December Business Meeting Summary
by Andy Thompson, MSDC Secretary
President Dan Teich welcomed everyone to the December 3rd meeting and thanked everyone for coming. He also thanked the many past presidents in attendance for their service to the club. Finally, Dan welcomed guests and those attending an MSDC meeting for the first time.
This was the first club meeting since the Northern Virginia Mineral Club’s (NVMC’s) gem, mineral, and fossil show held annually at GMU in late November. Dan thanked all those club members who did the hauling and set up work, staffed MSDC’s two tables, donated and prepared the minerals for sale, interacted with the show’s attendees who flocked to the tables, recorded all the requests to be on the newsletter’s mailing list, and made our participation enjoyable. A special thanks to Kenny Reynolds for hauling to his home the club’s unsold minerals and set-up materials.
Reports from Officers
VP for Programs Kenny Reynolds reported the names of our upcoming speaker and program titles for the early months of 2026.
Treasurer John Weidner reported that the mineral sales at the NVMC show brought in $1,500. These funds will be used to support the geology-related research of a George Washington University student and for our club’s annual grant to the Smithsonian’s Department of Mineral Sciences.
Secretary Andy Thompson listed four priorities he hopes the club can address:
1) In December or January, MSDC's Board of Directors (BOD) will propose a slate for the new BOD which includes any new members who have been proposed to serve in 2026. Each year one director completes his or her three-year term as director. We thank Brian Silver for his advice and service and appreciate his continuing on as an active MSDC member.
2) Given some earlier discussion of potentially expanding the number of board members, we may be looking for at least one or two new candidates, as director(s) or any new position as may be suggested by club members and the BOD.
3) We hope to have a BOD meeting to discuss the above needs. Most of the 2025 BOD has agreed be on the slate to be elected for 2026. In addition, we will review the club’s growing needs to find support persons ("new blood") for all of the executive positions, including the important roles secretary, treasurer and newsletter editor.
4) Dr. Tollo has advised us that he has selected an excellent candidate to receive the annual student research grant.
Newsletter Editor Ken Rock, as a non- executive officer, does an extraordinary role with the club’s newsletter. A number of members regularly provide Ken with links to articles that he use include in the monthly column “Geology in the News.” Please consider forwarding him a link of something interesting you see so that others can check it out, too.
Old Business
No issues were raised.
New Business
There is some interest in discussing if the club wants to continue with our meetings on the first Wednesday of the month, or move it to the 3rd or 4th Wednesday of month. This thought is in the early stage of consideration.
With no further reports given or issues raised for consideration, Dan called for and received a motion to close the meeting. With no objections raised, the members unanimously approved adjournment. He turned the microphone over to the Program Committee to introduce the evening’s presenter.