Happy 2025!
Message from the President
Welcome to each of you. I hope your year has started off in exactly the way you hope!
I am pleased that you have chosen me to help lead the Club this year. Like me, your current slate of officers believes that each one of you has something special to contribute to the Club. We look forward to working with each one of you this year, in whatever capacity you feel suits you best.
My two primary goals for the Club this year are:
- To encourage membership renewal among current members while bringing in sufficient new members to fill our classes and share their enthusiasm; and
- To substantially increase community awareness of the Club’s existence, with the long-term goal of increased ticketed admissions to our annual show.
As we start this new year, I especially want to thank each of our teachers, board and committee members, show personnel, retiring and new webmasters, our students, and other volunteers who have contributed to the overall well-being of the Club. You are marvelous individuals, and your combined efforts make you an amazing team!
Let’s not forgot members who bring refreshments! We get a bit tense sometimes during our meetings. It is so nice to be able to have a friendly chat while munching on good food and checking our raffle tickets,
With great hope for our shared future and a sincere belief in each of you…
MoiraLynn Mefein
January 26, 2025 Meeting Agenda
St Lucie Rock & Gem Club BOD & General Meeting
La Buona Vita Club House
8601 S Federal Hwy Pt. St. Lucie 34952
January 26, 2025, 2:00 p.m.
If you cannot be at the meeting and would like to offer input, please send an email to [email protected] with your comments or suggestions.
WE WILL ALSO BE OFFERING A ZOOM MEETING. YOU WILL BE RECEIVING A SEPARATE EMAIL FOR CONNECTING TO ZOOM.
Call to Order
Call Roll/Quorum
Minutes Approval – BOD & General Meeting 11-24-2024
Treasurer’s Report (Wendy Mathisen)
Committee Reports
- 2025 Show Meri Jo Theobald & Trish Kelly
- South Florida Federation Report (Meri Jo Theobald)
- Registrar (Terry Kaye)
- Workshop & Building (Bob Hanson & Scott Turner)
- Membership (Kathy Jenkins) (Member packet and booklet revision status)
- Special Programs (Volunteer Required)
- Newsletter (Moira Lynn Mefein)
- Webmaster (Wendy Mathisen)
- Volunteer Coordinators (Caroline Bishop & Melinda Cunningham)
- Zoom Coordinator (Diane Carol)
- Policies and Procedures Manual (Moira Lynn Mefein)
- Skills certification (Joe David)
Old Business
- Suggested in-club training, possibly producing a video that can be posted to our private Face-book page. How to implement?
- Request for volunteers
- Reminder: not all volunteer efforts require formal Committees
- Librarian
- Field trips and Special Events
- Phone tree?
New Business
- Teachers’ Meeting Resolutions & Recommendations
- Reduced cost to members for 2nd or more classes taken during a single session.
- Full stipend for instructor, regardless of number of students
- Members taking free classes must still pay lab- or consumables-fees
- Tee-shirts – purchase for resale?
- You-Tube Channel (Scott Turner)
- Scented Dragon
- Community Awareness Speakers
- Holiday Party – La Buona Vita or Restaurant?
November 24, 2024 Minutes
St Lucie County Rock & Gem Club
Meeting Minutes November 24, 2024
La Buona Vita Club, 8601 S Federal Hwy., Port St. Lucie, FL 34952
Combined Executive Board & General Meeting Minutes
Attendance was taken and will be attached to the final minutes.
The meeting was called to order at 2:09 pm.
October Minutes were approved as submitted.
Scott Turner made a motion approve the 10/27/24 minutes.
Bob Hanson made a 2nd.
The motion passed.
Tentative Approval of the Proposed 2025 budget.
As was discussed at the last meeting, this meeting is to tentatively approve the 2025 budget for accounting purposes.
The January & February Financial Statements will reflect the 2025 tentatively approved budget figures.
Discussions were held on the tentative approval of the proposed budget.
Treasurer Wendy Mathisen presented the anticipation of major future expenses:
*AC units x 2 replacement estimate is $10,000-$12,000
*Septic to sewer $8,000-$10,000
*Roof repair/replacement $6,000
A building reserve fund is a sensible way to be prepared for these future expenses.
The goal is put $6000/year into reserve fund so that current CD’s can be held for savings, security and unexpected expenses.
