SKYWRITER ONLINE

November, 2001

Next Meeting Time:

Monday, November 5, 2001, 7:30pm
First Parish Church, Berlin, MA
Meeting Program:
1. Secretary's report
2. Treasurer's report
3. Field Director's report
4. Old business
5. New business
6. Election of FY 2002 club officers
7. Setting of membership dues

HOLIDAY PARTY INVITATION FOR CMRCM MEMBERS

You're cordially invited to sign up for the second annual CRRC Holiday Party at the Marlborough Country Club on Wednesday, December 5th. As happened last year, attendees will be treated to a low-key evening of socializing, good food, and live entertainment. This year, CRRC members and their guests will be serenaded by The Widows, the well-known Wellesley singing group who will just have returned from a competitive performance and will treat us to a music medley chosen from their recent shows.
Please give serious thought to turning out for an evening of food, entertainment, and sociability. Ticket prices are $25/person with a cash bar available.
For further information, or to sign up in advance, please contact Pete Young at (617) 484-0640, e-mail pwyoung@ix.netcom.com

Regards,
Pete Young

Upcoming Events

October 13 to November 24:
Hunting season; flying on Sundays only.

November 4:
CRRC annual auction; held at Natick VFW Hall in Natick, MA

November 5:
Annual membership meeting and election of FY 2002 club officers. Changes to the dues structure and field rules will also be voted on.

November 18:
CMRCM annual auction; held at the VFW in Oxford, MA

Presidents Corner

Hello everybody. As the flying season winds down, I'd like to take a look back over the last season and thank some people who made this a very enjoyable season:

Rene and Ray M: thanks for running a couple of great gremlin contests. Let's hope that the interest level remains high for this kind of contest.

Fun Fly CDs: At the risk of forgetting somebody, I'd like to thank the fun fly CDs en masse. We had some "interesting" weather conditions for many of the fun flies this year and I really liked some of the events that people thought up.

Jim & Toni Dibb: Thanks for doing a great job with the club picnic. Everyone had a really good time.

Peter Feil: Thanks for being secretary. This is one of the two most time consuming jobs in the club, and I appreciate the time that you took from your busy schedule to do the job.

Mike Doucette: Thanks for being the treasurer. This is the other time consuming job, and I know from experience that it's sometimes the most difficult job in the club.

Kevin Schleicher: What a website! Thanks for keeping the membership informed and running one of the best club websites in the country.

Brian Gawronski: Thanks for your time as an instructor and member at-large. We're going to miss you at board meetings.

Dennis Cherry: Thanks for doing a great job as field manager. We're sure glad that you're well on the road to recovery.

Hal Keller: thanks for the beautiful job on the field sign.

Dean Anderson: Great job as auctioneer for yet another year

Last but certainly not least --------------

A special thanks to Russ Miller for donating so much of his time as a flight instructor, running the auction and being head of the committee to impeach Steve Kelley (just kidding).

Please remember that we'll have elections as well as a vote on a dues increase at the November meeting. Hope to see you there.

by Steve Kelley

CMRCM INCOME / EXPENSE BUDGETING SUMMARY

	FY 1999	FY 2000	FY 2001
DEPOSITS:
Membership dues and key deposits	2805.00	2620.00	2665.00
Auction proceeds	640.00	584.10	907.10
Contest proceeds	141.03	96.00	0.00
Scalemasters seed refund	600.00	600.00	600.00
Miscellaneous	24.00	20.00	10.00
TOTALS	4210.03	3920.10	4182.10

