The meeting for February 2007 was called to order February 3rd by Club President Earl Blanchette at 10:40.

The minutes for January 2007 were presented; a motion was made by Bill Lancaster and seconded by Ron Miller to accept the minutes as read. The motion passed.

The Treasurer’s report for January 2007 was submitted, read, and accepted. 25 Members have paid their dues. There are three lifetime members. The deadline for dues is the end of February.

Old Business

HO Module Discussion – Ed Neill said that the club modules have a long history with the club and said they are an historical part of the club. Even though they are not being used, he doesn’t think they should be sold. Ron Miller said this position was pertinent to the disposition of some extra N Scale modules.

Buddy Burk said some of the modules are 25 years old and he doesn’t think they should travel. Ed said he wants to take some of the scenery off the modules and use it on the permanent HO layout.

Noel Cowling asked if the modules could be fixed. Ed said Paul Otis’ modules won Best of Show and doesn’t think they should travel. They need to be worked on. Joe Teakell said that if the N Scale modules are sold, the money should go back into the N Scale layout. He also said he wants first right of refusal to these modules since they were originally his.

Ron said that based on the discussion, he didn’t think there was any interest in pursuing the purchase of the old HO modules. The discussion was closed.

Club Shirts – Mike Cleveland said he thought the shirt was not meant to be a club uniform, but an opportunity to promote the club. On the e-mail sent around after the last business meeting, it seemed that the membership was interested in a choice of shirts.

Mike made a motion that the club accept Russ Covitt’s pricing on the blue denim and gray polo shirts and let members decide what shirt they want to buy, if any. Richard Zamudio seconded. There was one opposed. The motion carried.

Eric Boswell asked if other shirt colors were available. Other colors are available in the polo shirt style. Only orders for blue denim and gray polo shirts are being taken at this time.

The club logo will be embroidered on the shirt, not silk-screened.

Checks for shirts made out to CentraMod must be received by February 10th.

Ron Miller made a motion that we should honor the work Kennedy Gauger has done and tell him how much we appreciated his work on the shirts and that the discussion related to the shirts was nothing personal. Joe Pyland seconded and the motion passed.

Club Refreshments – Mike Cleveland said we still need people to volunteer for refreshments and cleanup. Richard Zamudio made a motion that the club take on refreshment expenses for the second run day of the month. There was no second.

Dan Ladd said he and Mike brought snacks today since they were signed up for February. The snacks (refreshments) are typically only for the second run day of the month (third Saturday). Ed Neill said we are published to be open the first and third Saturday of each month except September and December.

Club Cleanup – Bill Lancaster said that cleanup only entails picking up cups and emptying the trash. There are still empty slots on the sign-up list. He also said he is going to get a schedule over to the Museum. He is going to leave September and December empty.

2006 Train Show and Museum – Buddy Burk brought pictures for everyone to look at after the meeting.

New Business

Homer and Evelyn Martin from Killeen, TX and Bradley Linda from Waco, TX joined the club this month. Homer models in N Scale and Bradley models in HO. Welcome aboard!

The Museum will be hosting a Railfan Day the first Saturday in March on the 3rd. Railfan visitors could start visiting the club around 1130.

Troy Wolff had surgery and it went well. He will be out for four weeks and appreciated the Get Well card from the club.

Paul Otis’ mother passed and the club sent a sympathy card.

Train Show Report – Mike Cleveland said since this show is the 25th Anniversary, that everyone seems to agree that we want to do something special. Jerry Johnson and Ed Neill were asked to develop a plan for aggressively promoting the event.

Mike suggested on the Saturday of the Train Show that the club publicly acknowledge past train show committee chairs. Earl Blanchette asked that everyone get with Mike to find out who the past coordinators were.

Mike will be making special event committee assignments shortly.

Joe Teakell said that flyers for this year’s show haven’t been printed up.

E-Mail – Just a reminder that messages exchanged between business meetings shouldn’t be thought of as conducting club business.

Bloomin’ Temple Festival – Bill Lancaster asked if the club wanted to be open for the festival this year on April 14th and 15th. Last year was the city’s 75th Anniversary. Any volunteers would show up for the Museum and our participation would help them. Bill made a motion to be open from 10-4 on Saturday and from 12-4 on Sunday. Wylie Starnes seconded and the motion passed. Bill will tell the Museum and start taking a list of volunteers for these two days.

The meeting adjourned at 1214.

The meeting for January 2007 was called to order January 13th by Club President, Earl Blanchette at 1304.

The minutes for November 2006 were presented; a motion was made by Trace Bowen and seconded by Kennedy Gauger to accept the minutes as read. The motion passed.

The Treasurer’s report for November and December 2006 was submitted, read, and accepted.

Old Business

Ron Miller presented a report on the train show held at the Baylor Mayborn Museum, December 8-21. Jim Bush displayed his HO layout. Modular layouts in Z, N, O, & G were also displayed. Baylor posted a thank you to the club for its support in the Waco newspaper. Baylor is talking about what they want to do with the club for the next and following years.

Ron also reported that the club received a donation for participating in the Waco Doll and Train Show, January 6-7. This year the train show expanded vendor participation while the doll show decreased in vendors.

Bob Alston announced that the Lone Star Region will be holding its convention in Austin June 6-10. He said that non-NMRA members can attend the convention by purchasing a temporary six month membership for $9.95.

Ed Neill passed out club certificates to Noel Cowling, Wiley Starnes, and Earl Blanchette in recognition for their efforts in restoring the Moody depot.

Kennedy Gauger reported on the club shirts. It was suggested at the last meeting that a modified club logo be considered for the shirts. A proof of the modified logo was passed around. It was agreed that the club would bear the one-time cost for the setup fee. Denim buttoned shirts will cost $21-27 and Polo shirts $17-23 depending on size. Kennedy will take orders for the shirts and collect payment for same. All orders for shirts need to be in by February 10.

