National League of American Pen Women–Denver Branch
Meeting Minutes
January 4, 2014
I. Diane Chambers called the meeting to order at 10:18 AM.
II. Members in attendance were: Sophia Baldwin, Diane Chambers, Erika Christiansen, Donna Clark, Kelly Ann Compton, Ruthy Wexler Denker, Vickie Drake, Florence Elliott, Jody Hinrichs, Pat Kennedy, Ann Klaiman, A. Marie Kriss, Juanita Pope, and Virginia Small.
III. An Inspirational Reading provided by Lorrie Reed was read by Kelly Ann.
IV. The December Minutes were approved as written.
V. The December Treasurer’s Report was accepted. With December expenses totaling $295.72, our current balance is $2,011.53.
VI. Committee Reports:
A. Website: Virginia reported that the slideshow is now going on our website. The new brochures and bookmarks have been received and a PDF of the brochure is now on the website. New name tags are in the works. Virginia shared about the types of information that can be included on each member’s bio page along with her biography: pictures of published books, poetry, links to blogs or other sites.
B. Membership, Auditor, Budget: Two people interested in joining NLAPW are waiting until February 2014 to become members.
C. Tapestry for Peace: The people in Buffalo, NY are still interested in acquiring the tapestry, but want more time to decide. In the meantime, Kriss believes the application paperwork being developed will be completed by the end of January. The application would be for anyone interested in giving the tapestry a permanent home.
D. Programs: Ann contacted Nick Zelinger about presenting in May, but he is unavailable. Andrea will be asked to check with Beverly to see if she would be able to move her presentation to May if Nick is available in April. Otherwise, we’ll find a spot for Nick in the future. Ann also introduced AuthorU to us, sharing that they have a 3-day conference coming up. You can look it up at authoru.org .
1. February—Kathryn Winograd from the creative writing department at ACC will speak
on publishing or will do a workshop on Lyric Essay.
2. March–Guest Critiques
3. April–Beverly Chico will present on her newly published book Hats and Headwear Around the World: A Cultural Encyclopedia
4. May–TBA.
5. June–Planning meeting and potluck
VII. New Business: Ann gave a history of Poetry to Go which was started and run by our branch from 2000 to 2008. It was an annual poetry contest for teenagers where the winning poems were displayed inside RTD buses. Two three-year anthologies were printed and sold. In 2009 and 2011, the Poetry Society ran the contest. Now, Columbine Poets is going to take over. Ann shared that they are very excited and full of ideas for the contest.
VIII. Outreach Projects: Diane asks that everyone interested in artists’ fairs please look at the FNO website and email Diane regarding fairs we as a group might participate in.
IX. Old Business: Ann and Erika reported for the Anthology Committee. The committee voted 3-2 against putting together an anthology at this time. The group agreed that we should start small and do shorter segments that may or may not lead to an anthology. The three ideas presented were:
1. Start a blog where Denver Branch members take turns writing on a suggested theme. The blog could be on a separate website from ours, with a link from our branch website to the blog site.
2. Party: Use a party as a way to connect with other groups. Have food and drinks available, possibly a poetry slam, or a sharing of chapbooks written by each group.
3. Chapbooks: These could include flash fiction, essays, scenes, dialogue, poems. We could sell them for a few dollars at the fairs we participate in. We could begin a tradition of a new chapbook every year.
The blog and the chapbook ideas received the most interest. The committee will meet before the February meeting to venture further into these ideas.
X. More New Business:
A. Elections are coming up. Diane asked for two people to poll people about their interest in the various positions. Jody was the only volunteer. Diane will send the job descriptions out to everyone. Our elections will take place via e-mail toward the end of February with the winners announced at our March meeting.
B. In Pen Women Magazine: 1) Look out for webinars coming up on various topics. 2) The most recent issue invites voting on National amendments and board members 3) The biennial conference is in April. 4) Look on the National website for upcoming contests.
XI. The meeting was adjourned at 11:27 AM
After the meeting, Sophia gave a presentation on her books, sharing a little of her family history along the way. It was a fun presentation. Thank you, Sophia!
Respectively submitted,
Kelly Ann Compton, Secretary
