Bellefonte Historical and Cultural Association
Bellefonte, Pennsylvania
Minutes of Past Meetings
Minutes for Wednesday, March 19, 2003
7:30 p.m. at the Centre County Library and Historical Museum
Attending: Helen Bechdel, Vana Dainty, Bob Fenichel, True Fisher, Liz Goehring, Dick Knupp, Susan Knupp, Dave Kurtz, Sharon McCarthy, Romayne Naylor (President), Colleen Pike Blair (Secretary), Sam Totor (Arts Administrator), Kitty Wunderly.
The meeting was convened at 7:30 p.m. with brief introductions.
Review of minutes: In the interest of streamlining the evening's activities, minutes from the last meeting were not presented.
Treasurer's Report: Copies of the financial report were distributed and briefly reviewed; discussion was postponed due to the absence of Dave Eggler.
Art Administrator’s Report: Correspondence was distributed. We noted the beautiful new ad, designed by Jim Dunne, in the 2003 BICC Information Guide. The Art Alliance is seeking participants in a fundraising project, a calendar featuring black and white photos and a listing of local arts-related non-profit organizations. The deadline for submitting a request for listing is April 15; BHCA's participation in this will be considered in Executive Committee. Sam has been in touch with the Pennsylvania Rural Arts Alliance (PRAA), the new regional administrator of PCA funds, regarding our annual grant application. This will be the first year BHCA has applied for state funding through PRAA, instead of directly to the PCA; we noted that the reduction in state funding for the arts could be reflected in the level of support we receive from PRAA. Sam concluded his report with an update on BHCA's Annual Fundraising Campaign: contributions to date come to ~$1,985. This is approximately one-third less than what was collected last year at this time.
Standing Committees
Standard reports from the committees were expanded to include brief descriptions of how each committee works, and examples of recent programs and exhibits. An attachment to the minutes includes contact information for all committees.
BHCA Gallery at the Gamble Mill: Sharon McCarthy reported. This committee meets several times over the course of the year to review submissions and develop group exhibits. Committee members share the various curatorial tasks, as well as those involved with installation and gallery publicity. Anyone interested in helping with this committee can contact the new chair, Buzz Evers.
The schedule for 2003:
Jan. 11-March 22 "Through Our Lens"; InFocus (photography) (Reception Jan. 21)
Artists: Lois Chavern, Cheri Harte, Barb Huntley, Jeanne Miller, Tina Clinefelter, Mona Hill, Marianne Karwacki, Carolyn Smith.
March 22-June 21 "Soliloquies with the Sublime"; mixed media (Reception Mar. 25)
Artists: Holly Fritchman, Sarah S. Harvey, Sarah Berndt.
June 21-September 13 Title TBA; oils and watercolors (Reception June 24)
Artists: Marty Edmunds, Jeff Edmunds, Perry Winkler, William Snyder II
September 13-early Jan. 2004 Title TBA; student show (Reception September 16)
Artists: Students of Ruth Kempner.
Old House Fair: Romayne Naylor reported. Past workshops have brought in local preservation/restoration/landscaping experts to guide participants through the process of determining the best and most economic methods of caring for historic (or even just plain "old") homes. This committee has been dormant; Colina Jordan has recently been developing plans for an upcoming seminar. Kitty Wunderly volunteered to help out with this committee. Helen distributed a brochure for a borough-sponsored workshop, "Preservation Doesn't Cost ...It Pays", to be held on Saturday, May 3`d at the Garman. Three speakers will address historic preservation, downtown revitalization and historic district administration (for more information contact Sue Hannegan at 355-1501).
Summer Sounds: Romayne reported for Joann Knupp. This group meets a couple of times to review applications and develop a season of informal Sunday night concerts in Talleyrand Park (the season runs from mid-June through early August). Individual committee members choose one or two concerts to supervise each year; this involves acting as liaison with the band/performer, attending that concert as a contact person and in order to collect donations (admission to all concerts is free). Currently the committee is exploring the idea of expanding the season: either to include some Saturday night concerts, or to extend the concerts until the end of August. This year the committee is in need of one or two volunteers to help supervise a couple of concerts: please contact Joann Knupp if you are interested and would like to see a schedule for summer 2003. Vana Dainty offered to help out.
Film Forum: Helen, Bob and Liz reported. This committee meets several times to explore and develop theme ideas, review film suggestions, and ultimately to select two to three films and appropriate speaker(s) once a theme is identified (focus is on films that speak to local concerns). The panel discussion and audience participation in forums is highly valued. The group will meet in April to seek a new venue (since the sad closing of Adam & Art) and to develop a forum for 2003. This committee refuses to have a chair or anything even remotely resembling a chair, however any of the committee members listed on the contact sheet would be delighted to answer any further questions, hear suggestions, and/or provide a schedule of upcoming meetings.
Library Concerts: Jim Dunne submitted a written report. The concert series runs from early winter through the following spring and is coordinated by Diane Gold Toulson; performances take place in the Centre County Library and Historical Museum. There are three Sunday Afternoons at the Library remaining in the 2002-2003 schedule:
March 23 Easterly Chamber Ensemble
April 27 Victorian Brass Ensemble
May 11 Susan Boardman, Lyric Soprano; Elena Panchenko, piano
Victorian Christmas Arts and Crafts: True Fisher reported. The work of this committee involves a couple of meetings to develop a lineup of vendors, confirm location and recruit volunteers to assist in setup/cleanup during the weekend of Victorian Christmas. The arts and crafts show is a popular community event, successful for most vendors, and a big fundraiser for BHCA (True noted that a portion of the earnings is shared with Victorian Christmas, Inc.). More volunteers are always needed during the busy weekend of the event, and assistance with the advance planning is welcome.