The club still needs volunteers to provide refreshments and club clean-up for the remainder of the year.

Clark Overman discussed the need for volunteers in each of the scales to create and develop content for the club website. Ron Miller volunteered for N, Ed Neill volunteered for HO and basic club information, and Erik Boswell volunteered for O. It was suggested that the club could also link to the Lone Star Convention web site.

Each scale volunteer will be responsible for working with other club members in their scale to develop and then maintain web content for their specific scale. Club leadership will be responsible for approving and maintaining basic club information. Clark will provide general overall administrative oversight for the site.

New Business

Bill Lancaster will chair a committee to review the club’s bylaws. Ed Neill, Dan Ladd, and Wylie Starnes are committee members.

Jim Bush was named Train Show committee co-chair.

Earl Blanchette said we need to form a committee for the 25th Anniversay Train Show. Kennedy Gauger said we should instead consider making this a sub-committee of the Train Show to avoid confusion and duplication of effort.

Earl said he was working to get pricing on calendars, mugs, etc. to commemorate the train show’s 25th anniversary. Neal Locke passed around a professional looking 2007 Club Calendar with pictures from the 2006 Temple Train Show.

Bill Lancaster said he was preparing a schedule of run days to give to the museum.

Ed Neill said the club schedule has already been published three times in the local newspaper. It says the club will be open on the first and third Saturdays of each month.

Earl Blanchette said he was working on a sign for the clubhouse to post times open to the public. He also wants trainmasters to schedule members for running layouts from 1300-1700 on the first and third Saturdays of each month.

Ron Miller said there is a group of members that want to build HO modules to take to shows. He asked if the club would sell some HO modules that hadn’t been used for more than five years. This issue was tabled until the next meeting for the HO members to discuss.

Ed Neill said that on March 3rd the Museum hopes to have three busloads of adult visitors starting at 1100. They would like to visit the club. The business meeting is scheduled to start at 1030 based on the motion passed at November 2006’s meeting.

The Budget Finance Committee met on Jan 8 at the Neill residence to formulate the club’s 2007 budget. The committee consisted of Betty Neill, Earl Blanchette, Bill Lancaster, Wylie Starnes, and Mike Cleveland. Betty presented the projected income and expenses for 2007. Bob Alston moved to accept the budget. Neal Locke seconded. The budget was accepted.

The club adjourned at 1522.

 

The meeting for October 2006 was called to order October 7th by Club President Earl Blanchette at 1:05 PM.

The minutes for September 2006 were presented; a motion was made by Mike Cleveland and seconded by Bill Lancaster to accept the minutes as read. The motion passed.

The Treasurer’s report was submitted, read, and accepted. Betty reported on the show and it was a success. Pat yourselves on the back for a job well done!

We received a ‘Thank You’ card from Boy Scout Troop 261 for whom we provided a tour of the Depot.

Mike Cleveland reports we have sold 109 tables for 2007! He will provide the survey report with observations as soon as possible. Plaudits for Mike were encouraged by Ed Neill for his tireless efforts as the Train Show Coordinator. Way to go, Mike!

Ed Neill gave a final report on the building upgrades. He recommended we keep some reserves for contingency purposes such as painting the deck, additional skirting, etc.

Earl reports that effective January 2007, we will be open two Saturdays each month in accordance with our new lease agreement.

Betty has received the contract from the Convention Center for 2007 which needs to be executed as soon as possible. Kennedy Gauger made a motion to permit Betty Neill to formalize the contract with the city; Troy Wolff seconded the motion which passed. This will be our 25th show, on September 14-16, 2007.

Earl reports we have two upcoming shows: December 6th at the Mayborn Museum on the Baylor University Campus and January 7th at the Heart of Texas Fairgrounds in Waco. Ed Neill made a motion to allow the use of club logo, vests, etc, for these two shows. Keith Hartberg seconded, and the motion carried. Ron Miller then mentioned that the Baylor exhibition will give us good public exposure. Several members toured the museum last month for tentative layout locations.

Kennedy Gauger made a motion, seconded by Mike Cleveland, to arrange for our Christmas dinner at the Temple Santa Fe Depot on December 1, 2006.  The motion carried.

Earl asked for volunteers, one from each scale, to form a nominating committee for next year’s officers.  JC from N Scale, Troy from HO, and Howard from O Scale raised their hands.

Kennedy briefed members on the shirts with logos; he explained prices and options. Complete info will be presented next month.

The meeting adjourned at 2:45 PM.

The meeting for September 2006 was called to order on September 2nd by Club President Earl Blanchette at 1:05 PM.

The minutes for August 206 were presented; a motion was made by Joe Pyland to accept the minutes as read and was seconded by Wiley Starnes.The motion passed.

The Treasurer’s report was submitted, read, and accepted. Going into the show, we have sold 183 tables.  We have received lots of publicity.

Old Business

Two examples of proposed club shirts w/logos were shown to the membership. Thoughts for the next meeting were solicited.

Christmas dinner at the Temple Santa Fe Depot is limited to Friday, December 1st and 22nd due to previous bookings. This is another topic for later discussion.

New Business

On Friday, September 15th at approximately 8 AM, with layouts and essentials in hand, we will load up from the Moody Depot so as to arrive on or about 10:30 AM at the Mayborn Convention Center for setup. We must be out of the center by 10 PM. The doors will open on Saturday around 7 AM for vendor setup.

Mike Cleveland will develop a questionnaire for “feedback” in different show aspects for use in future shows.

The meeting adjourned at 2PM.