[frgeek-michiana] MINUTES (DRAFT) OF AUGUST, 2009, BOARD/COUNCIL MEETING
- From: Tom Brown <tbrown@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: FreeGeek Michiana <frgeek-michiana@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 01 Sep 2009 09:51:15 -0400
Please comment.
Tom
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(DRAFT) BOARD/COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Present: Michael Cook, Richard Zimmerman, Thomas Brown, Imre Brassai.
Recorded by Tom.
I. Call to Order
Tom called the meeting to order at 6:30 PM.
II. Officer Reports
Mike forgot to bring the accounting reports, but he said our funds have
changed little since last month.
Tom gave a recap of recent activity regarding finding a new building and
packing to leave our current facility which is simply a repeat of what
he has posted to the public mailing list so it won't be included here.
III. Mike's Visit to Bridges to Digital Excellence
http://www.pointclickachieve.org/main.html
BDE (Bridges to Digital Excellence) invited a representative from FGM to
visit with the principals at BDE. Mike was elected to represent us at
the meeting.
BDE is a 501c3 nonprofit which is funded by grants, contracts with the
State of Michigan and the support of several large corporations
including Whirlpool. BDE has three basic programs: Computers in the
Home, Senior Net and Job Empowerment. Computers in the Home distributes
free computers (min. P3/800) to families which have no computer in their
home. Senior Net teaches seniors to use computers and is conducted with
the support of Agency on Aging. Job Empowerment offers a 5 week basic
class centered on MS XP and MS Office and a 3 week advanced class
(database and web development) also based on MS products. BDE is
considering or planning to offer IT support to other nonprofits. BDE is
also considering or planning an e-recycling and e-reuse program.
The primary difference between FGM and BDE is our respective choices for
software. BDE has a strong, nearly exclusive, preference for Microsoft
products whereas FGM has a strong, nearly exclusive, preference for FOSS
(Free and Open Source Software).
BDE adminstrators are offering computers, some storage space and
fundraising help to us. In return, they would like to combine
e-recycling and e-reuse programs to achieve better revenue with an
economy of scale. BDE may be considering extending their programs into
the South Bend area at some time in the future.
BDE administrators want to visit us and will call me (Tom) to confirm
the visit.
IV. 501c3 Update
According to the staff at Bridges to Digital Excellence, they filed a
501c3 application in April of this year and received approval 2-3 months
later. Imre and Tom will meet Saturday, August 29, to review drafts of
the narrative report for our 501c3 application and write a final draft.
The narrative report is the last step prior to submitting the
application to our pro bono attorney for review.
V. Adjournment
The library now closes at 8:00 PM so we adjourned the meeting at 7:50 PM.
VII. Next Meeting
The next meeting will be 6:30 PM, September 29, 2009, at the St. Joseph
County Public Library. Tom will reserve a room and announce the meeting
as soon as the room reservation is confirmed by the library.
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