<html aria-label="message body"><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;">Hi,<div><br></div><div>Gary, thank you!</div><div>I agree that we all need to be more “on it,” more professional board members, so we can take this club up a notch!</div><div>And, it is always good to have at least one person who is really detailed. Thanks for being that person!</div><div><br></div><div>A couple thoughts:</div><div><br></div><div>1. Do we still want the retreat on 7/23 or better to wait until later August, to have the new president/chair and possibly new secretary on board? Thoughts, please!</div><div><br></div><div>2. Writing mission and vision statements is definitely important and a chunk of time for our retreat. I like what you started.</div><div><br></div><div>3. David declined the secretary position way before the start date, so Paul was actually in the position before our meeting on 7/2.</div><div><br></div><div>4. I believe we (either Paul or Jim) need to send an email, sharing Robert’s choice to decline the position and letting folks know that we are open to a new club president/chair.</div><div><br></div><div>5. We definitely need D & O liability insurance! Thanks, Gary!</div><div><br></div><div>6. I agree that we also need to be more “on” the record keeping. Paul, thoughts?</div><div><br></div><div>7. And, let’s put a Treasurer’s Report on the next board agenda.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Let’s all chime in about next steps.</div><div>If we push the retreat to August, we need a July zoom board date.</div><div><br></div><div>Thanks, all!</div><div><br></div><div>Dana</div><div><div><br><blockquote type="cite"><div>On Jul 8, 2026, at 10:31 PM, Gary Denison <gary@marinbees.org> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><div><div dir="ltr">Board members:<div><br></div><div><font face="arial, sans-serif">I have been giving a lot of thought to our upcoming Board retreat on July 23rd. I have decided to share with you some of my initial thoughts. These are just my thoughts and obviously I am <u>no</u>t suggesting I have all the answers. However, I am very interested in and look forward to hearing the thoughts of others. My purpose in sending this in advance is that I hope each of you can use some of this to develop your own thoughts ahead of the meeting. I believe coming more prepared will hopefully facilitate both more meaningful discussion and a productive meeting.</font></div><div><br></div><div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><b>Thoughts on vision
and mission statement:</b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">As some of you know, Lynette and I recently visited the
country of Slovenia, which touts itself as the beekeeping capital of the
world. The country has a Bee Institute
which trains beekeepers in best practices and bee health. It also has a Museum dedicated solely to the
history of Beekeeping. In public parks,
you see “Bee Cabins” which are really a
collection of different resident's hives placed inside a well-designed public structure
(usually a log cabin) with pollinator plants around them. You see bee hives at hotels, houses and
businesses. Beekeeping is really a part
of their culture and heritage. It is something you could never replicate
elsewhere. </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Marin County’s open
space is an important part of what makes it a unique place. Through the decades there have been
considerable efforts to preserve that open space and it has become part of
Marin’s culture. Open space provides
valuable foraging grounds to honeybees and the honeybee are important to the pollination of that open space. Without
bees our open space would not be the same.
Consequently, our vision statement might want to incorporate something
to the effect that “Honeybees are recognized as an integral and important part
of Marin County by its residents.” Our
Mission therefore would be “to educate Marin County residents on the important role of honeybees and how to help them proliferate within Marin county.” </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><b>Managing MCBA as a
professional organization</b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">The MCBA is a legal entity and is designated as a 501 (c)(3)
tax exempt organization. As board
members it is important that we have a firm understanding of what is required of
the Board under our By-Laws. This
includes, the handling of resignation, filling of vacancies and our authority
to make appointments. In my reading of those
by-laws, David cannot just quit as Secretary, he will need to formally resign
since he was duly elected to that role. However,
I sincerely hope that he will continue to serve as Board member at large. That said he does need to resign as Secretary. Like
the vacancy of President, that position will need to be put to vote to be
filled. Consequently, I think it is
essential that we spend some time as a group going over the requirements of our
by-laws.</div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">We cannot operate like a loose club and by necessity we
are going to have become more purposeful and formal in how we conduct the
administrative affairs of the organization.
