Phoenix Earth Food Co-op (PEFC)
Minutes, Board Meeting 07/22/2015

Location: Main branch of Toledo-Lucas County Public Library, 325 Michigan St., Toledo, OH 43604; Board members in attendance: Shelly Boraby, Thomas Fine, Sándor Halász, Anita Levin, Sean Nestor, Hermann von Grafenstein, Absent: Alyx Kendzierski, Nichole Nauden. Co-op staff in attendance: Sean Fitzgerald (General Manager), Helen Elden (staff). Guests: Jay Z. Chen, Laurie Bedford, Mary Sawers. Resolutions are numbered R1–R3.

The meeting began at 6:00 pm.

1. Approval of minutes
   

   The minutes of the 6/24/2015 board meeting were approved (R1, 6/0/0 for/against/abstention).

2. Credit Union Account
   

   Sean Fitzgerald (GM) and Helen Elden were approved as signers of the Co-op’s account at the Directions Credit Union.

3. Jackson Loan
   Sean N. informed the Board that the suit of Mr. Jackson’s heirs claiming re-payment of Mr. Jackson loan had been dismissed without prejudice. Several items were discussed:
   • Because the loan had been dismissed without prejudice, the suit could, at least in principle, be filed again. However, the text of the judgment had made it clear that the dismissal was related not only to the application for summary judgment, but implied furthermore that the case itself was without merit.
   • Tom Fine was asked to meet with the Co-op’s lawyer Scott Ciolek to discuss the Co-op’s countersuit against Mr. Jackson’s heirs for unlawful enrichment following Mr. Jackson’s death.
   • Because the loan could now be removed from the Co-op’s books, taxes would have to be paid for a gain of ~$36,000. Leah Foley was chosencontact Steve Wolfe and Mark Mockinstorm to discuss the possibility of spreading the tax payments over a period of several years.
4. Potluck
   Thursday, August 13 was chosen as a tentative date for the next potluck. The theme would be local food.
5. Volunteer Program
   Shelly reported on the status of the volunteer program. Some of the volunteers who had registered at the time of the Annual Meeting were no longer available. Some members, for example Diane Nonemaker and HenkAvero would like to volunteer, but did not know how to. Sean asked Sandor to set up a link for signing up through the website. In addition there was a sign-up sheet available at the store.

6. General Manager’s Report
   Sean Fitzgerald presented his General Manager’s report. Key points were:

   • The Co-op would be receiving an insurance payment of $5772.41 with a $500 deductible for a recent freezer outage.
   • Sean F. wanted to know whether the Co-op was up to date with building repairs using money saved due to the revised rent agreement. Some repairs had been made but more needed to be done to stay current. A list of completed items would be helpful to keep track.
   • Sean F. had consulted with Chris Dilley regarding the use of email for outreach. Chris suggested that short messages several times were week were better than less frequent long emails. GM Fitzgerald and Morgan Blake would figure out an appropriate frequency and length of emails.
   • Anita mentioned that people could always opt out of email lists. Texting, in addition to email, should be utilized more.
   • GM Fitzgerald felt that in general, the status of the Co-op was OK.
7. Finance Committee Report
   Tom Fine presented the Finance Committee report, starting with the Year-To-Date report. Sales were down 10% compared with the same period last year, but the fundamentals were better, largely due to expenses being lower by 20%. The main reduction in sales had been in groceries and supplements. The Co-op had made a profit of $5000 as opposed to a loss last year. Anita cautioned that the Co-op might have reduced inventory too much. She felt that she could no longer find many items she used to buy at the store. Hermann echoed Anita’s comments. Sean N. added that even employees could not get everything they wanted. Tom clarified that sales had declined more than inventory, suggesting that a lower inventory was a consequence rather than a cause of the lower sales. Purchases needed to be adjusted to sales. Hermann added that shelf life needed to be taken into account during purchasing.
8. Outreach Committee Report
   Hermann reminded the Board that a table for the Art-On-The-Mall event had been booked and more volunteers were needed. He pointed to a Doodle poll as well as a sign-up sheet in the store. Hermann added that regular Outreach Committee meetings were being held on the second Tuesday of every month unless announced otherwise. The Outreach Committee was maintaining a calendar of events of interest for posting on the website.
9. Marketing Campaign
   Sean N. reported that the marketing campaign was ongoing. $3,300 had been raised so far, equivalent to 60% of the target amount. Appreciation was expressed for a $1000 contribution from a generous donor. Many contributions were coming through checks rather than the Indiegogo website. More advertising in the store was needed.
10. Annual Meeting
    Vice President Sándor Halász was asked to set the date for the Annual Meeting. Helen promised to make calls to various places to reserve a room. University, Augsburg, Pilgrim or Unitarian churches were considered suitable venues. Sean wanted to set a festive tone for the meeting. The Co-op urgently needed more candidates for the Board. People who were helping regularly with inventory should be asked to apply for seats on the Board.
11. Nichole Nauden’s Resignation
    Nichole Nauden’s resignation from the Board was accepted (R2, 6/0/0). The Board expressed gratitude for Nichole’s service.
12. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 7:27 pm (R3, 6/0/0).

Date of next meeting: August 26, 2015, if not decided otherwise.

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Submitted by Hermann von Grafenstein, Secretary