Local Government Grants: Sam reported for Gay Dunne. BHCA assists in administering funds granted by PCA to the Borough of Bellefonte. This committee helps review grant applications and recommends groups/projects to be funded. Some examples of programs that received a local government grant include the Children's Theatre, Pennsylvania Dance Theatre, Bellefonte Museum for Centre County, and special photographic exhibits held at Adam & Art.
Special Literary Events: Romayne reported that while there is no formal committee, BHCA has periodically sponsored presentations of new literary works by local authors.
Old Business
Iron bench project: True Fisher, Sue Hannegan and Ann Jacobs have been working with the Borough to replace the Talleyrand Park benches. Financial sponsors include: Centre County Community Foundation, HBI, Talleyrand Park Committee and Community Block Grant. The money is now in place; the benches will be installed following a test drive of one iron bench. During this report, True somehow managed to work in a history-in-anutshell of the genesis of BHCA: Long ago, the Talleyrand Park Committee and The Project for the Performing Arts Theatre Group pooled their resources, their mailing expenses, and their passion for the arts. They came up with many new ideas, did everything themselves and went so far as to incorporate it all as BHCA.
New Brochure: Sam has distributed some copies; he invites suggestions for other locations. We noted that the Visitor Centre requires a hefty fee for the privilege of displaying brochures in that facility: as we still don't know the outcome of the 95 dollars' worth of Kaiser rolls (Dave's keeping us in suspense on this one), we are not eager to seek out locations for the brochure that actually cost money.
New Business
Internet service provider: Sam reported that vicon's service has been inconsistent and problematic; he requested a discussion on how to go about selecting a new provider. Bob gave an update on the status of vicon (defunct) and reported favorably on his recent experience in switching providers for the Art Alliance (from vicon to pennswoods). Bob made a motion that the Executive Committee look into establishing a BHCA domain and website listing through pennswoods. Sharon seconded; the motion was approved.
Other: Dave Kurtz reported that his Mach 1 Kayak Team is interested in creating a new building at the Sunnyside Paddling Park for boat storage, combined with some type of public venue (e.g. visitor's center, boat museum, limestone museum, Spring Creek museum).
Next meeting: BHCA will meet again on June 18 at 7:30 p.m., at a location to be announced. Executive Committee will meet on April 9, 7:30 p.m., at Colleen's. Tonight's meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m.
BHCA Financial Report
March 19, 2003
|
|
7/1/99-6/30/00 |
7/1/00-6/30/01 |
7/1/01-6/30/02 |
7/1/02-3/19/03 |
2002-2003 FY Budget |
INCOME |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Interest |
1,140 |
1,335 |
192 |
524 |
1,000 |
|
Other Administration |
3,027 |
2,987 |
2,341 |
2,826 |
2,987 |
|
Film Forum |
1,214 |
0 |
175 |
37 |
0 |
|
General fundraising |
3,295 |
2,805 |
2,765 |
1,735 |
3,000 |
|
Gallery at Gamble Mill |
1,508 |
888 |
2,436 |
1,713 |
1,900 |
|
LGG Administration |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Old House Fair |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Summer Sounds |
2,323 |
1,187 |
2,778 |
1,084 |
2,000 |
|
Victorian Christmas |
5,332 |
4,689 |
4,445 |
3,670 |
4,450 |
|
Other projects |
_9_ |
_37_ |
_65_ |
_0_ |
50 |
|
TOTAL |
17,847 |
13,927 |
15,197 |
11,589 |
15,387 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
EXPENSES |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Administration |
4,651 |
5,872 |
6,215 |
6,324 |
6,600 |
|
Film Forum |
1,602 |
37 |
849 |
971 |
900 |
|
General fundraising |
103 |
165 |
128 |
237 |
200 |
|
Gallery at Gamble Mill |
2,603 |
2,748 |
3,193 |
1,656 |
2,800 |
|
25th Anniversary |
n.a. |
n.a. |
775 |
n.a. |
n.a. |
|
LGG Administration |
1,603 |
1,314 |
602 |
146 |
1,000 |
|
Old House Fair |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Summer Sounds |
1,757 |
1,425 |
2,315 |
863 |
1,400 |
|
Victorian Christmas |
3,055 |
2,711 |
2,649 |
2,280 |
2,700 |
|
Other projects |
101 |
_21_ |
_0_ |
_0_ |
100 |
|
TOTAL |
15,473 |
14,292 |
16,725 |
12,477 |
15,700 |
ASSETS 3/19/03
Checking 16,170 General BHCA 20,019
Savings 6,119 Garden Club 2,019
MM Fund 6,115 Talleyrand Park 18,367
CD’s 12,000 TOTAL 40,405
TOTAL 40,405
Submitted: David H. Eggler, Treas.
Talleyrand Park Committee has received $14,250 in grants for the park bench project. General BHCA finances for the rest of the FY look “iffy” – little income but usual expenses.