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BROOKLINE SNOWMOBILE CLUB MEETING
DECEMBER 1, 2007
The meeting was held at Bob and Kaye Wistrom’s house and was called to order at 7:40. There were ten members present.
The Secretary’s Report was read and accepted. The Treasurer’s Report was read and accepted and showed an ending balance of $1345.40.
OLD BUSINESS
1) Kay Wistrom reported that Chris Duke said they have 14 people registered so far for the Snowmobile Safety Course scheduled for Dec. 15th. Jim Rogers will get lunch for all students up to $150.00 as previously voted on.
2) April reported that Frank Rucker said the Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund has a balance of $17,742.00 which earns interested at a rate of about 5%. We discussed the possibility of this fund becoming self-perpetuating when it reaches about $20-$21,000.00 at which time the interest alone would be about $1000.00.
3) We discussed the difference in resident vs. non-resident TMA’s for those who were unsure of the particulars.
NEW BUSINESS:
1) John Eyes brought up the subject of the bridges behind his house. He said the furthest one is in need of decking which he will get from the town yard. The club will fix the bridge properly this coming summer and possibly seek a construction grant from VAST for this project.
2) There will be a work party at 9 a.m. on Dec. 15th at Nelson Fontaine’s house to fix and construct drags for the upcoming season. Janet will send out an email reminding everyone of this.
3) We discussed our Trail Fund and General Fund. We presently have about $850 in the Trail Fund. We just received our start-up check from VAST for grooming which amounted to $128.00. Discussed difference in corridor and feeder trails and where our Route 35 runs. It was brought up that the trail near the bridge across the street from Eye’s house needs work, possibly shifting slightly where the bridge is located.
4) Discussed the possibility of getting a 4 foot wide groomer for our trails. If this turns out and we do get it, we’ll notify landowners so they will be aware of this.
5) Bridge near Ward’s house needs work – the log is settling and some of the deck boards need replacing.
6) Janet will be sending out emails and posting to the website encouraging people to take their chain saws out with them on the first ride to help clear any problems on the trails.
7) Discussed trail change on Billy Ryan’s property in Townshend. The trail again goes down his driveway, past the cellar hole. This change will be signed.
The meeting adjourned at 9 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Janet English, Secretary
BROOKLINE SNOWMOBILE CLUB MEETING
NOVEMBER 3, 2007
The meeting was held at Bob Samuelson’s house and there were 18 members present.
The Secretary’s report was read and accepted. The Treasurer’s report was read and showed an ending balance of $1497.58 which consisted of $856.80 in the Trails Fund and $640.78 in the General Fund.
OLD BUSINESS: None
NEW BUSINESS:
1) Meeting dates were discussed and the following were agreed upon:
Dec. 1 – Bob and Kaye Wistrom’s house, 99 Derry Lane, Townshend.
Jan. 5 – Donald and Sheila Gokey’s house. Grassy Brook Rd., Brookline.
Feb. 2 – Nelson and Charlotte Fontaine’s house, Grassy Brook Rd., Brookline.
Mar. 1 – Ruthie and Fred Warren’s house, Hill Rd., Brookline.
April 5 – Joe and Gayle Juhasz’s house, Higgins Hill Rd., Townshend.
2) Safety course – Jim Rogers and Chris Duke with the assistance of Nelson King from Grafton will hold a snowmobile safety course on December 15th at the Newbrook Firehouse. This is required for any person driving a snowmobile who was born after July 1, 1983 and/or is going to be 12 before April 15, 2008. Children under 12 can take the course, but will not receive a certificate and will have to retake it to get their certificate. Any young person 12 or under must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian, not just an adult. There will be a limit to 15 or 20 participants and they must pre-register (802-365-7951) so Jim can get the materials for the course. The course is for 6 hours and lunch will be provided by our club. There is no fee for the course, but a donation box will be available. The club voted to give money for the lunch, not to exceed $150.00 for a maximum of 20 persons.
3) Fred Robinson Steak Cookout - The Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund Steak Cookout will be held on Feb. 16th at noon a Howard Osgood’s field. Ruthie Warren will be in charge. More details will be discussed as we get closer to February.
