November 27, 2023 Electronic Meeting

President Dennis Pratt sent agenda and reports to Officers and Directors.

Officers and Directors: Responding – Ed Chaplinski, Paul Helbach, Glen Hill, Dennis Pratt, Mike Sierszen, Den Smet, Jeff Stollenwerk, Walt Swanson, Jim Waletzko, Dean Wellman, Mike Zicus and Ken Zivic.

Minutes of the October Meeting: The minutes as written in the November newsletter were approved following a motion by Dean Wellman, second by Ken Zivic and unanimous Email approval.

Treasurer’s and Financial Secretary’s Reports: Treasurer Jeff Stollenwerk reported that October’s beginning balance was $24,388.30 and the ending balance was $5,162.33 with the following expenses: Pro Print (September Newsletter – $30.16); Transfer to Savings (September Donations – $50.00); Katie Thompson (October Newsletter – $200.00); Pro Print (October Newsletter – $60.14); Computing Done Right (Annual Web Host – $323.00); Transfer to new Short CD 10-month ($19,784.83). The Treasurer’s report was approved following a motion by Dean Wellman, second by Ken Zivic and unanimous Email approval. Financial Secretary Dean Wellman reported that there were $714.00 in total deposits into the general fund since the last meeting and that the Club had no new members. The Financial Secretary’s report was approved following a motion by Mike Zicus, second by Ken Zivic and unanimous Email approval.

Committee Reports

Legislative, Habitat, Audit, Membership and Social Media Committees: Nothing to report.

Education: Den Smet – Hayward and Washburn schools also have a fish egg hatching project. Carey Edwards is heading it up.

Scholarship: Mike Sierszen/Paul Helbach – Paul Helbach has been in touch with Brianna, High School Counselor, but nothing to report.

Other Business

Fly of the Month – March 2024 will be the Nuke Egg (Dean Wellman), April will be the Seegar Swanson Sr. wet/dry caddis (Dean Wellman from interview with Seegar Swanson Jr.), and May will be the Pass Lake (Walt Swanson).

Board Election Ballot – Results will be finalized on Monday January 22nd.

Dean’s Fly of the Month Fly Boxes – Jeff Stollenwerk thinks we should include them in the raffle next spring. Ken Zivic suggests having them as part of the raffle to possibly attract less active or non-members to the Club. The raffle period could be established so that the fly boxes are visible at upcoming events, i.e., Expo, cleanup day, family day, etc. He suggested tickets at 1 for $5 and 3 for $10. Den Smet believes the 3 Weber knives we have could go as prizes if we have a spring raffle. Ed Chaplinski agrees a raffle would bring money to the Club. Mike Sierszen thinks the disposition of the collection depends on how much we hope to get for them. His guess is that we might get more through a raffle e.g., 20 tickets @ $10 each = $200, which would likely be more than many people would pay for 32 flies if we just tried to sell them. Many fly shops charge ~$2.50/fly. Mike Zicus thinks having one fly box and one Weber knife to round out the raffle would be ok as it still recognizes that the donated rod is the main prize.

Ed’s Suggestion to Give Hats to Life Members and Donors of More than $500 – Dean Wellman would approve hats for donations >$500. Ken Zivic favors this and would make a motion to proceed. Jeff Stollenwerk supports the idea, as do Den Smet and Glen Hill agree. Mike Sierszen questioned whether we have a life member category and, if so, what the cost was. The category isn’t on the membership form. He believes we need more discussion before making a decision. He’s for okay with the big donations idea. Mike Zicus is okay with the hats to major donors idea, but noted we don’t currently have a life member category. Seemed to recall it was discussed in the past but never went anywhere.

2024 Great Waters Expo March 15 – 17 – Dean Wellman thinks we should do it and he will see if Paul Gausman will help again. Ken Zivic commented that we always seem to get great press at this event. His understanding is that there are local members who might help or even co-chair our participation. He wondered if we have a list of those individuals to call upon for help and noted we have some time to recruit. Jeff Stollenwerk believes it is good PR for the Club, so it’s good for us to participate. That said, he recognizes it’s a lot to ask of members to travel and man the booth. He will be out of town on those days so isn’t available to help. Den Smet believes we should participate if we can find people willing to head up and work at the Great Waters Expo. Ed Chaplinski will have to think some more about the Expo.  Mike Sierszen helped Ken last year, but doesn’t know yet if I can in 2024. Mike Zicus hopes we can participate, but recognizes it’s a long way to travel for many on the board.

Topics for upcoming Meeting – Dean Wellman priced out a soft cover booklet for the Fly of the Month Series. Cost would be $300 for 24 books, 5.5” x 8.5”. Need thoughts on that. The cost would be about $13 each. We could sell them for $35 each and have them at the expo and on the website. He’d buy four. Could be a great gift idea. Ken Zivic anticipated getting some information on how to fish the Brule when he joined the Club as well as protecting the waters. Thinks the monthly fly selection is great and appreciates Dean and now Walt stepping up to this effort as he has never tied a fly. He knows he’s a newbie compared other board members and suspects there are more members that would appreciate a little of the wisdom acquired from fishing the Brule. Maybe we could produce a quarterly “Tips and Techniques” segment? He understands that fishermen hold their fishing spots close and may not want to divulge “secrets.” However, there are many things that go into the determination of what to look for, how to approach the waters and techniques the people use for a successful outing on the river.

Upcoming Events – Events will be posted on the website https://bruleriversportsmensclub.com/category/club-calendar/.

Recorded by Walt Swanson