2011
Reno, Nevada

MINUTES

Toronado and Aurora Chapter Annual Meeting 2011

The annual meeting of the General Membership of the Toronado and Aurora Chapter of the Oldsmobile Club of America was held on Friday, July 29, 2011, in conjunction with the 2011 OCA National Meet at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino, Reno, NV. The Meeting convened at 4:07 PM, in the Nevada Room #10.

As has been the practice in recent years, the Meeting started with all attendees taking several minutes to informally introduce themselves, relating their Toronado, Aurora, or Oldsmobile histories and/or other car information. With a total of 19 attendees, the self-introductions lasted until 5:15 PM,

After these introductions, a semi-formal business meeting commenced, co-chaired by Gary Hinman, Vice President; Trent Plungas, Editor and Membership Manager; and Paul Andreas, Secretary-Treasurer.

The Minutes of the 2010 Meeting were read, with no additions or corrections.

The Treasurer’s Report reveals a current balance of $2036.09, compared to last year’s $1924.24. Income is largely from membership fees and a small amount from (historical) account interest. Expenditures are mostly for printing and mailing costs of the “Toronado and Aurora Times” newsletter, plus $119.50 for Internet service.

The apparent treasury increase is about to be offset by the costs for the recently printed and mailed (double issue) newsletter; this will be approximately $300, creating a treasury reduction. This again prompted some discussion as to the possible need to marginally increase the membership fee. Instead, as a carryover from last year’s meeting, there was additional discussion as to eMailing the newsletter. By raising hands, there was no consensus; as a compromise, members will have the option at their next renewal to choose either eMail, or “snail mail.” The same $15 annual rate will remain, with some cost savings to be realized, and then analyzed for adequacy to maintain the treasury.

As a follow-up to last year’s letter from Trent Plungas, he again made a plea for material from any and all members for the newsletter; as he points out, it’s a lot easier to do the newsletter when the material is waiting for him, as opposed to digging it up. Both he and I pointed out that every member has one (or more) stories to relate regarding their car(s), be it the acquisition, restoration, or repair of their car, going to a show and enlightening people, whatever.

The meeting then became less structured, with various discussions. There was discussion at to “need” for the other, separate Olds clubs, particularly the Toronado Owners Association, and the National Antique (35+ years) Oldsmobile Club. It was the apparent consensus that Oldsmobiles are the common interest and passion, and unity would have more advantages than disadvantages. NAOC national meets will be in Columbus, IN, in 2012, and Elmira, NY, in 2013.

There also was discussion regarding internet communication and sharing of information. The former Toronado “t-net” was briefly discussed, and although it was an IT “dinosaur,” it was an enjoyable and useful tool. Trent Plungas thought our current website might have some potential to be developed in this regard; he will investigate. It was also mentioned that there’s a useful Yahoo website, “wildaboutcars.com,” with lots of Oldsmobile information.

At the end of all the sharing and discussion, the meeting adjourned at approximately 5:35 PM. Before leaving the room, two new members joined the Chapter.

Respectfully submitted,

Paul Andreas, Secretary - Treasurer