THE NORTH AMERICAN STATION

OF THE ROYAL SCANDINAVIAN YACHT CLUBS

AND NYLÄNDSKA JAKTKLUBBEN

est. 1945

MEMBER LOGIN
  • Henrik Roos
  • June 10, 2021
  • 5:17 pm
  • 0 comments
2021 Spring Meeting Minutes – Draft

June 5, 2021

Attendees (via Zoom): N. Orem, H. Roos, J. Bowden, D. Tunick, A. Heyward, C. Anderson, G. Sherman, E. Godshalk, O. Haxthausen, A. Almlid Barrows, C. Säve and R. West, and ca. 50 attending members.

Post Captain (PC) Nick Orem called the 2021 NAS Spring Meeting to order at 1000 EDT. 

  • Roll call: Secretary Henrik Roos confirmed the presence of a quorum. 
  • Secretary Henrik Roos presented the minutes from the meeting on December 5, 2020.  Upon motion duly made and seconded, the attendees waived reading of the minutes and approved them.
  • PC Nick Orem report:
    • Commodores Meeting on May 31, 2021. All five commodores participated in the call/meeting and are committed to join us for the 2021 Christmas Dinner Dance. They discussed the timing of the 2022 5C/TAR which will be held in Newport during the first week of August 2022. All 5 commodores would prefer to have NAS arrange the 5C/TAR every 3 years (rather than every 6 years) and are also willing to accept a higher entrance fee (maybe $5,000 – 6,000 per club). Also, exceptionally good response to the 2023 New England Cruise with approximately 12-15 boats expected.
    • The Speaker Series have been well attended and received. Plan is to arrange 2-3 more in the fall. New member Janne Malmström has volunteered to present. All members are encouraged to come up with ideas/topics for future Speaker Series.  
    • Long Range Planning Committee: two issues have been identified – an aging membership and a challenging financial situation. We have formed a Young Members Committee led by Carolina Säve and we initiated a 75th Anniversary Fund to improve our financials. To this point we have received $47,000 in grants and pledges. 100% of the Governing Board have donated and we hope that the entire membership will contribute. This can easily be done using our new web site.
    • Two trophy projects: we have been able to raise significant contributions for the Peter Ward trophy to be presented at the 2021 Christmas Dinner Dance. A trophy in the memory of Eva Drakenberg will be donated by NAS to KSSS to be awarded by them. This trophy will also be funded by individual contributions. 
    • The history committee did a terrific job in completing the early part of our history and the plan is to add more detail pertaining to the last 20 years. The revised history book will be ready by the Christmas Dinner Dance and include snaps songs, additional photographs etc.
  • Fleet Captain David Tunick reported that members are encouraged to upload photographs of their boats to their account on the web site. Thumbnails of these photographs will then be added to the Member Directory. Our plan is to get S/Y Arabella to be our mother ship for the 2023 NE Cruise. Arabella is a 157 ft 3 masted schooner with 20 air-conditioned cabins, each with their own head. 
  • Secretary Henrik Roos reported that the Station’s correspondence is up to date and with the addition of four new members, current membership stands at 263.  
  • Treasurer Jennifer Bowden reported that our financial situation is strong. Cash on hand is approximately $127,000. Due to pandemic restrictions and cancellations, 2021 YTD and 2020 expenses have been significantly lower than anticipated and those of prior years. Fundraising is proceeding well. For those members who have not paid there 2021 dues, please use the new website (under Member’s tab – Pay Dues). We have no liabilities on our books. A copy of the Treasurer’s Report and current financial statements are attached.
  • Membership Committee: Ove Haxthausen reported that four candidates for membership have been approved by the Governing Board. The new members are Maia and Ragna Agerup (Providence, RI), Janne Malmström (Gustavsberg, Sweden) and Joe Sousa (Naples, FL). We will continue to focus on attracting younger members.
  • The Atlantic Round Regatta and 5 Club Regatta: Palmer Sparkman and Angelica Almlid Barrows provided an update. NAS will appoint a Host Committee to plan, budget, and organize the Atlantic Round Regatta and the 5 Club Regatta in Newport in 2022.  We plan to organize TAR and 5C back-to-back during the first week of August 2022. Preliminary dates are Tuesday August 2 to Sunday August 7 with joint 5C awards/welcoming dinner on Friday August 5. Angelica will contact NYYC about the dinner venue, and will check on barracks, and boats. Palmer will be our Race Team Captain. Any interested sailors (TAR Regatta and 5C) should contact Palmer or Angelica respectively.
  • Home Club Reports:
    • GKSS – no report.
    • KDY – Ove Haxthausen reported that the club is doing well, and all activities are back to normal.
    • KNS – Angelica Almlid Barrows reported that the club is in a good state both financially and operationally. Nils Klippenberg has been elected new Commodore.
    • KSSS – Carolina Säve reported that they are back to normal with all activities. Six out of nine sailors from the Swedish Olympic Team are KSSS members. Significant focus on environmental awareness within the Club.
    • NJK – Henrik Roos reported that sailing activities are back to normal. Main event for this summer is the 12 Metre World Championship being hosted by NJK in Helsinki on August 14-22. NJK has two sailors participating in the Olympics (Nacra 17 class).
  • Website Committee:  Gale Sherman presented our new and significantly improved website. Every member should log in and register. Under the Members/Account tab personal information can be edited and updated. Any comments or observations should be communicated to Gale. 
  • 75th Anniversary Committee: Ernie Godshalk reported that we plan to celebrate our 75th Anniversary at the upcoming Christmas Dinner Dance. We plan to share the expanded version of our history to include snaps songs, photographs and more.
  • Young Members Committee:  Carolina Säve reported that we have formed a committee to address the issue. The goal is to better engage our existing younger members and to recruit new younger members. Any suggestions of potential younger candidates are welcome. Young is defined as 35 to 55 years old. Average age of current membership is approximately 70 years.
  • 2023 New England Cruise: Chace Anderson reported no significant changes to dates or itinerary. 28 boats have already signed up and we expect another 12-15 boats from the Home Clubs. So all-in-all 40 – 45 boats with about 200 people. Next steps are discussions with four charter companies in Newport, trying to sign up Arabella as the mother ship and exploring suitable moorings and places to anchor. This summer the Orem’s and the Anderson’s will explore the planned route. 
  • Christmas Dinner Dance Committee: David Tunick reported that our current plan is to have the Christmas Dinner Dance on December 3, 2021, at full capacity. Exploring the possibility of requiring NAS members/participants to be fully vaccinated. We have also secured the NYYC model room for the next 10 years.
  • 2021 Social Plans: Jennifer Bowden reported that the team is working on a few ideas to be announced later in the year. 

Old Business: None

New Business: Nick Orem reported that we plan to propose a change to the wording of Article V of the by-laws from “Spouse” to “Spouse/Partner”. There is a strong support for the change among the Governing Board. The changes will be proposed to the membership prior to the December 2021 AGM.

Meeting adjourned at 1100 EDT.

Respectfully submitted,

Henrik Roos, Secretary