OCONOMOWOC HISTORICAL SOCIETY

OCONOMOWOC AREA HISTORICAL SOCIETY AND MUSEUM BOARD MINUTES

June 9, 2008<= /st1:date>

at the museum

Board Members Present: Sue Bickler, Barbara Elwood-Goetsch, Betty Hancock, Shirley Hinds, Barb Hirsch, Duane Hoffman, Ed Johnson, Melissa Krahn, Margie Krauski, Terry Ladwig, Nancy Lins, Lois Lueb= ke, Bill Marris, Hilton Neal, Don Wiemer, Ann Zimmerman

Absent Excuse= d: Ray Mauer

Absent: D= onald Christiansen, Mac Dorn, Fran Durkin, Diane Johnson, Bob Ludwig, Kevin Passon<= /o:p>

Other Attende= es: Marjorie Day, Dorothy St. Thomas

President Don Wiemer called the meeting to orde= r at 4:00 pm.

Secretary’s Report: Ed Johnson moved and Ann Zimmerman seconded to accept the minutes of the M= ay 12, 2008 board meeting. Motion carried= .

Treasurer’s Report: Hilton Neal reviewed the monthly transaction list and revenue and exp= ense reports. It was noted that a few donations, one for $500 from the Oconomowoc Woman’s Club, were received. Monthly expenditures totaled $3,9= 84.85; revenue was $1,831.37; and expenses exceeded revenue by $2,153.48. Melissa Krahn moved and Nancy Lins seconded to ap= prove the Treasurer’s Report. Motion carried.

Administrator= ’s Report/Museum Operations:

Lins pre-distributed a copy of her complete report. Highlights she noted included: Mai Vang, the summer intern, is wo= rking out well and much has been accomplished.&n= bsp; In addition, Ginny Gallauer and Lois Luebke have been assisting in inventorying all items, although this slow process will take some time. Als= o, docents are desperately needed for weekend coverage. The digitizing of photos will be a priority for the intern in July.

Committee Reports:

Executive Committee: 1)Wiemer reported that the society’s mission statement is in the process of being revised. 2) The main exhibit area that is to house the Victorian Era display will remain vacant until after the “N= ight at the Museum” fundraiser on August 8 so that the space can accommoda= te guests. 3) The Hartland Histo= rical Society has been approached about possibly merging with our society but discussions are very tentative and both organizations’ full boards wo= uld have to agree to the move. 4)= Wiemer asked Ladwig to report on the branding process to date. Ladwig reviewed the branding committee’s purpose and the steps taken. The Branding Committee consi= sts of: Ladwig (Chairperson), Wiemer, Lins, Margie Krauski, Shirley Hinds and D= uane Hoffman. Andrea Walters was retained as the professional graphic designer to assist the society in developing its brand. Three designs were offered, with t= wo disregarded since one design was unanimously endorsed by the committee. It features a stylized “O= 221; with the society’s name to its right. Ladwig shared the design with the = board, and questions and comments were solicited. The committee was allocated $1,0= 00 for the process but will be under budget:&= nbsp; Walters’ design fees were $600 plus $180 for stationery set-up costs. Ladwig was thanked for= the hard work she put into the branding process. Hinds moved and Zimmerman seconded= to approve the Branding Committee’s logo adoption and implementation for= the OAHS&M.

Audit: Ladwig reported that the audit is under= way and will be completed prior to next month’s meeting.

Collections: Marjorie Day reported that our summer intern is working out well and = is very capable. New accession n= umbers are being assigned as old inventory is being processed; however, previously assigned accession numbers will remain on previously inventoried acquisitions. During the past= month it was noted that a photo collection from the Theobald family has been rece= ived as has some additional Oconomowoc Canning Company memorabilia. <= /span>

Education: Barb Hirsch reported that feedback from= last month’s Lac La Belle Cemetery tour has been very complimentary. Three school group tours of the mu= seum were done recently. The committee wants to develop a PowerPoint presentation abo= ut the museum’s exhibits that groups would view prior to touring the mus= eum. They hope to complete it before fall. Their goal for the summer is to devel= op a trunk show on immigration that is appropriate for the fourth grade level.

Exhibits: Shirley Hinds reported that her committee won’t meet again until= mid-July. A sign for the Libr= ary exhibit is forthcoming.