4) April stated she had a letter from Frank Rucker about the Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund but had left it home. She’ll bring it next month.
5) We discussed having a Radar Run again. The manpower issue is the main problem. The fire department meets the first Tuesday of each month and Donald Gokey will see if they are willing to participate in helping with the work, cooking, etc.
6) We discussed having spontaneous get-togethers once the snow season is here, notifying members via email, phone and bulletin boards. Donald offered to make 3 or 4 which we can put out on the trails at major intersections.
7) Work parties – There will be a work party on 12/15 at Nelson’s house to put together new drags for grooming. Donald will check on bolts needed for this job. The Trailmasters will set up work parties for trail work at a later date and will order needed signs.
8) Jim Rogers reported that Parkers Landing is now a safer place to ride. It was also reported that the crossing near Bovat’s house will change this year with the trail going along side their driveway rather than right on it.
9) Sheila reported the Kendra Brooks will be helping her with the membership work this year and there will be two phone numbers for people to call to get TMAs. She also told us about a jamboree scheduled for the benefit of Kristen Derry who is in rehab in Keene and Mark Morris from Townshend. It will be held at the VFW on November 18th from 1 to 6 p.m.
10) Bob Wistrom reported clearing trails with his neighbor for 5 hours recently and told exactly where they worked.
11) Volunteer TMAs – We will be getting 8 volunteer TMAs this year ($25.00). There was a list of 28 eligible members and the following names were drawn:
Richard Anderberg, Bernie English, Fred Warren, Lee Severence, Nelson Fontaine, Janet English, Charlotte Fontaine, Sheila Gokey. The runners up were: Mike Fontaine, John Morrison, and Judd Zyskowski. Any of the first 8 who are not interested in receiving a reduced rate TMA should notify Sheila be Dec. 1st so she can give them to the runners up.
12) A motion was made and passed to make a memorial donation to Grace Cottage Hospital in Cliff Passino’s fathers name as he passed away recently.
13) A motion was made and passed to keep the same slate of officers for this year.
The meeting was adjourned at 9 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Janet English,
Secretary
BROOKLINE SNOWMOBILE CLUB MEETING
APRIL 14, 2007
The meeting was held at John and Pat Eye’s house; there were 21 members present. The Secretary’s report was read and accepted. The Treasurer’s report was read and accepted and showed an ending balance of $1961.98
OLD BUSINESS:
1) The Finance Committee had met and had the following recommendations: $700 will be given to the Newbrook Fire Department and $200 to the Brookline Lifelong Scholarship Fund. That would leave $453.58 in the General Fund for start-up next season to cover mailings, VAST meeting dinner, etc. The Trail Fund has a balance of $508 at this time. After some discussion, these recommendations were voted on and passed
2) Daryl brought up the subject of either donating money to members in need or having a fund-raiser for that purpose. He was told if he chose to run a fund-raiser our club would help him and support this effort 100%.
3) It was decided to have a committee to discuss the future plans for the Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund. The Finance Committee suggested possibly giving all the money donated to the fund itself to build it up, as the student probably gets $500-$600 from the interested in that fund. It was suggested that the goal be to get the fund up to about $20,000. In June 2005 the fund at $14,987 in it in government bonds. Ruthie, April and Bernie volunteered to be on the committee and Ruthie said her daughter Linda would want to be also. April will send a letter asking Fred Rucker for an up-to-date accounting of the status of the scholarship fund.
NEW BUSINESS:
1) John Morrison reported on a recent meeting for Windham, Windsor and Bennington which was held to discuss proposed changes to the VAST TMA's. Details of this meeting are attached.
2) Sheila will not be doing membership in the fall and we need to find someone else to do this important job.
3) Discussion about making new drags. Fred offered to make some. We need to take an inventory of what materials we now have.
4) John Morrison brought up the possibility that the Townshend club might want to join up with ours.
5) We discussed having an informal picnic this summer.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:40.
