First Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
Monday, November 10, 1997
The nineteenth session of the First Board of Directors of the Blue Line Club was convened by Vice President Henry Okleshen at 4:07 p.m. on Monday, November 10, 1997, in the Alumni and Foundation Center conference room on the campus of Mankato State University.
Voting Board Members Present
6 of 7 Seats
- Larry Morales
- Brad Reeves
- Steve Duea
- Henry Okleshen, Vice Pres. (Excused)
- Jim Turk (Excused)
- Jim Bullard
Voting Board Members Present
1 of 7 Seats
- Kent Schwickert, President (Excused)
Ex-officio Nonvoting Board Members Present
4 of 6 Seats
- David Cowan, Club Secretary-Treasurer - Maverick Boosters Club Liaison
- Don Brose - MSU Men's Ice Hockey Coach
- Cheryl Regan (Excused) - MSU Athletics Promotions
- Ron Hybertson (Excused) - Conference Faculty Representative (NCC)
Ex-officio Nonvoting Board Members Absent
1 of 6 Seats
- Don Amiot - MSU Men's Athletics Director
- Margaret Healy - MSU Student Affairs Vice President
Approval of Agenda
Director Jim Bullard moved Director Steve Duea seconded that the meeting agenda for November 10, 1997 be approved. Motion carried.
Minutes of Previous Board Meetings Approved
Director Brad Reeves moved and Director Okleshen seconded that the Board approve the meeting minutes of October 13, 1997. Motion carried.
Secretary-Treasurer's Report - David Cowan
The Club's Secretary-Treasurer reported that $13,942.44 had been spent on Club business since July 1, the beginning of fiscal year 1997-98. Chief among the outlays was a $9,355.33 payment to Promotions Work, Inc. for 700 memento pens the Board approved distributing to the Club's Corporate Members (four pens each) and Individual Members (two pens each).
The Club's $23,000 operating budget also absorbed a planned $1,000 payment to the MSU Sports Information Office for special ad copy which has been included in each home hockey program to help fans better understand hockey rules. Payments to the Mankato Parking Corporation total $360 out of a season long estimate of $3,060 to park "free" Blue Line Club members. Sign Pro has been paid $1000 to date for changes to giant Blue Line Club membership banners. Costs of the "beginning of the season" reception held on Saturday, November 1 for members of the Blue Line Club have yet to land on the Mankato State accounting system but will exceed $1,000.
Clothing sales of Blue Line Club embroidered materials is not going well with only $235 in receipts deposited to date against a forecast of $1,150 in income. A greater variety of apparel and novelty items are offered for the general public at the two separate sites operated on the second floor of the Mankato Civic Center by Promotions Work during each home game. (Promotion Works, Inc., was the vendor recommended by the Club's Board of Directors to manage hockey sales to the fans. MSU get 25% of gross sales.)
Status of MSU Hockey Sales Campaign - Cheryl Regan
Cheryl Regan then reported on sales activity regarding the overall hockey program.
1997-98 Fiscal Year
| Sales Goals | Activity to Date | |||
| Number | Amount | Number | Amount | |
| (1) | (2) | (3) | (4) | |
| Blue Line Members | ||||
| Corporate @ $1,200 | 102 | $122,400 | 109 | $130,800 |
| Individual @ $600 | 91 | 54,600 | 101 | 60,600 |
| 193 | $177,000 | 201 | $191,400 | |
| Season Tickets | ||||
| Regular @ $144 | 555 | $115,200 | 653 | $94,032 |
| Corp. Extra Seats @ $130 | 45 | 63 | 8,190 | |
| MAHA Tickets @ $48 | 42 | 33 | 1,584 | |
| 642 | $115,200 | 749 | $103,806 | |
| Gate Receipts - Home | ||||
| 17 Games @ $3,200 | $54,400 | Pending | Pending | |
| Dasher Boards/Zamboni | $87,050 | $70,183 | ||
Still available for sale: dasher board behind net $3,250; behind bench 2 @ $2,950 each; 1/2 Zamboni @ $4,000, 1/2 dasher board behind net @ $1,625, a company logo on the sheet of ice valued at $5,000. The total is $19,775 in potential sales.
