctions need be applied for 1 yr. in advance and regional sanction needs be applied for 3 yrs. in advance if the District is to protect historical dates. Please, when you submit your Tournament Financial Report include your request for next year's sanction and proposed Tournament Budget.
     Chris Punter expressed concern re: number of boards needed for the Regional and will look into arrangements for these and other additional supplies. The Regional is scheduled for July 6-11, 2010. 
     Richard received financial reports from St Thomas (a deficit of $53.87), Stratford (230.5 tables for surplus of $1453.73), and Windsor (101.5 tables and a loss of $255.23). Financial Reports were accepted from St Thomas and Stratford and honorariums approved. Richard will be in contact with Windsor.
     The Board noted with displeasure the Districts decision to run the NAOP in January rather than its normal time in October-November along with its departure from having a final in London.
     Moved by Richard Fokes and seconded by Bob Burns that this report be accepted - CARRIED

3. Web Site Administrator: John Lightfoot

Report is attached
Moved by Pat Simpson and seconded by Chris Punter that this report be accepted - CARRIED

New Business:

     Moved by John Lightfoot and seconded by Chris Punter approving the appointment of Bob Burns, Pat Simpson, and Tom Ramsay as Representatives to District 2 Board of Directors mtg. in April- CARRIED
     Concern was raised as to why the District can not circulate the agenda and committee reports prior to the District mtg.
     Lee Easterbrook has been asked by Richard Fokes to join the Board.

Next meeting:

     Peter Tuttle was thanked for the hospitality in hosting this meeting.
     The next Board of Director's Meeting is scheduled to be held in Sarnia at the Blue Water Tournament May 1st.

Adjournment: Moved by George Hodgson that the meeting be adjourned - CARRIED.

CLUB MANAGERS and DIRECTORS, PLEASE, POST and ANNOUNCE THIS ASAP TO THE PLAYERS IN YOUR AREA

Attachments:

Executive Secretary’s Report - January 2010

Welcome everyone. 2009 has all but wrapped up and I wish all a very happy new year.

1.  Rec'd from Mavis Reffell a card thanking us for our thoughtfulness and a letter of resignation stating her deep regrets but citing health issues as the reason for this decision.
2.  Referred a concern from Hazel Hewitt re: director's course and sanctioning of a new club to Richard and Jim respectively.
3.  Several e-mail communications from the ACBL re: club additions, cancellations, and changes. Attached is a summary of the clubs in our Unit. Please, advise if you note any errors or omissions. Note: additions in green, cancellations in red, and changes in blue. I do have e-mail addresses for all clubs save Chatham which has repeatedly ignored any communication requesting a contact.
4.  Check out our ACBL Director’s, Paul Janicki, Washington NABC report, news from District 2, and news from the CBF at the District’s new web site www.acbldistrict2.org.
           1. The CBF Bridge Championships are coming to Markham in May, 2010.
           2. The World Championships are coming to Philadelphia in October, 2010.
           3. The Summer NABC is coming to Toronto in 2011.
5.  I presented a get well card and a book (Mel Colchamiro's - How You Can Play like an Expert) to Jim B on behalf of the Board.
6.  Pat Simpson and I attended a mtg. in St Thomas with the newly formed Tournament Committee for the St Thomas Sectional. This was chaired by Tom Andrews. In attendance from St Thomas were: Tom Andrews, Sef Johnson, Cecile St Amand, Nancy Wilcox, Sine Herold, Lana Johnson, Margaret Blackwell, and Tom Smith. Concerns raised in the e-mail from Board Members as well as concerns from the delegation were addressed by Pat.
7.  The Ace of Clubs and Mini McKenney results are due to be released in February and we need to confirm our policy in this area.
8.  I made the ACBL, District, and clubs in the Unit aware of the web site's change in address. John will address that issue in his report.
9.  I rec'd from Libby a bio and picture which I am editing for an article in the Kibitzer.

