June 5, 2007

 

 

Diamond Club Meeting

June 5, 2007

 

 

Members Present:  Diane Hershey, Jim Szymanski, Randy Reichert, Bob Harris, Mark Anderson, Mark Rosin, Coach Mark Downey, Ben Gallagher, Jennifer Dickison, Karin Wessberg

 

Meeting called to order at 7:05 by Mark Anderson.

 

 

Minutes from May meeting:

Motion made by Randy Reichert to approve as written; seconded by Bob Harris.

 

Treasurer’s Report:

Budgets were distributed in John Hoffman’s absence.  There is still some money to come in from Pizza Pals and Section Programs.  John forecasts that we will have about a $2000 cushion over and above the $5000 that we want to start with next year.  A motion was made by Randy Reichert, seconded by Bob Harris, that all monies over $5000 be given to Coach Downey to use as he sees fit (i.e. pitching machine).   All in favor; motion carried.

 

Old Business:

Player Apparel:  Nothing to report.

 

Pizza Pals:  Nothing to report.

 

Section Programs:  Mark Anderson reported that there are still about 3 invoices to go out.

 

Game Day Experience:  Nothing to report.

 

End of Year Banquet:  Enough good things can’t be said.  Jennifer Dickison commented that “the food was fun, messy, and delicious”.  Ben Gallagher said that the 2 hour time frame was just right, and emphasized how nice it was that all the teams were involved (Coach Downey’s request).  Mark Anderson was impressed by the comments of all the coaches, particularly how they emphasized the character of their players. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Business:

Election of Officers for 2007-2008: 

President – Randy Reichert

Vice President – there were 2 nominations; Matt Goldsmith, nominated by Bob Harris, and Mike Blumer, nominated by Randy Reichert.

Treasurer – John Hoffman

Secretary – Karin Wessberg

Motion made by Jennifer Dickison that we elect Randy, Mike, John, and Karin.  Motion seconded by Jim Szymanski.  All in favor; motion carried.

“THANK YOU” to Mark Anderson and Mark Rosin for their leadership of the Diamond Club this past year. 

 

Spring ’08 team trip:  Coach Downey’s thought is that there is clearly a baseball benefit from such a trip, but that such a trip is not an absolute necessity.  Mark Anderson, father of Erik (graduating senior who went on the trip in 2006), feels that it is a good thing to do.  He also expressed the thought that if there is a trip, particularly for seniors, there’s less of a chance that they will not skip out of that first week of practice, which does fall during the kids’ Spring Break.  He did emphasize that we’re not meeting tonight to vote yes or no, but rather to explore it.  Mark Rosin, father of Seth (graduating senior who went on the trip in 2006), would absolutely encourage a trip for the boys.  He felt that the biggest benefit was the bonding that the boys experienced.  The past trips were to Cocoa Beach, FL, and his recommendation would be the Disney complex.  The Cocoa Beach site was outdated, and an hour or so from Orlando, which is where players’ families were.  It became a nightmare shuttling the boys back and forth.  The cost last year was about $950/player at Cocoa Beach.  It was estimated that Disney would be $1200-1400/player.  The boys were down there for 6 days, and they played 4-6 games against teams from other states.  The question of raising funds for such a trip was brought up.  Randy Reichert mentioned that Cub Foods is changing their policy around the “bagging” opportunities in that it needs to be scheduled around a holiday.  Mark Anderson mentioned, that in the past, if a player sold Section Program ads, he got credit for ½ the sale amount.  Jennifer Dickison asked if there is a limit on individual fundraising.  Coach Downey responded that fundraising cannot be done by individual players.  It was suggested that Dorothy Pedersen and Bob Freed be part of a committee to investigate this.  However, Mark Anderson deemed that the particular individuals to bring information to the larger group in the fall is yet to be determined. 

 

Explore a Bethel/MV field partnership:  Mark Anderson, Coach Downey, Bob Madison, and a few others have met with Nick Tamale about the hope of having a baseball field at Mounds View.  Mark left the meeting feeling that it wouldn’t happen.  There has been talk of fields on the TCAAP site in Arden Hills.  Again, the outcome does not lead to optimism.  There’s no certainty has to how much longer MV will be able to use Kohler Park.  Mark Anderson would like to explore how we can use the Bethel field to a greater extent.  He has given thought to approaching Bethel with an offer to put lights on the Bethel field.  Mark Rosin said that it would cost between $125,000-$150,000 to do that.  Mark Rosin expressed that he doesn’t see a partnership with Bethel as a long-term solution for MV.  He feels that the field needs to be on district property or we would have no control over it.  Randy Reichert also doesn’t see Bethel as being available as often as we would need it.  He expressed that we would still need a Kohler or a Bucher for practices.  His understanding of the TCAAP site is that the land will be sold, and 7-10 years down the road, there “might” be profits available for a field.  The group supports Mark Anderson’s desire to explore some options with Bethel, and he will send out updates during the summer.

 

IF YOU HAVE BEEN A COORDINATOR OF A SPECIFIC PROGRAM THIS PAST YEAR, SUCH AS PIZZA PALS OR THE FUNDRAISING DINNER/AUCTION, WE ARE ASKING THAT YOU FIND A REPLACEMENT TO TAKE THIS ON FOR NEXT YEAR.  YOUR REPLACEMENT SHOULD ALSO FIND AN ASSISTANT, PREFERABLY A PARENT OF AN UNDERCLASSMEN, WHO WOULD THEN TAKE OVER THE FOLLOWING YEAR.  PLEASE PASS ON YOUR REPLACEMENTS’ NAME TO KARIN WESSBERG BY THE END OF JUNE!!!

 

A motion was made by Jennifer Dickison to adjourn the meeting at 7:48 pm; motion seconded by Jim Szymanski.

 

The next regular Diamond Club meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 11, at 7:00 pm in the Mounds View Forum.

 

Your attendance is welcome and highly encouraged!