EXPENSES:
Newsletter printing	-869.68	-1223.05	-1134.12
Printing: Membership cards, other	-35.98	-31.74	-57.71
Auction hall rental and advertising	-124.00	-174.00	-174.00
Auction raffle prizes, supplies	-267.70	-297.22	-305.91
Scalemasters seed	-600.00	-600.00	-600.00
AMA business: charter, intro pilot program	-70.00	-70.00	-60.00
State business: annual incorporation report, etc.	-15.00	-15.00	-27.00
Field mowing	-1430.00	-1430.00	-1300.00
Field rolling	0.00	-103.50	-202.75
Field fertilizer	-135.04	-218.89	-245.00
Field: new gate lock and keys	-104.51	0.00	-36.75
Field maintenance: clean-up, other	-33.89	-24.53	-51.78
Contest expenses	-337.31	-314.57	0.00
Picnic food and supplies	0.00	-60.04	-26.41
Meeting hall	-225.00	-225.00	-225.00
Bank account service charges	-108.00	-108.00	-66.00
Miscellaneous	-16.60	-13.20	-132.86
TOTALS	-4372.71	-4908.74	-4645.29

NET GAIN / LOSS	-162.68	-988.64	-463.19

Notes:

ALL	Income and expenses are shown here adjusted to be included within the year the event was held. Many invoices/deposits were received/paid in the year before or after the event was held.
ALL	All three years are complete as shown here, as fiscal years running from Nov. 1 to Oct. 31.
	Pattern and Scale meets not held after 1999. No entry fees charged or cash prizes awarded after 2000.
	At the time the bill for May thru July 2001 field mowings was presented, the club had insufficient funds to cover it. A BOD member has temporarily covered $715 to insure the field remains in shape. The club had enough to cover $585 for August thru October 2001 mowings.
	1999 picnic supply expenses are included in contest expenses. The Pattern meet and picnic were held together.
	Checking account was moved to another bank in March 2001. Basic service charge decreased from $9/mo to $3/mo.

Minutes of Meeting October 1, 2001

Meeting called to order at 7:35 PM.

The Secretary's report for the September meeting was accepted as published in the October newsletter.

The Treasurer's report for September was accepted as published in the October newsletter.

Field Director's Report: We are now using the gate at Rice Lane for access to the flying field. Rice Lane is about a quarter of a mile north of the entrance to the industrial park on Route 135. Hunting season starts October 13th and runs through November 24th during which time flying is allowed at the field only on Sundays. The last Fun Fly of the season will be Sunday, October 7.

Old Business: The "problem" Fish and Game reported at the flying site has been resolved.

New Business: Steve Kelly reported that Lawrence Airport was interested in having a static display of R/C airplanes at their Fly Days in the future. Anyone interested in participating should contact Steve.

The deficit budget that the club has been running was also discussed. The primary reasons for the deficit are a slight decrease in membership the last few years, the shift of the auction from February to November (moving expenses to the preceding year, while receipts are not credited until the next year), and the dues decrease four years ago. Proposals to eliminate the deficit included: a $5 dues increase; a $10 dues increase; a $5 discount for members accessing the newsletter electronically and not requiring a printed and mailed newsletter (The printed newsletter costs the club about $10 per member per year); allowing members who do not require a printed and mailed newsletter to request that none be sent with no discount (saving the club more money, but removing the incentive); and eliminating the $10 dues discount for members 65 and over (26 of 116 members are 65 and over). Per club bylaws, any dues changes must be enacted by a vote of the members present at the November meeting, which is also when the election of the Board of Directors takes place. A motion was made and passed that the Board of Directors make a recommendation for the change in dues.

The following persons were nominated for the Board of Directors:

Harvey Thomasian	Steve Kelley
Peter Feil	Mike Doucette
Dennis Cherry	Jim Dibb
Kevin Schleicher	Dean Anderson

Meeting adjourned at 8:05 PM.

Minutes of Board of Directors Meeting October 1, 2001

Meeting called to order at 8:55 PM.

The board recommends keeping the present dues structure and increasing the dues for all members over the age of 18 by $10 (11 of 116 members are 18 and under). The board believes a $5 increase would balance the budget in the future, but because our balance has fallen so low recommends the $10 increase at least until the balance is restored to a healthy level. Members who do not require a printed and mailed newsletter are encouraged to request that none be sent in order to save the club the expense of printing and mailing, but no dues discount will be given.

The lock will be changed at the end of this year, and members will need to exchange their key at the time of their membership renewal for 2002.

Meeting adjourned at 9:30 PM.

CMRCM Club Auction Information can be found Here.