Respectfully submitted,
Janet English,
Secretary
BROOKLINE SNOWMOBILE CLUB MEETING
MARCH 3, 2007
The meeting was held at Joe and Gayle Juhasz’s house and was called to order at 7:35. There were 17 members present.
The Secretary’s Report was read and accepted; the Treasurer’s Report was read and accepted, showing an ending balance of $3332.88. Monies have to be sent to VAST for TMA’s, so we’ll have a more accurate balance after that has been done. We went over the formula for the Trail and General Fund – Any money received from VAST for grooming is divided up, 80% for the Trail Fund and 20% for the General Fund. Any money collected from dues, etc., - 50% for Trail Fund and 50% for the General Fund.
OLD BUSINESS:
1) Ruthie Warren reported that the total proceeds from the Fred Robinson Steak Cookout was $1570.00. Of that, $287.00 was from the raffle and $81.00 for the 50/50 raffle. The meat cost $850.00 and charcoal was $15.00, for a total profit of $705.00.
2) Joe reported on the research he and Gayle did on the old club paperwork. The following is the only information found concerning the Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund:
1/76 – A thank you note from the Robinson family to the club for a fruit basket and some meat.
2/77 – The club made a $25 donation to the Brandon Training School in Fred’s name.
5/31/78 – This was the first mention of the Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund. The club voted at a regular meeting to give $50 to the fund for “a student attending VT Tech.” The club also agreed to hold an annual ride to benefit the Fred Robinson Fund. This ride was in addition to the existing annual ride to benefit Grace Cottage Hospital.
2/25/84 – Club decided to give ½ of the money raised to the fund and ½ to the student.
11/28/87 – There was a discussion concerning asking Ruby Robinson to consider changing the eligibility rules for the scholarship as no student had attended VT Tech in two years.
1/88 – Ruby Robinson agreed to give the scholarship first to a student going to VT Tech., secondly to a student from Brookline or Newfane going to a technical school, and finally to any student going to a technical school.
NEW BUSINESS:
1) Discussion of amount to give to Scholarship Fund this year. There was a motion which was seconded and voted upon to give a total of $800.00 - $500 to the student and $300 to the fund. It is our understanding that the student also receives the interest from the fund. A letter will be sent with the check, requesting that when the scholarship is given out, it is specifically stated that it is from the Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund.
2) Bernie suggested that we form a committee to discuss the plans for this scholarship fund. This will be discussed more next meeting and anyone can volunteer to be on this committee.
3) Bernie said that trail reports are being posted on our website and asked that people notify Janet of any trail conditions in the area so she can add that to the information.
4) Daryl asked if the groomers receive compensation for their fuel or replacement belts, saying that without these groomers the rest of the membership would not have the great riding that they had been having. Nelson suggested that the groomers do the work because they like to and that they don’t expect payment.
5) Derf said he is willing to drag this week while he is up in VT and will borrow Bernie’s drag after the meeting.
6) Joe said Dave Fontaine had one at his house that we should pick up.
7) Janet brought up that the club had not made a donation to Newbrook Fire Dept. this year and the Finance Committee will meet soon to discuss that.
The meeting adjourned at 8:30.
Respectfully submitted,
Janet English, Secretary
BROOKLINE SNOWMOBILE CLUB MEETING MINUTES
FEBRUARY 3, 2007
The meeting was held at John and Pat Eye’s house and was called to order at 7:40. There were 11 members present. The Secretary’s report was read and accepted after revising and clarifying the VAST liability insurance as follows: Our VAST Route 35 trail is a VAST corridor trail and is covered by VAST’s liability insurance as well as the rest of our local club trails.
There was no Treasurer’s report.
OLD BUSINESS:
1) Question and discussion about whether TMA’s are required on all snowmobiles. It was explained that state law requires this. Question whether VAST would ever consider a “family membership” for TMA purchases.
2) We need to contact April regarding the separation of Trail fund and General fund monies and Janet will do that.
3) Discussion about grooming contract.
NEW BUSINESS:
1) Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund Steak Cookout is coming in two weeks. Bernie will contact Ruth Warren to see if she and her committee are all set and an email will go out to members reminding them of this event.