MSU's share of clothing and novelty sales from Promotion Works, the successful contract vendor on a recent MSU produced Request For Proposal (RFP), is budgeted at $2,500, along with the Student Senate approved $39,200 subsidy from student activity fees (because of this contribution MSU students are not charged at the gate and sit in a special student section).
Membership Recruitment - Special Strategy Session Needed
Director Steve Duea indicated though the Blue Line Club membership goals had been met for FY'98, that the Board should proceed and establish a special meeting dedicated to dealing with membership recruitment and retention six to eight months before the mailers go out next summer for the 1998-99 season.
Status of Hockey Scholarship Endowment
Secretary-Treasurer David Cowan reported that the $6,990.65 was the existing balance of the MSU Blue Line Endowment Fund deposited with the MSU Foundation, Inc. An agreement with the MSU Foundation, Inc., was signed in March, 1997, to "support scholarships for students competing in Men's Varsity Hockey and who are in good academic standing at the University. Funds not used for scholarships in any year may be used to support the Mankato State University Men's Hockey Program."
The bulk of the $6,990.65 resulted from a major donation from the Daniel Meyer family following his unexpected death. The Blue Line Club has sent out a couple of mailings encouraging its members to donate to the Blue Line Club's endowment scholarship fund.
February Elections - Bylaw Amendment "Initiated" to Enlarge Board
Based on a October 27, 1997, recommendation of the Nominations Committee, the Board then considered enlarging its voting membership.
Director Brad Reeves moved and Director Jim Turk seconded that the Board amend the first sentence of Article IV Section 2 of the Club's bylaws to change the Board's voting membership to read ". . . shall include a minimum of seven members or no more than eleven members who shall each serve for two year terms from the date of their election at the Annual Meeting." [New language is in italic.] Bylaw amendment initiative passed unanimously.
Consistent with Article XII of the Bylaws, note that before the amendment formally becomes effective " . . . the Board has to circulate the language of the proposed amendment to the full membership along with the Board's comments and recommendations. At least seven days from the mailing of the Bylaw amendment o the Club's membership, the Board of Directors shall decide on the proposal's merit, and, by a vote of at least four regular members of the Board, shall adopt the amendment."
It was agreed to use the December/January edition of the Club's Hat Trick as the vehicle to notify the membership of the proposed bylaw change before the February Annual Meeting.
Nominations Committee Report
Also part of that same October 27th Nominations Committee memorandum, it was recommended that the Board create the following five standing committees and ask Club members to volunteer to serve on such panels.
Student Player Committee
Deals with Parents Night, Annual Banquet, Meet the Players Night.
Blue Line Social Committee
Golf Tournament, Opening Night, Joint Blue Line Club and Maverick Booster Club Friday luncheons.
Finance Committee
Budget issues.
Scholarship Committee
Works to increase donations to the Blue Line Club Endowed Scholarship Fund now established with the MSU Foundation, Inc.
Fund Raising Committee
Wearing apparel and novelty sales, ticket sales, etc.
No formal action was taken by the Board on this recommendation to create standing committees. Don Brose indicated that he would see if he could get a hold of the committee structure of other Blue Line Clubs to compare them with what the Nominations Committee had recommended.
Names of Potential Board Members
All the existing seven voting members of the Board of Directors indicated that they would be willing to serve another term, with the Nominations Committee determining who would serve until February,1999 or February, 2000. [Additional names forwarded to the Nominations Committee include Michael Fatis, Larry Ward, Pat Keogh and Earl Cummings.]
For whatever number of seats is declared by the Nominations Committee, not to exceed 11 of course, a ballot will have to be prepared which will list candidate names as well as a blank line for "write-ins" that may be nominated from the floor during the February Annual Meeting. That ballot will be distributed during a February home game event when the Club normally meets before the game begins.
Promotion Works, Inc. Home Games Sales Report
Steve Duea reported that for the first two home game series $4,953 in gross sales had occurred. He reminded Board members that MSU hockey get 25% of all gross sales consistent with the contract between MSU and Promotion Works.
Adjourned
The meeting then adjourned at 5:30 p.m.