Rotary Foundation of Media

Minutes of the Board of Directors August 30, 2016

Members present: Govinda Malya, Gary Zebrowski, Bryan Messick, Dennis Slostad, Larry Smoose

Others present: Dan Lievens, Peter Mardinly Members Excused: Courtney Ballauer, Nancy Geisel

That meeting was called to order at 8:05 a.m. The minutes were accepted as presented.

Treasurer’s report: Gary reported that he has filed the Federal 990-N for 2015-16 and is in the process of filing the Pennsylvania BCO-10 and BCO-23. There is about $27,000 in the checking account with some funds still to be received from the club. Peter indicated that his records show a bit over $10,000 due from the Newspaper Supplement and the Motorcycle Raffle.

Under Treasurer’s report, the federal form is a 990-N.

An email address for the foundation has been established: RotaryFoundationofMedia@gmail.com The board agreed that RFM officers should have access to the password, but that the president will be the primary recipient of emails and forward on to board members and others pertinent material.

The board also discussed the website for the Rotary Foundation of Media (RFM) which is presently part of the club website, maintained by Virginia Falkenbach. They agreed that it will be better to be part of the club website, but will explore having the possibility of giving direct access with an URL such as Mediarotary.org/foundation.

The design of the new letterhead and grant application form were well-received. The final wording of the non-profit disclosure at the bottom of the letterhead was agreed to and will be sent by Govinda to Courtney who did the design. The board agreed that when printing the letterhead “Rotary blue” ink is preferable.

With regards to the Grant Application Form, members approved the form with the request that the email address and website be added.

Govinda suggested that a few “form” letters be developed as the basis for acknowledging grant requests, notifying applicants of the acceptance or denial of their grant request and to thank

donors of fund-raising events for their contributions. He will work on initial drafts of these “standard” letters.

Single Source Model

The Single Source Model, namely that monies from all fund-raising events be channeled through the RFM and that all grant requests be channeled through and approved or denied by the RFM, has been suggested as the best way to delineate between the work of the club board and the foundation board and at the same time, the best opportunity to work together as two arms of the same organization. Clear guidelines and good communication are at the heart of the success of this new venture.

The process of applying for grants and the frequency of awarding grants is one dimension that needs clarity. The Grant Proposal Form, approved above is the beginning point. The board agreed that there would be no distinction of applying for or making decisions between major (over $1000) and minor (under $1000) grants. The deadline for applying for grants will be July 1, October 1, January 1 and April 1. Recognizing the importance of good communication between the club and the foundation, all grants will be reported to the club, club members and the club board may make requests for grants and major grants will include club discussion and input prior to any decision made by the foundation board. However, to preserve the role and legal requirements of the foundation, all votes to approve grant requests will be made by the board of the RFM.

Another topic regarding grants was whether to have guidelines for the amount given to local needs versus national and international needs and reserves for urgent or emergency situations. After discussion the board agreed to have 10% of its funds in a reserve account, 10% in an account for urgent needs (disaster response, etc.) with the remaining 80% to be for the distribution of grants for local, national and international needs. The Foundation would adhere to state and federal regulations with regards to distributions, which all grants to Not-for-Profit, Charitable and Voluntary organizations, with the latter two subject to scrutiny with regards to conflict of interest or member benefit limitations. The foundation will also have its own limitations, specifically that grant requests fall with the purview of Rotary International’s five areas of emphasis.

The RFM recommends that the budget approved by the Board of the RCM no longer have a “Charitable Operations” section, but would have budget lines, for all committees.

After discussion and agreement on the topics the following resolution was proposed:

Resolved that the Rotary Foundation of Media (RFM) propose to the Board of Directors of the Rotary Club of Media (RCM) that the club adopt and implement a single source model for all charitable fund-raising programs and for all grants awarded by the RFM on

behalf of and in support of the charitable donation work of the Rotary Club of Media; and,

Be it further resolved that guidelines for grant applications and approvals be developed by the Board of Directors of RFM and that the guidelines, along with the intended spirit of cooperative work between the RFM and the RCM be presented and explained to the club at an up-coming club meeting; and,

Be it further resolved that recipients of grants awarded by the RFM be announced in the Medium and on the club website and that a representative of the recipient organization be invited to a club meeting to tell club members how much was provided for their organization and how the funds will be used, along with an opportunity for a group photo of recipients to be sent to local news organizations.

The motion was adopted.

The board also agreed to change their normal meeting time to the third Tuesday of the month so that it could respond in timely fashion to any requests made by the Board of the RCM. This new meeting time will begin in November.

The next meeting (a transition between the old and new schedule) will be October 4, 2016 – the first Tuesday in October.

The meeting adjourned at 9:35 a.m. Respectfully submitted,

Larry V. Smoose, Secretary

NEXT MEETING TUESDAY, OCT. 4

SUBSEQUENT MEETINGS – The third Tuesday of each month.