2) Gayle Juhasz will be researching old snowmobile club paperwork to see if there is any information there on the initial intent of the Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund – how long it is to be funded by the club and if it is to eventually become self-perpetuating.
The meeting adjourned at 8:25 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Janet English,
Secretary
BROOKLINE SNOWMOBILE CLUB MEETING
JANUARY 6, 2007
The meeting was held at Ruth and Fred Warren’s house and was brought to order at 7:35. There were 17 members present. The Secretary’s report was read and accepted. The Treasurer was not present, but she’d sent in a report showing a balance of $1733.35.
OLD BUSINESS:
1) We discussed which fund the previous balance of $1177.00 should should be put. A motion was made, seconded and passed to put that amount in the General Fund in order to have funds available for the initial purchase of meat for the Fred Robinson Steak Cookout in February.
2) Ruthie brought up her idea of a fund-raiser for a club member who needed surgery and this was discussed, as well as the recommendation of the Finance Committee and the reasoning behind it.
3) Janet reported that Gene Litch had called to say that he and a friend had worked on the trail in Putney going around the beaver pond and it’s all cleared and will be marked very soon. Right now Putney needs to put in two small bridges, but needs cold weather and snow in order to do that. They have a 30 foot pallet which they will be using. When those bridges are completed, snowmobilers will have access to food and gas in Putney.
4) Donald Gokey reported on various trails which need work and which have been worked on.
5) A question was brought up about whether all our trails were VAST trails and Bernie explained that they are all covered by VAST liability insurance.
6) Landowner thank you letters have gone out and a few returned so those addresses will be deleted from the landowner list. Janet read a letter from one landowner praising our maintenance of the trail on his property and mentioned that a small bridge might need repair.
NEW BUSINESS:
1) It is still too wet to work on trails so as soon as it gets colder, work parties will be set up.
The meeting adjourned at 8:15.
Respectfully submitted,
Janet English,
Secretary
BROOKLINE SNOWMOBILE CLUB MEETING
DECEMBER 2, 2006
The meeting was held at Bob Samuelson’s house and began at 7:35. There were 13 members present. The Secretary’s Report was read and accepted; the Treasurer’s Report was read and accepted and showed a current balance of $1177.00.
OLD BUSINESS:
1) The By-Laws discussed last week were voted on and amended as of this date.
2) Daisy Anderberg gave a report on the Finance Committee’s suggestions. They are as follows:
A) We should have two separate funds – a General Fund and a Trails Fund.
B) The General Fund would consist of 50% of collected dues and 20% of VAST grooming income.
C) The Trail Fund would consist of 50% of collected dues and 80% of VAST grooming income. Income from VAST is based on the previous year’s grooming weeks. This year our grooming cap will be $871.20. We will receive a minimum of $435.60 if we have another “brown” year.
D) The General Fund would be used for the following: Postage and office supplies, VAST Annual Meeting tickets, Rounding up of fund raisers, Memorial Donations (not to exceed $50.) for landowner or immediate family of active club members, club stickers, website maintenance.
E) The Trail Fund would be used for the following: Trail improvement, equipment, Redirecting of trails (in the event land was not available), Bridges and bridge repair, diesel fuel and gas for equipment, welding (bridge repair behind Osgood’s farm)
F) An example of “rounding up” of fund raisers: For instance, if the Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund Steak Cookout made a profit of $767.00, we would round that figure up to $800.00 from the general fund. The same would be done for the Fire Dept. or any other fund raising effort.
G) This is only a proposal and could be readdressed at the end of the 2006-7 snowmobile year.
Nelson brought up that the Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund is to be in existence until and/or if the club votes to stop having fundraisers for this fund.
3) Grooming contract this year consists of 5 ½ weeks based on last years lack of snow. We can request additional weeks if we have a long snow season.
4) No report on bridge at Osgood’s Field or any progress on West River bridge project.
5) Ruth Warren and her committee have decided to price the Fred Robinson Steak Cookout at $12 a dinner. Janet will put it in the website and notify VAST to make that change on their Events page.
