SHA Board Meeting Minutes of 3/4/09

The meeting was held at the home of Ed Dison.

The Board Members present: were: Ed Dison, Malia Chavez, Pam Gaston, Jeanne Kennedy, Judy Hood, Danielle Anforth, Barb Houck and Eric Messina. General Membership members present were: Chip Wilson, Black Stallion Literacy Program, Allison Strathearn, Activities Chairperson and Helen Mitchell, Pony Tracks Editor.

The meeting was called to order at 7:04 p.m.

General Membership: No one spoke from the General Membership.

Trails Committee: There will be a social ride on March 7th, and it will leave from Hackamore Rd. and ride out to the Goldfield Ghost Town, have lunch and then come back. Discussion ensued regarding future social rides. On April 4th, Judy Hood volunteered to lead the ride at Usery Park with Diane Watson. There will also be a social ride on May 2nd. The Competitive Trail Ride will be the first Saturday in November. Pam Gaston will call Shelly Richardson regarding this ride and the Christmas Ride that will be held on the first Saturday in December.

Pony Tracks: Helen Mitchell was complimented for the great job she did with the Pony Tracks and the new format. Board Meeting Minutes will not be in the Pony Tracks any more. They will be on the SHA Website. The amount of Pony Tracks being printed will be cut down to 200 and all Pony Tracks that have been dropped off at businesses will be mailed instead of hand delivered. Also Helen Mitchell had the idea to feature people in the Pony Tracks every month.

Road Clean up: To be determined.

Activities Committee: The Poker Ride will be held no matter how many sign ups there are received. Gifts and auction items have been purchased.

Black Stallion Literacy Meeting: There will be a meeting at Barb Houck’s house on Monday, March 10th, at 7 p.m. On March 27th, at the Rodeo Grounds, at 7:00 a.m.- 7:30 a.m., workers will arrive. There will be seven schools arriving with the first arriving at 8:30 a.m. People are needed to ride besides presenting presentations to the children. All assistance is appreciated. The evening before the event, the trailer will arrive and table setup will take place. The City of Apache Junction will film the event.

Parade Committee: The Board complimented Edna Driscoll and Steve Bondy for the great job they did in organizing the parade event for the Lost Dutchman Days Parade. The SHA Unit presented themselves to the public very well.

Publicity: No article is ready at this time. Competitive Trail Ride: Committees will continue to work toward this event in November.

Equine Welfare: It is working out well. A letter was sent out to the City Manager, Animal Control and the Chief of Police with members from SHA who have volunteered to help with equine welfare affairs.

SHA Store: The store was active at Lost Dutchman Days. The sale of items grossed $854.60. Pam Gaston made a motion to pay for an advantageous spot for next year and Judy Hood seconded the motion. It was agreed for next year to pay for a spot to earn more money at this event. Discussion ensued about events that would assist SHA with the Saddle Raffle. The saddle for raffle is a Flex Light II manufactured by Circle Y that is retailed at $1,750. New shirts will also be designed and old shirts will be discounted so SHA can move the rest of the shirts.

National Day of the Cowboy: Malia Chavez made a motion to participate in the National Day of the Cowboy. Pam Gaston seconded the motion. The entry fee required is $50.

Secretary: The notes of the secretary were sent out ahead of time via email to all Board Members and there were no changes.

Treasurer: Eric Messina made a motion to consult Tom Puklin, Attorney, regarding tax exemption status and Pam Gaston seconded the motion. Ed Dison will consult Tom Puklin for an hour. The income for the month is $515.10. The expenses for the month are $1092.21. The checking account balance is $1,792.21 and the savings account balance is $3,685.97. Malia Chavez gave Jeanne Kennedy a $138 ADCS check for the lunches sold at the driving event.

Membership: There are 106 renewals, 40 new memberships and that equals 146 memberships. There are 245 members. There are membership blurbs in the Bridle and Bit, the Independent, the Copper Country News and the AJ News. Christy and Diane Watson have volunteered to assist Judy and are members of the Membership Committee.

Old Business/New Business

Upcoming Events: Board members are pushing to get the General Membership to participate in all events.

Usery Park Gate Closures: Input is still being taken at this time.

Firearms: Ed Dison will consult Tom Puklin, Attorney.

Hitching Rails: Ed Dison suggested a hitching rail at the bathrooms at the Rodeo Grounds with the founding members names plasma cut on a plaque. P&Z Boarding Stables: Ed Dison has kept the stance to keep things the same as they have been and the Board’s stance remains in conjunction with the two and one half acre zoning.

General Membership Meeting: The General Membership Meeting will be on March 25th, at the County Court House, at 7 p.m. There will be a vote on the by-laws. Everyone please attend.

All Year SHA: Discussion ensued about a year round association. Youth events under the lights at the Rodeo Grounds were suggested throughout the summer.

Parks and Recreation: Parks and Recreation refunded the $225 that was given to them by SHA for the CTR. Eric Messina made a motion to donate the $225 back to open up the arena for the youth program. Pam Gaston seconded the motion.

Boys’ & Girls’ Club: The Boy’s and Girls’ Club is hosting a circus at Greyhound Park. They would like our assistance for help with parking, etc.

Eastside Progressive Barrel Racing Association: Malia Chavez suggested SHA obtain a membership with this organization for help with the youth and Parks and Recreation. Malia Chavez made a motion that SHA provide a sponsorship. Pam Gaston seconded the motion. The amount will be $25.

Website: Jeanne Kennedy suggested the Web Master be paid for her time. Malia Chavez made a motion that Danielle Anforth be paid $50 per month for maintaining the website and Pam Gaston seconded the motion.

Judy Hood made a motion to adjourn the meeting and Pam Gaston seconded the motion.

The meeting was adjourned at 9 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Pamela D. Gaston SHA Secretary