May 3 Business Meeting Report

by Andy Thompson, MSDC Secretary

President Kenny Reynolds gaveled the meeting to come to order and thanked everyone for joining our monthly meeting. He then called on the officers for their reports.

Secretary’s Report

Andy Thompson informed everyone that MSDC’s Board of Directors (BOD) would be meeting via Zoom on the third Wednesday of this month, May 17th at 7:30 pm. Board members have been suggesting agenda issues which to date include:

·  the potential for future hybrid meetings (e.g., a traditional live event with virtual attendees) and the equipment needed to make it work efficiently for all attendees (e.g., the Owl).

·  MSDC’s increased need and possibilities for publicizing our monthly programs, newsletter, YouTube videos, Facebook, etc.

·  evaluating MSDC’s capabilities for our club’s activities: how do you think our club is doing?

·  Other topics/issues as recommended.

Treasurer’s Report

Since John is on travel, Kenny tabled this topic.

Editor’s Report

Ken Rock encouraged all members and visitors to think about and consider submitting an article for upcoming editions of our Mineral Minutes newsletter.

V.P. for Programs

Cindy Schmidtlein noted that Professor Debra Brooks will be presenting this evening and, for our June 7th meeting, Patrick Rowe will speak about the “Continental Craton.”

Geology in the News

Beth Heesacker pointed out the unusual recent increase in earthquakes especially greater than 2.5 (Richter scale) on the West Coast and asked if anyone had information about possible causes. This generated discussion which included the question of the impact of increased oil drilling. Attendees suggested several sources for current earthquake information.

With no further geology new events reported, President Kenny Reynolds called for and received a motion, second, and unanimous approval to close the business portion of the meeting. He then turned the meeting over to Cindy to introduce the evening’s presentation.