6) The New Events Committee has not yet met. A Poker Run for the benefit of the fire department was discussed with a possible chili cookout afterward. The committee will meet and let us know their recommendations.
NEW BUSINESS:
1) If the trailmasters come up with work party dates, they will notify Janet so it can go on the website. Trail behind Eye’s is clear as well as trail from above Elliott’s house to the power lines but with the recent wind, they may need more work. Trail behind Tom Brook’s house has a tree down. More discussion on trail to Airport.
2) Nelson has lots of bed springs which can be used for drags. He will purchase chain from W.W
3) No one has offered help for Sheila as yet.
4) Discussed landowner thank you event and letter. It was decided to send out a letter this month to them
5) Daisy reported that Brown Enterprises is sponsoring a snowmobiling trip to Quebec at St. Zenons. It will be held Feb. 12-22, 3 nights, $350/person which includes breakfast, dinner, and a tour guide. If anyone is interested, call Steve or John at 802-824-3444. Janet will send out a email about this.
The meeting adjourned at 8:30.
Respectfully submitted,
Janet English, Secretary
THE BROOKLINE SNOWMOBILE CLUB MEETING
NOVEMBER 4, 2006
The meeting was called to order at 7:35. There were 13 members present. The Secretary’s report was read and accepted. There was no Treasurer’s report, although the Treasurer had notified us that the balance remained $1297.00
OLD BUSINESS:
1) Joe reported that the By-Laws committee had met and he handed out the proposed amended
version. Members will look this over and we will vote next week on this.
2) Bernie reported that he had talked to John Boyle from the Townshend snowmobile club. John said that Don Williams will continue being present of that club and we are all pleased about that. They will have permission from Brown to use his driveway but it cannot be used until it has been plowed. Charles property has great trails which have been maintained mainly by the ATV group in that area.
3) The Finance Committee has not met as yet.
NEW BUSINESS:
1) A motion was made for the slate of officers to remain the same. This motion was seconded, voted upon and passed.
2) Sheila reported that during this membership season she will not be home until after 5:30 to receive phone calls, so asked if we would put in the newsletter that she is looking for assistance this year with the membership drive. We will be stressing mailing in the TMA forms in our newsletter also. We will definitely need a co-chair next year for this job. We will also put in the newsletter that club memberships can be sent in now and TMA’s purchased later on.
3) The eligible volunteers for a reduced TMA ($25) are as follows: Nelson Fontaine, Charlotte Fontaine, Daryl Graves, Mike Winot, Daisy Anderberg, Richard Anderberg, Ruthie Warren, Bob Samuelson, Tom Brooks, John Morrison, Debbie Pierson, Lee Severance, John Eyes, Pat Eyes, April Wellman, Donald Gokey, Sheila Davis, Bernie English, Janet English, Joe Juhasz, Josh Fontaine, Mike Fontaine, Billy Statts, Colin Nystrom, Buster Dowley, and Judd Zyskowski.
Nine names were drawn and the following will receive reduced TMA’s if so desired: Bob Samuelson, Colin Nystrom, Janet English, Josh Fontaine, Donald Gokey, April Wellman, Joe Juhasz, Judd Zyskowski, and Ruth Warren.
The other eligible volunteers will receive a free club membership. The reduced TMA’s must be purchased by December 31st, 2005, or they will be given to the “runner’s up” on the volunteer list.
Names were drawn from a list of those who groom and Nelson Fontaine will receive the free grooming TMA this year.
4) Ruth had called the Englishes to ask if the club wanted to raise the price of the steaks for the February Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund Steak Cookout. We decided to leave that up to Ruth and her committee. She also had some suggestions about charitable donations and the members decided to leave that discussion to the Finance Committee. We will be putting information about the steak cookout in the newsletter, asking for volunteers to help out with that event.
5) It was decided to keep the club dues the same - $10.00 per person.
6) The New Events Committee has not met yet and Janet will write to April as a reminder. We discussed possibly a poker run and how that works.
7) Work parties will be set up by the Trailmasters. Donald reported he had cleaned up the trail on Putney Mountain as well as the trail between Judd’s and Rink’s Camp.