Our primary income sources, membership growth, classes and show participation are vital.
The Vision – Tomorrow is Almost Here
Members were allotted 2 minutes each to express their concerns and suggestions.
Discussions were held on the following proposals;
- Yearly membership price increase to $50/year.
- Charging $25 per student “lab fees“ for classes that use gas and classes using cabbing machines which need the replacement of cabbing wheels.
- Classes using investment. The intention is to recoup actual cost to club.
MOTION:
*Increase annual membership to $ 50.00. Effective January 1, 2025. Members paying prior to January 1, 2025, will pay the 2024 membership fee of $40.00 and accept the Tentative 2025 budget as presented for accounting purposes. The final approval will be in February as the documents require.
MOTION: Meri Jo Theobald
2nd Katherine Neurohr
MOTION PASSED
MOTION:
*$25 lab fee per session for each student in a class using gas and/or cabbing machines, (free class students to pay lab fees).
Motion: Karen Roman
2nd: Denise Baker
MOTION PASSED
MOTION: Consumable fees to be paid by students.
*Casting classes using investment.
New Charges
$3 for (small) 18oz flasks
$9 for (large) 56oz flasks to be collected on 4th and 8th classes of session.
MOTION: Bob Hanson
2nd Melinda Cunningham
MOTION PASSED
Pricing in Square will be available under the library tab.
Budget Approval
Incoming president will have opportunity to review and discuss changes for final budget approval at the January meeting and final approval will be at the February meeting.
2025 Election
As there were no nominations from the floor, the proposed slate of candidates was confirmed.
MoiraLynn Mefein – President
Scott Turner Vice – President
Wendy Mathison – Treasurer
Terry Kaye – Secretary
A proposal from Scott Wilkes, Colorship Media & Design, was submitted to change the website for $1600.00. Also changing to Go Daddy™, the updating of PayPal™ and Square™. Advance ticket sales and gift certificates will also be available. A monthly charge of $15.00 will be incurred for web updates and maintenance.
MOTION:
A motion was made to approve the proposal from Scott Wilkes, Colorship, Media & Design for $1600 and a $15 monthly maintenance fee.
MOTION: Moira Mefein
2nd: Katherine Neurohr
MOTION PASSED
Best wishes to Roni Welton for all she has done for the Website.
The website will be turned over to the new Webmasters, Jennifer Wilkes and Wendy Mathisen.
Christmas party December 8th 12-4 at La Bouna Vista. Sign up requested for head count and side dish contribution.
2025 Classes Session 1 to begin January 6th.
The Class Registrar 2025 is Terry Kaye.
Yearly waivers and safety sheets are available and must be filled out by each student.
Joe David is the chair for the Orientation Checklists, Machine and Skill Training Checklist Development. Safety First!
Each machine checklist should be completed and filed in the shop.
A motion was made to adjourn the meeting at 3:55 pm.
MOTION: Denise Baker
2nd: Karen Roman
MOTION PASSED
January 4, 2025 Teachers' Meeting Minutes
MoiraLynn’s debut meeting. She welcomed the instructors and reminded them, “Don’t underestimate your talent!” She then announced two goals for 2025:
- Increase membership to fill classes.
- Increase public awareness with the long-term goal of increasing attendance at our annual Show.
She expressed thanks and best wishes to Roni Welton, our outgoing Webmaster, and welcomed new Webmaster Wendy Mathisen along with Jennifer Wilkes. The new website will – hopefully – be functional by February.
OLD BUSINESS
Curriculum/syllabus: Let Registrar Terry Kaye know if changes need to be made to your class descriptions. Help is available if instructors need assistance writing information for students. Project descriptions are helpful. The class description brochure is being updated.
Display at Scented Dragon: We now have Club business cards at the Scented Dragon store in the Treasure Coast Mall. All members are encouraged to find places to display them as well. Joe David suggested several City and County facilities which might welcome the brochures. Roni suggested a tri-fold brochure might be worth considering, as it would fit in standard display holders.
Yellow sheet: Scott Turner and Bob Hanson said the yellow sheet in the back room is working as a method of communication, and reminded instructors to write their class- and building-related requests on the sheet.
Tee Shirts: There was a brief discussion of tee shirts and whether there is sufficient interest for the Club to buy some for re-sale. They were previously purchased at Day Dreams Uniforms (772) 429-7454) at 8424 S US Hwy1, PSL.
