Seneca East Public Library Board of Trustees
November 9th, 2022
The November 9th, 2022 meeting of the Seneca East Board of Trustees was called to order by President Janet Ruffing at 7:31 PM. Trustees in attendance were: Janet Ruffing, Kim Ohl, Heather Stockmaster, Tina Shook and Jeff Beaston. Library staff attending included Fiscal Officer Pamala Dunson and Children’s Librarian Chris Lambert.
Approval of Minutes: The minutes of the October 12th, 2022 meeting were reviewed and approved with a motion by Jeff Beaston, a 2nd by Kim Ohl, and approval of all remaining board members by voting “aye”.
Fiscal Officer’s Report: The board reviewed the October 2022 bills as well as reviewing and initialing the October 2022 Bank Reconciliation and Management Reports as presented by the Fiscal Officer.
Resolution #579 - To transfer $1500.00 from Contingencies 1000-930-930 to Dues & Memberships 1000-100-510. A motion to approve Resolution #579 was made by Heather Stockmaster, a 2nd by Tina Shook, and approval of all remaining board members voting “aye”.
Resolution #580 - To supplement $100,000 to the Capital Improvement Fund during the Temporary Appropriation Process which will later become The Permanent Appropriation in that same fund. The total money received from the Hollinger Estate amounted to $100,312.43. A motion to approve Resolution #580 was made by Kim Ohl, a 2nd by Heather Stockmaster, and approval of all remaining board members voting “aye”.
Resolution #581- To review and approve 2023 Temporary Appropriations for the General Fund. A motion to approve Resolution #581 was made by Jeff Beaston, a 2nd by Tina Shook, and approval of all remaining board members voting “aye”.
BWC AUDIT – Audit is being conducted November 29th. The Fiscal Officer putting reports together for it. CHART OF ACCOUNT CHANGES COMING – No further updates at this time.
Director’s Report: Total Patron Count for October was 3518 with 26 days open.
Old Business: There are no updates on the Brakeall Estate. The new copier is coming Thursday, November 10th. Letters have been sent out for the Board Vacancy following Heather Stockmaster’s term at the end of December 2022.
New Business: Programming schedule for Winter (January-March) is complete. The Giving Tree is set up at the circulation desk.
Building Update: A message has been left with Dave Stallings about the roof seam and roof on the annex. Patty from Perry’s Plantation sent an updated quote for yearly maintenance. A motion to approve the current proposal from Perry’s Plantation for late spring and early summer trimming for $375.00 was made by Kim Ohl, a 2nd by Jeff Beaston and the motion passed with approval by all remaining board members voting “aye”. Bathroom light timers are fixed. Habitec Fire inspection is complete.
Staff: Background check results are pending for the notary status. After receiving the background checks the information will need forwarded to the Secretary of State and stamps will need to be ordered. Adjustments and staff raises were discussed.
Children’s Room Report: We averaged 6 per week for Music and Movement and 14 per week for Storytime. The fall sessions will end December 2nd. There were 21 in attendance for October’s Brick Builders Club. During the October Teen Board meeting, teen volunteers helped to prepare the crafts for the Halloween party. Afterwards, they painted pumpkins. The November Mini Makers program had a fall food theme with 38 in attendance. There will be no Mini Makers in December, but will resume in January. November’s passive programming includes a Scavenger Hunt with turkeys in disguise, activities for Dino-vember and fall Take and Make crafts. We had our first maker session with the 5th graders in the school library the week of October 24th with sessions Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. They did a Halloween themed Lego Challenge. We will be returning the week of November 28th for a robot program. The Halloween party went great! There was a good turnout and good feedback. Halloween Eek-ends in Republic was a nice opportunity for us to be in the community and we are hoping to be able to do more there. Gingerbread Family Nights are scheduled for Thursday, December 1st and 8th. We will be at the Winter Wonderland at the Attica Fairgrounds on December 11th.
Adult Services Report: The Maid by Nita Prose was discussed at the October 11th book club. There were 4 patrons in attendance. On October 17th, 10 patrons attended the adult-only BINGO. Prizes were given and refreshments were served. A passive contest for patrons to vote whether they prefer pumpkin spice or apple cider best. There were 72 participants. Apple cider was the most popular. A name was drawn from the apple cider box and Rafaela Stanfield won a fall fleece blanket. The Halloween displays were “Old School Creepy” and “Oh the Horror” with 5 books checked out between the two displays. Fourteen patrons were in attendance and 7 Take and Makes were distributed for the craft night making yarn gnomes on November 7th. The book club discussed House Rules by Nita Prose on November 8th. There were 5 patrons in attendance. There is currently a Kindness Book Display and Historical Fiction Book Display with one book checked out so far. Eight Golden Tickets are hidden throughout the library. If a patron checks out a book with the ticket, they will be entered into a drawing to win a prize. We will be drawing weekly the whole month of November. This is library wide and not
limited to adults. On November 21st, Adult Services will be hosting an Ugly Sweater decorating party. Patrons have been asked to bring their own sweater and we will supply the “ugly.” At this time, nine patrons have registered. Starting in January 2023, SEPL Book Club will be moved to the second Thursday of each month. The books have been planned for the year and will be put on the website soon. The Adult Services activities have been planned out for 2023 until Spring. We will be offering a craft and either a class or a game night each month.
Foundation News: The next Foundation meeting will be held Tuesday, November 14th at 7PM.
At 8:30 PM, a motion was made by Kim Ohl to enter Executive Session in accordance with ORC 121.22 (G 1), to consider the appointment, employment, dismissal, discipline, promotion, demotion, or compensation of a public employee. A second was received from Tina Shook and the motion passed with all trustees voting “aye.” The Board thereupon entered Executive Session until 9:10 PM at which time regular session was resumed.
Board Old Business: There was discussion on the transfer of the Attica Area Historical Society. Currently the transfer is pending due to reconsideration by the Attica Area Historical Society. An update is expected by the end of the year.
Board New Business: No new business items.
The next meeting of the Seneca East Library Board will be December 14th, 2022 at 7:30 PM.
There being no further business to conduct, Tina Shook made a motion to adjourn at 9:11 PM.
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Janet Ruffing, President Tina Shook, Secretary