The meeting adjourned at 8:50.
Respectfully submitted,
Janet English, Secretary
BROOKLINE SNOWMOBILE CLUB MEETING
OCTOBER 7, 2006
The meeting was called to order at 7:30. There were 18 members present. The Secretary’s Report was read and accepted. The Treasurer’s Report was read and accepted and showed a balance of $1297.00.
OLD BUSINESS:
1) Bernie has not yet met with the Finance Committee but will set up a meeting soon to come up with a proposed budget for our club.
2) John Eyes reports that both bridges are still standing behind his house, although one will probably need more work in the next year or so.
NEW BUSINESS:
1) Discussed the Annual VAST Meeting which Bernie and Janet attended. Windham County had 9 delegates. It was reported at that meeting that registrations were down last year by 8%, TMA sales down by 22%, and total TMAs sold was about 26,000. Proposed budget for 2007 is for 30,000 members, which is down 5,000 from last year’s budget.
2) Discussed the “ancient roads” issue and John Morrison explained that to the group.
3) Set up a By-Laws Committee to go over the present by-laws and come up with proposed changes. This will be chaired by Joe Juhasz with Gayle Juhasz, Bob Samuelson, John Morrison and Janet English volunteering to be on the committee. Both the By-Laws Committee and Finance Committee will meet within the next month and report back at the next meeting.
4) Set up our meetings for the coming season. Club meetings will be on the first Saturday of each month at 7:30.
November 4th at Nelson and Charlotte Fontaine’s house, Grassy Brook Rd.
December 2nd at Bob Samuelson’s house on School Marm Lane, Townshend.
January 6th at Ruth and Fred Warren’s house on Hill Rd., Brookline.
February 3rd at John and Pat Eye’s house on Grassy Brook Rd., Brookline.
March 3rd at Joe and Gayle Juhasz’s house on Higgins Hill Rd., Townshend.
April 14th at John and Pat Eye’s house on Grassy Brook Rd., Brookline.
5) Janet is continuing to work on the website although it isn’t completely “up” as yet. We plan on having Trail Reports and various links available, plus some advertising.
6) John Morrison brought up the problem of the stream behind Osgood’s field. Bridges have been put there in the past but haven’t lasted long. Howard Osgood has okayed putting a culvert in this area. John Swing and Jim Rogers have offered to do the cutting the digging needed for this project, using their equipment. They only ask that our club reimburse them for the fuel used. A motion was made and voted on to pay up to $500 in fuel costs for this project. Bernie pointed out that some of our VAST money for grooming could be put aside for projects such as this and this will be discussed at the Finance Meeting.
7) Discussed the status of the Townshend Club. It was reported that John Boyle may be taking over as President. Bernie will be getting in touch with him soon to discuss of the VAST trail in Townshend and Brookline.
8) Discussed the fact that a house is going in directly on our trail off of Taft Rd. in Townshend. Joe has met with the owner, Billy Ryan, and he has said we can reroute the trail on his property. Across the road is another sign that says “Trail Closed – Use Ridge Lane”, so that has be looked into also.
9) The Trailmasters will be setting up a work party within the next two months
10) We will have 9 volunteer TMA’s available this year. Our volunteer list remains the same as last year with the addition of John and Pat Eyes and April Wellman. Eligibility continues to be 15 hours of volunteer work the previous season.
11) April mentioned that Dummerston would be interested in connecting their trails and ours on a map.
12) Bob mentioned that he had walked the power lines to Taft Rd. They have logged in there and he feels that it would make a nice trail with the exception of two brooks which we would have cross.
13) Ruthie brought up the Fred Robinson Scholarship Fund Steak Cookout. She would like to have it on Feb. 17th and Howard Osgood has offered his field. Ruth will be heading up the committee on this event.
14) There will be no Radar Run schedule this year, but the New Events Committee (April Wellman, chairperson, Nelson, Charlotte, Joe and Gayle) will come up with some ideas for different events for the coming season.
The meeting closed at 8:30.
Respectfully Submitted,
Janet English, Secretary
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