A meeting of the Executive Board of the Wake Democratic Men’s Club (WDMC) was held at the Goodwin House, 220 Hillsborough St. Raleigh, NC on Thursday, June 21, 2018. The meeting was called to order by President Max Adams at 6:05 PM. After a short welcome to the newest Board members, the Pledge of Allegiance was given which was then followed by the roll call. Attendees included: Max Adams, Willie Rowe, Henry Jarrett, Ruth Merkle, Richard Loeppert, Steven Hill, Daryl Bowman, Dan Wilkes Eunice Jones, Levitt Bridgman, Aaron Wolff, John Shaw, and Rebecca Llewellyn. Those that were absent but excused were: David Bland, Ellis Hankins, John Reeder, and Don Davis. The Minutes of the previous meeting were read by the Secretary. On motion by Henry Jarrett and seconded by Dan Wilkes, the minutes were approved. The following reports were rendered. The Treasurers Report was given by Richard Loeppert, Treasurer, stating a balance of $4355.00.
Agenda
In his opening remarks, President Max Adams reported that former WDMC President David Bland’s son died and in accordance to the Club’s Bereavement Policy, he will be sending a card to extend the condolences of the Club.
President Adams also read a letter of resignation from Board member Keisha Lovelace. President Adams asked the Board to appoint Robert Wilson to fill the unexpired term of Keisha Lovelace which will end in June 2019. On motion by Richard Loeppert and seconded by Willie Rowe, the motion passed. President Adams also asked the Board to reinstate Antoine Marshall to his unexpired Board term, since he is no longer a candidate and had to resign in order to run for public office. On motion by Dan Wilkes and seconded by Ruth Merkle, the motion passed.
After which, other items on the agenda were discussed including Vice-Presidential duties.
• 1st Vice-President Willie Rowe explained that he is the Program Chair and his main task is to provide speakers for our membership meetings. In addition to his duties, he will also serve as a liaison with other clubs and auxiliaries of the Wake County Democratic Party.
• 2nd Vice President Henry Jarrett’s Main focus will be organizing volunteer schedules for an early voting site adopted by the Club. He will begin the task of forming a committee to assist him in this. One of the most important duties while staffing the site will be passing out slate cards.
• 3rd Vice-President Ruth Merkle’s main focus will be membership recruitment. She will also work with the Treasurer in order to receive information on new members and would follow up with them so that they could be made to feel welcomed. This would also include former members we have not seen for a while and encourage them to attend again.
Another item on the agenda was the policy of distributing candidates’ announcements or sharing our membership email list with candidates. It was the consensus of the Board that we should not share our email list. Therefore, on motion by Willie Rowe and seconded by Ruth Merkle, beginning with the upcoming election, all requests to distribute announcements from candidates will be sent out via our larger email list, with recipients designated in “blind copy”. After further discussion, Willie Rowe amended his motion to state “Democratic candidates and endorsed Judicial candidates”. The motion passed.
Another item on the agenda concerned the consideration of sponsorships of WCDP events. WCDP Chair Rebecca Llewelyn discussed some of the events planned for the next several months including “House Parties” located at various locations throughout the county, with the first one being on June 27. She also brought up the level of sponsorships. On motion by Ruth Merkle and seconded by Aaron Wolff, that the Club purchase a $500.00 sponsorship level for the event on June 27. The motion passed. It was also suggested that this event would be an ample opportunity to distribute information about the Club in an effort to solicit future memberships.
Further discussion turned to programs for August through November. 1st Vice President Willie Rowe is presently working on a list of speakers, and several names were suggested. If anyone has any further suggestions, please let him know. Willie also brought up the possibility of slightly changing future Club fundraising events. Normally the month of October has usually been reserved for our annual Trailblazer fundraiser. He suggested having the Trailblazer event in odd years and every other year, having our October meeting as a fundraiser for the WCDP. We will still be raising money for the Party, and at the same time, serve as a “call to action” type event. President Max Adams stated that no motion was needed, but recommended that Willie set up a committee to spearhead this. He furthermore stated that the event could take place either in September or October, and asked that by July 15th a date would be decided upon.
In other Business, President Adams reported that Robert Wilson has agreed to head up the Day of Service event again this year. Last year it was held at the Shepherd’s Table Soup Kitchen and was very successful. More on that will be forthcoming.
There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 7:32.
Respectfully submitted,
Steven Hill, Secretary