Chamber of Commerce: Brief discussion about the potential value of joining the Chamber. There was a comment that membership had not been particularly useful in the past.
Instructor Choice Discussion: There has been a suggestion that teachers should have to choose between accepting a stipend or taking a free class. After much discussion, it was suggested that teachers should not be made to choose. It was also suggested that teachers should be paid their full stipend regardless of the number of students in their class. It was also suggested that anyone taking a free class would still need to pay any lab- or consumables fees. These issues will be brought up at the General Membership/Board Meeting in January. Wendy Mathisen, Club Treasurer, said paying the full stipend should have no negative effect on our budget.
Pop-Up Guidelines: The need for specific pop-up class guidelines was discussed. Teachers will assist in developing those guidelines when a coordinator volunteers or is appointed.
Walk-In Guidelines: *Walk In guidelines to be reviewed; Instructor must be notified before just showing up. Walk-ins must call the instructor ahead of time to confirm their interest in attending.
NEW BUSINESS
Suggestion Box: We discussed the importance of member feedback, and of every member’s voice being heard. Unsigned suggestions for improving the Club are encouraged and welcome.
Reduced Cost for Multiple Classes During a Single Session: We discussed a suggestion that had been made informally, for the cost of additional classes in a single session to be reduced when a member takes more than one class at a time. The suggested cost for 2nd or more (paid) classes in the same session is $99. Any lab or other fees must still be paid. This will be brought up at the January General/Board meeting.
Club Ambassadors: MoiraLynn said she would like to put together a small group (probably 3 people) who would be available to represent the Club as speakers when a local organization is holding a meeting and needs a program. Volunteers will be requested.
New Member Welcome – Tailgate Added: The New Member Welcome and Open House at the Workshop is scheduled for Sunday, February 2nd, from 2 – 4 p.m. It was suggested we invite other members to join us and enjoy the time tail-gating.
Signage: There was a brief discussion about purchasing signage to put on U.S. 1 announcing the Club and classes. No conclusion was drawn.
Membership: At the time of the teachers’ meeting, paid membership was only 65. The short-term goal is to double that. The target membership goal is 200.
Constitution: The Constitution currently on our website is the old version. MoiraLynn will access previous emails in an effort to ensure that the revised Constitution is available for the new website.
Kathy Jenkins moved for adjournment, and several people seconded the motion. The meeting adjourned at 11:06 a.m.
Discounted Shopping at Rio Grande
Members of our Club are eligible for a discount when shopping at Rio Grande. Treasurer Wendy Mathisen shares the details below and a screenshot of the form.
For those of you who shop at Rio Grande for supplies, the club has a Rio for Schools Instructor Code that can be used by our members to qualify for discounted pricing.
This code is: RFSSLCR.
The code should not be entered as a promo code in the cart. It will not be accepted there. Instead, please go to your Account page and click Profile where you will only have to enter it once in the Instructor Code field. Once entered, click Apply and you will see it displayed above the line where the code was entered. Screenshot attached shows what it should look like once completed.
Also, please note that you won’t see the discount until you begin the checkout process. I just placed an order to test it out and it worked without issue.
Happy Shopping!
Precious Metal Clay Pop-Up – A Good Time Was Had By All!
On Sunday, January 5th, five students participated in a precious metal clay pop-up class led by our very own, incredibly talented instructor, Marilyn Cook! In four hours, Marilyn took students through the basics, teaching techniques on how to design, shape, assemble, sand, and prepare a sea turtle pendant for firing. Following a fun and creative design phase, students then used Benzomatic™ torches to watch their clay designs transform into an adorable piece of pure silver jewelry. Once complete, pieces were polished and strung on an adjustable necklace. It was a great way to kick off the new year at the Workshop!
If members were unable to attend this pop-up, but are interested in participating in a future class, please email the club’s main address at [email protected]. If enough interest is expressed, a second class will be planned.
2025 Calendar of Events
Class Schedule
Session 1 — January 6 to March 1
Session 2 — March 17 to May 10
Session 3 — May 26 to July 19
Session 4 — August 18 to October 11
Session 5 — October 27 to December 20
Meeting Dates
January 26
February 23
March 23
April 27
May 25
June 22
July — No Meeting
August 24
September 28
October26
November 23
December — Holiday Party