Meeting Minutes – April 2023

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BBV-CERT General Meeting Minutes

Big Bear Lake Fire Department

April 24, 2023

 

Present:               Susan  Elliott                                                      Nancy Karlson

Maria and Jim Smith                                      Chris Carson

Ed Williams                                                         Phil and Peggy Defibaugh

 

Call to Order:

  • Susan called the meeting to order at 6:06 pm.

 

Allegiance to the Flag:

  • The pledge of allegiance was led by Susan and recited by all attendees.

 

911 Designee for Meeting:

  • Chris Carson was appointed to act as the 911 designee for tonight’s meeting.

 

Treasurer Report:  

  • Financial Report:
    • Nancy reported that the month-end balance as of March 31 totaled $4,938 with pending deposits of $163 from donations. She mentioned that our current banking relationship no longer has a branch in this area and therefore a new relationship will likely be explored in the coming months. Susan made a motion to pursue a new relationship with US Bank which was seconded by Marie with all in favor.
  • Insurance Renewal:
    • Nancy also mentioned that the annual insurance is up for renewal. She noted that this will likely approximate $1,800 and requested a motion for approval. A motion to approve the insurance renewal was made by Jim, seconded by Chris and approved by all.

 

New Business/Old Business:

  • Upcoming Elections:
    • Susan noted that the officer positions up for the standard 2-year election process are the Secretary and Vice President positions. She additionally added that the Treasurer position has opened for a mid-term replacement.
      • Susan noted that Nancy will not be running for a 2nd term as Secretary due to increasing commitments that she has in Mountain Top ARES.
      • She added that David had stepped in for a partial term as Vice President and will not be able to continue in that role for another term due to the need for him to tend to family matters.
      • Susan also reported that Dede will no longer be able to serve as Treasurer due to her increasing responsibilities as the designated Emergency Coordinator for Mountain Top ARES.

 

Susan then described the roles and responsibilities of each position. A question came up about the taxes. Nancy responded that she prepared these in the past year and can assist going forward if needed.

 

  • Upcoming Local Community Events:
    • None at this time. Susan commented that Tour de Big Bear is on the docket for August.

 

  • Upcoming Fundraising Events –
  • Sonora Cantina: Susan noted that another silent auction is being considered as the BBV-CERT team still has donated items remaining from the last event. She plans to inventory what items remain and assess whether additional donations should be pursued. Susan expressed that she will try to combine that event with the June meeting.
  • Maggio’s: Susan suggested that we consider getting something on the calendar for another fundraiser in early November. Jim and Marie offered to contact Maggio’s.
  • Nancy commented that donations have been strong this year, totaling $3,623, fiscal year-to-date through March 31, with $1,800 from Tour de Big Bear and $1,823 from fundraising efforts held at Sonora Cantina and Maggio’s.

 

  • Asset Committee (Next Steps, if any):
    • No update at this time.

 

  • Renewal of CERT licenses:
    • Susan mentioned that no additional information is available at this time and that she intends to stay on top of this.

 

  • Training Scheduled for the General Meeting:
  • Brainstorming: Questions for Upcoming Meeting with City of Big Bear Lake

Susan reported that she (and Steve) will be meeting with Jeff Willis (Fire Chief), Eric Sund (City Manager) and Nick Bruinsma (Fire Dept. Liaison with BBV-CERT) on May 3. She then shared a list of topics that will be discussed:

  1. Status of current CERT program
  2. Current challenges
  3. What’s needed to overcome any identified challenge
  4. Training Needs
  5. Meetings and attendance

She specifically requested that members give this some thought and email her with any additional items that should be addressed. She mentioned that one of her goals in networking is to assess how BBV-CERT my serve the community needs.

 

  • Video: Snowbound Hams Save the Day

This video was shown to the group and related to a presentation that was done on Ham Nation by Dede Hermon, focusing on how the Mountain Top ARES group served the mountain communities during the Feb-March storm events.

The group enjoyed the video and expressed appreciation to those involved. Various comments were shared. Susan talked briefly about BBV-CERT and how the teams can help the communities, especially through education and information and preparation.

 

  • Upcoming Training/Other Events:
    • Ham Radio Testing and Preparation (Available through K6DDZ.com)
    • BBV-CERT Recruitment – On Hold

 

Other Comments:

  • Chris requested contact information for Erin Fox to follow up regarding Sound the Alarm. Ed provided him with Erin’s business phone.
  • A question came up about the number of active BBV-CERT members. Susan commented that we have approximately 20+. Susan noted that she has a number of ideas on reaching out and re-building the program and relationships.

 

Meeting adjournment: There-being no further questions or comments, a motion to adjourn the meeting was made unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 7:35 pm.

 

Next meeting:

  • Meeting will be held on May 22, 2023 at 6:00 pm, either on-line or at the Big Bear Lake Fire Department Station. More details to come.
  • In closing, Susan also mentioned that the December meeting will be a holiday event.

 

Respectfully submitted,

by Nancy Karlson, BBV-CERT Secretary, May 2023