1. The American Legion Post 176 General Membership Meeting was called to order at 1930 on 3 October 2006, with Commander Myers presiding.

a. The vice Adjutant called roll. The following officers were excused from the meeting: Chaplain Reed and Adjutant Braman. All other officers were present with the exception of Sergeant-at-Arms Thiebaut and Jr. Past Commander Kampanos. The Commander announced that 2^nd Vice Commander Younts has resigned.

b. In accordance with the motion carried at the 5 Sep 06 General Membership Meeting, minutes of the previous meeting were published on the Post Web site.

2. Committee reports were as follows:

a. 1^st Vice Commander Taborek reported on the following activities.

1.) Membership Committee: Names of new and transfer candidates were presented for membership this evening. The names were read and approved in block. The Post now has 1,254 members which is 66% of the 2007 goal. New committee members are needed to replace those who can no longer volunteer.

2.) Ways & Means Committee: Sunday breakfast is 8 Oct from 9:00-11:00 AM. The next Friday night dinner is 13 Oct from 5:30-7:30 PM, followed by Ron’s Karaoke. The Early Bird Spaghetti Dinner is scheduled for 11 Oct. Dinner is free for those who have renewed their membership for the 2006-2007 Legion Year.

b. 2^nd Vice Commander Younts:

1.) Blood Drive: The next bi-monthly blood drive will be 17 Oct at the Post Home. Please call Joe Finch at 703-569-1552 to make a reservation.

2.) Boys State: Boys State was held 18-24 Jun during the 17^th District Convention. The Post has been receiving donations for next year’s event. John Bednarek gave the Commander $216 for Boys State from the Boys in the Back Room, and Eddie Dents presented six checks in Dick Babler’s name. Commander Myers also contributed $57.

2.) Sons of the American Legion (SAL): The SAL resumed its regular meeting schedule on Tuesday, 12 Sep. A representative of the SAL Department of VA was the guest speaker.

c. 3^rd Vice Commander Dzierski reported on the following activities:

1.) Bingo: Bingo is a major source of income for the Post. A total of 34 people are now working as volunteers. Additional cashiers and bingo callers are needed to increase the number of teams from four to six.

2.) Children & Youth: The Children’s Halloween Party is Sunday, 22 Oct, from 1:00 to 4:00 PM. There will be refreshments and prizes for the best costumes.

d. Finance Report: A new baseline for the financial statement will be established as a result of the external audit. The written report should be completed by the end of next week. Back invoices will be addressed as part of the audit, including the $40K owed to the catering manager. An annual statement will be compiled at the end of the year. The EXCOM has been asked to review the situation concerning back payments to the catering manager.

e. Chaplain. Commander Myers reported that Past Commander Glenn Shoemaker is in the Burke Healthcare Center; he would like to have some visitors. Rich Tiner has had a heart by-pass operation, and former Finance Officer Jim Sullivan has had brain surgery. Acting Chaplain Chauncey Reed is also very ill. Please keep them in your prayers.

f. Service Officer: Ali Nikolai reported that the spouse of a deployed soldier who contacted the Auxiliary last month for help with deck and yard maintenance is in need of financial assistance for car repairs. She has estimates from two vehicle repair shops for work that needs to be done for her car to pass inspection. She indicated she does not have the money to cover the repairs and still pay her other bills. She also indicated that she has joined the Auxiliary and she will ask them for help. She has contacted the Post for assistance in the event the Auxiliary cannot take care of the current problem. Ali has referred the matter to the Department Adjutant who will provide assistance.

g. Corporate Board: Rod Carlone reported on the following items:

1.) A new revenue tracking system will be in place following completion of the external audit. The tracking system will allow for all sales in the Post to be logged, processed, and accounted for in reports and in a quick and efficient manner. The candidate application is a Club Management Point of Sale system called JarTrek, especially designed for clubs. The vendor is American Micro Tech in Hagerstown, MD. The cost for a server (with mirrored hard drive) and an upstairs workstation is approximately $8K. The Corporate Board will vote on the system at the 26 Oct meeting.

