Hi everyone,
I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving full of turkey (or red lentil
loaf, if that's what your vegetarian heart desired).
Andrew did a great job compiling the notes that he, Leo, and Charlie took
during the BUBS meeting on November 14, and I have attached them here in
Word doc and .txt form, if your screen reader prefers. Below is a brief
summary.
The outcome of this meeting, which had a really nice round table discussion
addressing a lot of challenges BUBS faces, is that we agreed to create a
temporary steering committee to work on defining the structure of the
organization with the goal of having elected leadership. There were no
objections made to this decision.
At the meeting, the following people were nominated and agreed to be on the
steering committee: Leo, Dave, Chris, Inky, and Grace. The first three
objectives of the steering committee are:
1. Name of the organization
2. Getting an EIN number
3. Establishing bylaws
The steering committee is having its first meeting on Tuesday, December 4,
and will send out notes following.
A big thanks to everyone who participated in this meeting, and to everyone
who makes it possible for blind sailing to happen here in Boston. Together,
we are taking the right steps to create what Dana described - an
organization that will outlast us all!
Sail on,
Grace
BUBS Meeting Agenda
6:30 – 6:40
1. Welcome, meeting structure, moderator rules
2. Who is in attendance?
In person: Charlie Z, Inky S, Dana R, Willy F, Chris L, Christine D, Katherine
K, Duane F, Sam P, Andrew A, Leo G, Grace O
One the phone: David V, Nina K, Bill R, Jason W, Alex M, Ryck L, Pauline D, Amy
B, Carolyn P
6:40 - 6:50
3. Overview of BUBS now
a. Review mission of organization (Grace)
Original mission statement: We are a community of blind and visually impaired
sailors and sighted guides working together to sail at a highly competitive
level, by:
Promoting autonomy in sailing through training and the use of other
senses, providing blind access and inclusion to sailing and the wider sailing
community, and partnering with local, national and international sailing
organizations to expand the sport of blind sailing.
b. A brief history of BUBS (Inky)
-It began when the carroll center pulled funding for the competitive part of
sail blind
-Inky approached ABC for help
-Sailing is a sport where blind and VI people can participate competitively
-Tried to get a group together to continue
-Grace was chosen as coach with Bill
-Matt was asked to assit with training guides
-Nina as treasurer
-Grace in charge of practices
-Needing money to sail at events
-No one was paying dues or helping with fundraising
c. Recent activities update (Grace)
-Fleet racing, match racing, PHRF
-6 teams at Boston Blind open
-5 teams at Robie Pierce
-All teams medaled at worlds from BUBS
-Individuals have given multiple talks to advertise blind sailing
-Partnerships with Olin, MIT, etc.
6:50-7:20
4. Next steps: Round table discussion
6:50 – 7:00
a. Program goals
What do blind sailors and guides specifically want to get out of this program?
-Dave V. would like to see group organized into a legitimate non profit
-Pauline D. Agrees with Dave. Tells about Grace keeping group together. Wants
to see bubs grow and become more cohesive. Lack of leadership.
-Willy F. Loves sailing and wants to keep racing. Likes what Grace has done as
coach. Need to make blind sailing better known.
-Christine. Would like elections and smaller board. More clear delegation from
leadership
-Duane F. Wants to have a formalized organization. Elections, bylaws, etc.
Additionally a strong way of fundraising for travel events.
-Nina more cohesive. Previously had non-profit status but not since sailblind
-Ryck- I’m the treasurer for BSI, and intermediary for world sailing. Match
racing worlds in Scotland- Clyde YC put lots of money into the regatta. The
United States is the only country that has no national organizing authority for
blind sailing. The boston group is arguably the largest in the US. Long term
financial support for blind sailing.
-Dana R. Hopes to get a sustainable organization out of this regardless of who
is in charge so that it outlasts all the individuals. We have not been very
well organized because of too many teams. Haven’t done what we set out to do.
-Charlie Z. I think there’s a lot of agreement. This will only wok if we focus
on commonality and accept compromise. Leadership is a secondary discussion.
-Grace O. I want to see blind and VI participate in sailing at a competitive
level and with sighted people. Life for blind people is change with more
autonomy. I want to see that in sailing as well. Moving away from robo sailing.
Your guide is your teammate not the puppeteer. We’ve done a lot to change
things in the last five years.
-Charlie Z. What can we agree on? Organization, legal status?
-Chris L. We can do a 501c3, we can go under CBI but still need EIN number.
Lynn yacht club, big donation? BUBS is not listed now with the IRS. The EIN
will cost $300 then we will have 27 months to form 501c3. We need an elected
board, treasurer, and secretary. LLC or corporation also options. Would need
letter from CBI to IRS. Should be done by counsel. BUBS name has been reserved
until 12/27.
-Inky – I don’t disagree about having our own organization. I don’t want to see
blind sailors split apart.
-Chris L. The organization hasn’t been growing. We as a group need to step up.
There’s a shift in organization every three years. BUBS is where it should be
as a volunteer organization. We need annual donors and grants.
-Dave V. I wouldn’t want to see CBI as umbrella for BUBS.
-Nina. I don’t think we should be under CBI umbrella. We should be autonomous
-Charlie Z. CBI will want to be helpful. Disadvantages would be: BUBS is owned
by CBI. If someone gets hurts, who’s liable? You need a temporary ad-hoc
organization, 3-5 people with responsibilities. Draft by-laws, name, etc. A
steering committee.
-Dana R. None of this has been brought up with the board.
-Chris L. Even if we don’t use CBI, process is the same.
-Andrew A. It’s the most beneficial to make sure it’s formalized as our own
group,
-Duane F. I’d endorse a steering committee.
-Charlie Z. Any objections to forming a steering committee?
-Nina -People in the past have tried this but there wasn’t transparency.
-Charlie Z. ok, we should have a steering committee. Andrew and I can help.
-Grace O. In order… Vision-national blind sailing org with 501c3 status.
-Inky I. We needed to start somewhere. We have to think straight. Sometimes we
run too fast. Don’t be hasty. If we have personal feelings it’s not going to
work.
-Charlie Z. There are elements of personal aggravation. Focus energy on
steering committee process. You need to get past that. You are right where
startup non-profits get to. All the pieces aren’t together. No finger pointing.
Be willing to be patient. You can raise $750 if you get 50 people to donate
$20.
-Chris L. Name, bylaws, board of directors.
-Dave V. I have lots of information on how to get 501c3 status.
-Bill R. We have a blind sailing friend in the business of consulting for
fundraising orgs. He’s offered to help us. Al Specter.
-Inky I. It’s getting late.
-Members volunteer for the steering committee. The committee will be Inky,
Dave, Chris, Grace, and Leo. The focus on their upcoming meeting will be the
solidify the name, create bylaws, establish EIN, and establish next steps and
meetings.
Attachment:
11-14-2018 BUBS Meeting Notes.docx
Description: application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document