In an age of litigation, documentation and transparency of our actions
is essential. <span style="color:rgb(74,85,104);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial">Non-profit organizations are corporate entities
subject to the law and can be sued. Consequently, we are held to the same legal
duties as for-profit businesses, such as honoring contracts and exercising a
reasonable standard of care in our operations, etc. This accountability helps ensure that anyone
harmed by a non-profit’s actions (including ours) has a legal pathway for
resolution.</span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;vertical-align:baseline;margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(74,85,104);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial"> </span></p><div style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; vertical-align: baseline; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><b><span style="color:rgb(74,85,104);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial">Directors and Office Liability</span></b></div><div style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; vertical-align: baseline; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="color:rgb(74,85,104);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial">Based upon my research, even a nonprofit's </span><span style="color:rgb(56,56,56)">Board
members can be held personally liable for any legal claims brought against the
organization, putting our personal assets at risk. Therefore having a Directors and Officers liability
insurance policy is essential. This
policy protects board members and officers from personal liability arising from
their actions or decisions made on behalf of the organization. </span><b><span style="color:rgb(74,85,104);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial"></span></b></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:10.2pt 0in;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(56,56,56)">D&O insurance typically
covers legal expenses, settlements, and judgments resulting from lawsuits
alleging wrongful acts, such as negligence, mismanagement, or breach of
fiduciary duty. By having D&O coverage in place, we can hopefully continue
to attract and retain qualified individuals to serve on the board and be
assured that our personal assets are protected from personal financial loss.</span><span style="color:rgb(74,85,104);background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-size:initial;background-repeat:initial;background-origin:initial;background-clip:initial"> </span></p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><b>Recordkeeping by the
Board</b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">We have had several meetings where motions were made and
specific actions carried out. Whether
these motions and voting actions are in person or handled via email; those actions to be noted in a formal set of Board minutes. Further these minutes are to be read and
approved as accurate at subsequent Board meetings. This is spelled out specifically in our
by-laws. Similarly copies of the
recently signed lease agreement and liability policy also need to be made a
part of the official board minutes as these are legally binding documents. </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><b>Roles and
Responsibilities</b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">What does our club really need in terms of a President? I think our members believe that the
President needs to be extremely knowledgeable about Bees and beekeeping. I disagree, especially given the beekeeping skill level
of this board. I believe our President
needs to be a person interested in beekeeping but who has experience in knowing
how to run an organization, delegating tasks and holding people accountable for
completing those tasks and ensuring that things get done. Consequently, when we begin soliciting the
membership for interest in that role, we need for them to understand we aren’t
looking for a beekeeper… we are looking for a person who can lead people and
help bring forward our vision and mission statement. The Board and MCBA members can
take care of the bee keeping part, independent of the President. Again, this goes back to roles and
expectations. Surely, we have people in
our organization who have helped manage and run organizations? </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><b>Reporting By Treasury</b></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Obviously, not at our retreat but as Treasurer I do need to
bring everyone up to date on MCBA finances.
Our Fiscal year end is June 3Oth, so we have closed the fiscal books for
the year. I am also putting together a
very preliminary budget for the coming year, that I will be requesting the
Board’s input on. While rent is our
major expense, the aforementioned D&O insurance and speaker fees also need
to be discussed and decided upon for budget purposes. Jim has also raised the possibility of
upgrades to our communication/email systems and having ephemeron pins available (I
was thinking about this at the Marin County Fair and our exhibition hive…what
if?) I’m sure there are many other things that need to be considered.</div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">MCBA Income is largely derived from Membership dues. We also have a five month CD at US Bank that
is maturing August 20, 2026 at 3.44%. I
will require direction from the Board on whether we want to roll the CD over
for another five months or consider some alternative investment. </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Finally, as a 501 (c)( 9) non-profit organization we are eligible to
apply for grants (a process I know nothing about) and receive charitable
contributions, either from members or outside organizations. Members who are looking for charitable giving
may not even realize that MCBA is a nonprofit and any contributions (outside of
dues) are tax deductible. I have a
charitable contribution form similar to the reimbursement form I distributed
earlier.</div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><br></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Again, I love the chemistry and the excitement of the
current Board and I am excited about working with each of you. However, we do need to treat MCBA as a legal entity and not as just a
fun hobby club. That may be what it is
for our members but as board members we have a fiduciary responsibility
to our members and to the Marin County public.</div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </p><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Thanks for letting me share my thoughts. I would be happy to discuss any of this with you individually or as a group if you have questions.</div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"> </p>
<span style="font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">Gary </span></div></div><div><br class="webkit-block-placeholder"></div>
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