Local History: = ;Dorothy St. Thomas reported that the committee won’t meet again until Septemb= er but that at its last meeting they viewed Wiemer’s PowerPoint presenta= tion on the old Waldheim Hospital/Sanitarium.&n= bsp; The committee recommends that the presentation be used as a canned presentation. A similar forma= t is planned for the Oconomowoc Timeline that was recently completed.

Membership: Barb Elwood-Goetsch reported the following: 148 single memberships, = 112 (224) couples’ memberships, and 1 student membership for a total of 3= 73 individual memberships. There are also 14 organization/business/municipality memberships, 40 free memberships and 64 delinquent memberships. One new couple, Don and Connie Moo= re, joined the society last month.

Nominating Committee: Wiemer reported that Ruth Behling has resigned from editing the society’s quarterly newsletter, effective immediately, due to her husband’s declining health. A replacement is needed as soon as possible and all board members were asked to assist in finding a replacement. Ruth&#= 8217;s contributions were noted and it was agreed to thank her publicly at the July quarterly meeting. In the mea= ntime, Lins will publish the next issue since it is due to be sent the first week = of July. The deadline for submis= sion of articles is June 30.

Property and Maintenance= : Neal reported that Jeff Lins continues to work on the museum’s miscellaneous needs. Mac Dorn= and Jeff Burchardt will soon begin miscellaneous museum repairs.

Special Events (Quarterly Meetings): The following sche= dule for speakers was reported:

= July 2008: Local Architecture by John E= astberg (confirmed)

= October 2008: Olympic Ice Skating in Oconomowoc (tentative)

= January 2009: to be determined

= April 2009: Mapleton – “The Busiest Little City in the World” (confirmed)

Old Business:

Night at the Museum: Ladwig reviewed details of the planned fundraiser to be held at the museum on August = 8, 2008. All board members were encouraged = to purchase two tickets. “= Save the Date” postcards will be sent shortly to members and to any others whose names are submitted as potential attendees. Maximum attendance at the event wi= ll be 150. Kevin Passon was thanked= for an article in the Oconomowoc Enterprise about the upcoming event. Dorn and Hoffman are soliciting corporate gifts and plan to raise $7,500-$10,000. Hirsch is coordinating a scavenger= hunt to be conducted during the event. St. Thomas is coordinating the Dorothy Smith Watercolor Exhibit that will debut at the ev= ent, and she will work on securing a watercolor for the silent auction, with proceeds benefiting the society. The board approved that some watercolors c= ould be offered for sale during festival week beginning the day following the fundraising event. They will be marked discretely within the display. Jeff = Lins and Mike Krauski are coordinat= ing shuttle parking. Dorn will se= cure a credit card imprint machine for the event so that auction buyers can charge their winning bids. The committee’s next meeting will be June 19 at 11:00 at the museum.

Festival of the Arts: = ;The Festival’s board selected the OAHS&M as a Spotlight Group for Sun= day only (Sunday, August 17) at the festival.&= nbsp; It had been hoped we would have been selected for both days.

Other: Lins reported that the State Fire Insp= ector will be visiting the museum to determine our legal capacity.

=

New Business:

A. Next meeting: The next board meeting will be Mond= ay, July 14 at 4:00 pm at the museum.

&= nbsp;

B. Ice Cream Social:<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> This annual event will be held= on August 10, 2008= during the band concert.

C. Raffle: The annual donation of a Trek bicy= cle to raffle at the ice cream social is needed.&= nbsp; Ed Johnson agreed to move that process forward. Our raffle license is in order.

D. Newsletter deadlin= e: All were reminded that the deadlin= e for submission of articles is June 30, 2008.

E. Museum Brochure: Lins asked all board members to ta= ke copies of the museum’s newly redone brochure to place at outlets in and arou= nd Oconomowoc.

F. Bicycle Rack:<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Krahn requested that the museum= 217;s bike rack be placed in a convenient location. It was noted that the bike rack is= not in the best condition and the request will be considered.

G. Elk Lighting:<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Hoffman noted that some solar ligh= ting has been added to the Elk Display.

Adjournment:<= /b> Ed Johnson moved and Krahn seconded a motion to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 5:13 pm.

Submitted by Margie Krauski, Secretary