     Some time ago, when these 11 o'clock starts began, we discussed the need to rethink when we have our mtgs. John came up with the idea of switching to Friday for this mtg. Richard has stated in the past that a Saturday mtg. at his club is also a viable solution. Do we need to address this issue?

     To assist, please, if you have a report, prepare a written copy (e-mailing it prior to the mtg. is strongly recommended and in the best interest of an efficient mtg.), and if you intend to present a motion, it needs to be written out.

Bob Burns

Tournament Reports:

Tournament Guidelines - see attachment

Changes in Unit Games Effective Jan. 1, 2009

     All Unit Games, including Unit-Wide Championship and Unit Extended Team Games, are replaced with one class of Unit    Championships. The number of games increased from sixteen (16) to twenty four (24) per calendar year with applicable sanction fees. Of the twenty four (24) games allocated, a maximum of three (3) may be scheduled as Extended Team games.  The ACBL fees are $1.25 per table. 
     Unit-Wide Championship games require the use of computer-dealt hands. These hands will be supplied electronically to a designated game coordinator for distribution to the various sites. 
     All Unit or District Charity Games are replaced with one class of Fund or Foundation games. There will be a maximum of 4 (four) a year per Unit and 4 (four) a year per District. The fee structure is the same as special Fund or Foundation games at clubs ($1.25 per game, .74 cents per table and $1.00 per person. - The $1.00 per person is for the special fund/foundation). 
     The foundation/fund games consist of: 
          Charity Foundation 
          International Fund 
          Junior Fund 
          Educational Foundation 
ACBL-wide North American 49er Pair games have been discontinued. 
District-wide Charity games have been discontinued. 

     These changes will be reflected in the ACBLscore version that will be made available in November 2008.

ACBL STRATIFICATION POLICY AND UNIT 249:

     Unit 249 endorses the new ACBL directive that allows players to be able to average their masterpoints to determine their stratification in open team and pair’s events.  As of January 1, 2010, Tournament Managers of Unit 249 Sectional and Regional Tournaments will be strongly encouraged to follow this directive.

Please Note:
     This policy still bars players from entering restricted masterpoint events. For instance, a 299er event still bars any player with 300 masterpoints or more from competing.
     This averaging policy will apply to current ACBL members. In a pair's competition involving an ACBL player and a non-ACBL member, the stratification of the pair will reflect the masterpoint total of the ACBL player. In team events, only masterpoint totals of current ACBL members will used in finding the average masterpoint total for the team.
     The DIC always has the right to determine the level of competence of any player(s) entering an event.

Website Report

     With the start of the New Year, it is probably a good time to bring you up to date on the happenings concerning your website. It is a large website and there has been a good deal of learning on the job required to familiarize myself with how it was put together and its inner workings.  This has progressed well with one exception.

     The one problem that we ran into was with our Internet Service Provider (ISP).  In the fall our website suddenly was shut down and since it has gone through several administrators, it took some digging to even find out who the ISP was.  We traced it back to an individual in Wallaceburg.  This individual apparently provides this service himself through a series of sole-proprietor companies.  He was able to rectify the situation within a few days; but, 2 days before the New Year, we were informed that our website was again going to be shut down if immediate action was not taken involving its domain registration.  That action could only be taken by our ISP.   He could not be reached (he was on vacation).  I was finally able to contact our ISP just 9 hours before our website was to be shut down.

     By that time it had become apparent that we had too much at stake to rely on a single individual for our internet support. Therefore, with the support of our President and Executive Secretary, I contacted my ISP (Bruce Telecom) and arranged for them to handle our website.  In this way we have a reliable support team readily available in case of need and at the almost identical cost of our former ISP.  If there is a problem that requires hands-on consultation or face-to-face discussion they are nearby.  The only thing that Bruce Telecom could not provide was the ".ca" domain designation. Thus we had to switch to "unit249.com".  This has been completed and the website is up and running well with a minimum of disruption.

     All other aspects of the website are working well.

John Lightfoot