2024 Annual Membership Meeting Minutes

Meeting Date and Time: Wednesday, November 13, 2024, 7:00 pm

Location: Zoom

Officers Present:

President: Bob Persiko, Acting

Vice President: Ciara Halloran, Acting
Public Relations Officer: Rose Sharp, Acting
Treasurer: Bruce Truitt
Secretary: vacant

Number of members in attendance:  10

Call To Order: 7:11 PM.
November 2023 general meeting minutes were accepted as submitted.

Reports of Officers & Standing Committees

President – Bob Persiko

 Bob thanked the members present, the GC leadership team, and noted that the organization is financially very sound.

• • Bob stated a dilemma – It’s hard to recruit new members and volunteers when we don’t have group activities to offer; and it is hard to offer activities without volunteers to manage them.
  • He said leadership volunteers are needed – secretary, future president/VP. Bob said he served happily as president for three years, but then it was time to hand over the reins to others. The disappearance of the president elected in 2023 created a leadership crisis that made Bob feel he had to step back in.
  • He noted that GC will offer a digital dialogue 11/20, 5:00 PM, in conjunction with International Education Week featuring two high school exchange students from Lithuania and Morocco.
  • Bob said the GC English Literacy Fund established at the Centre Foundation is a success, and he deferred to the Treasurer’s report for more details.
  • GC is continuing its partnerships with other community organizations: Penn State Global, Volunteer Centre County, Mid-State Literacy Council, SC Area School District, American Association of University Women, Community Diversity Group and the UN Association of State College.
  • Linda Barton suggested someone attend the OLLI/PSU Global International Social event on 11/14 at Innovation Park to see if it’s a good opportunity for outreach. Bob said he would register and attend.

Vice President – Ciara Halloran

Ciara said she is happy to be involved with GC and has a goal to focus on expanding membership. We might offer an incentive to members to bring a guest to the annual fall picnic. She also wants to bolster the cultural events in the coming year. Linda Barton suggested reaching out to the faith communities in the area. She also mentioned the annual international potluck at the high school that just took place as an occasion to reach out to families.

Treasurer – Bruce Truitt

Bruce reported on GC’s finances:  As of Nov. 1 all bills were paid; $7,279 in the checking account, which doesn’t include revenue from renewals of annual dues; $18,278 in the money market account; $45,000 in the Global Connections fund held by the Centre Foundation; and $25,000 in the Sub Fund, which is also managed by the Centre Foundation. GC made a decision to transfer this money from the bank account to improve earnings. It serves as an emergency fund, and money can be easily withdrawn as needed.

Bruce further reported that the GC English Literacy Fund established in the Centre Foundation has $29,058, an increase of $4,000 in a short period of time. We are sponsoring 3 scholarships this fall and can sponsor four more in the spring with the balance of available distributions from the Fund and what was donated through the Centre Gives campaign. Given the financial health of the fund, it is reaching the point where it can be self-generating.

Public Relations – Rose Sharp

Rose said she posted an item and photos of the fall picnic. She likes how GC is both multi-cultural and multi-generational. She would like to post phots of the Executive Committee leadership team and all members. We could have someone take photos of members and events.

Membership – Sunny Yunjuan Jiang

We have 213 “Contacts” and 75 active members in the membership website Wild Apricot. There are no associate members following the withdrawal of Ten Thousand Villages.  She has archived one inactive member and will continue to cull the contacts list. Sunny reported on her attendance at the UN Association of State College annual dinner. There wasn’t much opportunity there to promote GC.

Cultural Events – Shannon Holliday

Shannon has developed three potential meals for early 2025: January for a Scottish/Turkish theme; a Dominican theme on February 22, which is Dominican independence day; and one on an Iranian theme in April. They are contingent on the availability of venues

Small groups – Deb Leo

In Deb’s absence, Bob reported that the reading groups are active. He said that he is continuing to lead the discussion group every Tuesday on Zoom. He had to suspend his English class due to poor turnout. This may be due in part to the abundance of ESL programs in our area.

Special Orders

Election of 2025 Officer Team

President – Bob Persiko

Vice President – Ciara Halloran

Public Relations- Rose Sharp

Secretary – vacant

All attendees voted in favor of the proposed slate of candidates.

1. Subsequent to adjournment, Alexandra Persiko volunteered to serve as Secretary. The meeting attendees were polled, and all voted for her to fill that office.

Proposed amendments to the Bylaws and Policies and Procedures

The proposed revisions, including elimination of the Standing Rules, were unanimously approved. Thanks to Bruce and Deb for their hard work on this task.

Unfinished Business

None

New Business

None

Next Meeting: TBD

Meeting adjournment: 08:00 PM

Submitted By: Bob Persiko                                   Date of Submission: November 15, 2024