2.) Candidates are being interviewed to fill the General Manager position. A permanent manager should be hired by the end of October.

h. Post Scripts: Klaus Dahlke has taken over the Post Scripts from Tony Dzierski. The October issue has been delivered to the printer.

3. Old Business

a. Condition of Building. The roof leak has been fixed, but a comment was made that there were no financial reports on roof repairs. This lead to disparaging comments about the Junior Past Commander. Commander Myers noted that animosity is rampant and he stated that malicious acts serve no useful purpose, such as the Past Commander’s picture being removed from the wall. Commander Myers appealed for comradeship and he asked members to be considerate of each other and to resolve differences in an amicable manner.

b. Post Scripts. A question was asked again about why the General Membership cannot write articles/letters to the editor for the Post Scripts. The Commander explained that the issue had been discussed and voted on in the past (See 17 Feb 04 EXCOM Meeting minutes). The consensus was that the Post Scripts is not a newspaper but an official publication that is available to people other than members. Furthermore, the Corporate Board is now reporting on the status of Post property and finances. Any issues with Post Script articles can be raised in the membership meeting, or addressed directly to the Commander, the Executive Committee, or the Corporate Board.

c. Banquet Contracts. In reference to the 1 Aug 06 GMM minutes, para 2.d.4., a question was asked about the $17K in contract funds that was stored in the office safe. The Commander replied that the safe has been opened and the money was deposited in the checking account.

d. Post-to-Post Program. Commander Myers reminded everyone that the Post-to-Post program in response to Hurricane Katrina is still up and running. Donated items go from our Post and others in the 17^th District to an American Legion Post within the disaster area for distribution to the community. A question was asked about a place where donated items for veterans could be kept. Commander Myers indicated he would look into building cubicles for temporary storage.

4. New Business:

a. Commander Myers stated that the Fairfax County Inspector visited the Post in response to complaints about trees being cut down in the buffer zone. Several trees in the vicinity of the wall were cut down because the roots were starting to grow into the wall and causing it to crack. At that time, the County told us to remove the trees because they were damaging the walls. Now the Inspector has told the Post that the trees were cut down in violation of County zoning laws. He advised the Post that 60 trees must be replanted, which will be a major expense for the Post (approximately $10K). The Inspector will delay formal notification until the Spring, which will give the Post the opportunity to clean out shrubs, etc. so new trees can be planted. The Corporate Board will investigate the tree situation and report to the membership. A motion was made and carried to table tree discussion until the investigation is complete.

b. Judge Advocate Dents is compiling a book of standing rules which will be distributed to all members responsible for Post activities. Documents being compiled include the House Rules, the Constitution, and the By Laws. There are, however, no written procedures for internal controls. This will be addressed following the external audit.

c. An issue arose concerning lease of Post facilities to families of deceased Post members. The spouse of a deceased member recently had to pay $350 to lease a room in the Post home. It was agreed that families of deceased members can use Post facilities at no cost as long as the room (s) are not leased to another party.

d. Nominations were opened from the floor for the vacant post of Finance Officer. One candidate, Bob Cable, was nominated and seconded. He explained why he was running for the post, what his credentials are, and what he hoped to accomplish. A motion was made and seconded to elect Bob Cable as Post Finance Officer. He was elected by unanimous vote.

e. Good of the Legion: The Corporate Board is looking for five additional check signers. Any officers who can help should contact the Commander Myers or Corporate Board President Rod Carlone.

d. There being no further business, a motion was made and carried to adjourn the meeting. Jerry Mittelbach won the 50-50 drawing and donated the amount ($72) to Oratorical. The Post will make a matching contribution. The meeting was adjourned at 2045.

Ali Nikolai Tony Dzierski

Vice Adjutant Acting Commander