MINUTES OF THE FIFTH DBYC ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Held on 25th April, 2007 at the DBMC, commencing at 2020 hrs.
Committee Members present: James Fernie (JF) Chairman
Andy Küng (AK) Secretary Nigel Easterbrook (NE) Treasurer
Neale Nowosad (NN) Cruising
Alain Bedard (AB) Webmaster Paolo Alvera (PA) Training
1. Welcome and Apologies
JF opened the meeting by welcoming approximately 33 club members to the 5th Annual General Meeting of the Discovery Bay Yacht Club.
2. Previous Minutes
JF summarized the minutes and matters arising from the previous AGM, copies of which had been circulated prior to the meeting. He then called for a motion that the minutes reflected a true and accurate record of what had been discussed at the previous AGM. The motion was proposed by Jug Thornton, seconded by Sue Fernie, and passed by a unanimous show of hands.
3. Chairman’s Report
JF presented the Chairman’s Report and advised that membership numbers were steadily increasing as people heard about the ‘fun & friendly’ format of DBYC events. He mentioned that there were now more local yachts entering Club events resulting in more competitive racing. He then listed the Club events held since the last AGM, including:
Cheung Chau race-to-lunch 26 Mar 06
Soko Island s Rally 29/30 Apr 06
Sokos Overnight 15/16 Jul 06
Disney Islands Regatta 9 Sep 06
Stanley Lunch Race 17 Sep 06
Autumn Pursuit Race 7 Oct 06
Greek Islands Cruise 14-28 Oct 06
Middle Island Regatta 11/12 Nov 06
Drag Racing 10 Dec 06
Christmas Party aboard Star Pisces 1 Dec 06
Boxing Day Lamma Cruise 26 Dec 06
Tsing Ma Regatta No 10 28/29 Apr 07
JF then advised that HSBC Bank International had agreed to be the major sponsor for the Tsing Ma Regatta which would allow the club to run a more polished event with printed Sailing Instructions, advertising and polo shirts for all participating crew members. He pointed out that HSBC would hold a corporate event at the DBMC Marquee on the 26th May 2007 and it would be appreciated if as many Club members as possible could attend.
JF mentioned that the DBYC were supporting the Aberdeen Boat Club events with many DBYC boats entering ABC events. However, there had been little response from ABC boats supporting DBYC events, and no ABC boats had entered the up-coming TMR. He recommended that the Club should still work toward more cooperation with ABC.
JF mentioned that Club sail training was still suspended due to not being able to obtain liability insurance at a reasonable cost. However PA had proposed formal shore-based training courses which could be followed by sail experience on Members’ boats.
JF then thanked the Executive Committee, volunteers, sponsors, event participants and the Membership for the continuing success of the Club. He advised that the Committee had now finalized an event calendar for the coming year and outlined the proposed events. JF reminded members that the Club had now changed to a new CSS web site format, including a ‘Forum’ facility for exchange of ideas. He asked that Members make use of this facility to offer feedback to the Executive Committee.
4. Treasurer’s Report
NE presented the Treasurer’s report, including the Annual Statement of Accounts and an outline of income, expenditure and current financial position to date. He noted that the Club’s current cash balance was approx HK$ 61,000 against HK$ 47,000 in 2006. He pointed out that the Club had sailing equipment with a depreciated value of HK$ 16,820 plus HK$ 21,872 in unsold merchandise. Total income for the year was approximately HK$84,000 with total expenditure approximately HK$ 70,000.
JF added that this was considered a comfortable balance, given the level of expenditure over the year, even with the heavy subsidy of the Christmas party. He pointed out that race entry fees were set to cover costs only, with prizes being provided by sponsors and that the Club’s main income was from membership fees and the sale of merchandise. He asked that members pay their annual subscriptions, now due, as soon as possible as it was very time consuming for the Treasurer to pursue unpaid fees. Finally, JF invited suggestions by e-mail from members on proposals for future expenditure. There being no queries on the accounts from the floor, he called for a motion to accept the Accounts as presented. This was proposed by Lindsay Pickles, seconded by Alain Bedard, and the motion was passed by a unanimous show of hands.
5. Election of Officers and Committee
JF advised that, as mentioned at the Christmas party, he would be stepping down as Commodore of the DBYC. The intention was to spread the effort of running the Club between more Officers on the Executive Committee, and so the Constitution had been amended to include the new posts of Rear Commodore and Vice Commodore. JF advised that Paolo Alvera had volunteered to stand as the next Commodore, and JF as Rear Commodore, however the post of Vice Commodore remained vacant.
JF noted that the current Treasurer, Nigel Easterbrook, would be standing down, but had agreed to take over as Racing Representative. David Wilson, resigning as Racing Representative had agreed to take over as Treasurer. Secretary, Cruising Representative and Webmaster had agreed to remain in their present posts. JF explained that Erica Cartledge had recently been unwell, so Michelle Flavel had agreed to replace her as Social Representative. He advised that the new co-opted posts of Merchandise & Sales Representative remained vacant, but that William Wright had agreed to stand as Safety Officer, and Garry Smith as Media & PR Representative. JF summarised the list of new Executive Committee posts as follows:-
Commodore Paolo Alvera
Vice Commodore vacant
Rear Commodore James Fernie
Treasurer David Wilson
Secretary Andy Kung
Racing Representative Nigel Easterbrook
Cruising Representative Neale Nowosad
Social Representative Michelle Flavel
Training Representative Paolo Alvera
Webmaster Alain Bedard
Safety Officer William Wright
Media & PR Garry Smith
Merchandise & Sales vacant
JF advised that no other Members had volunteered or been nominated for the posts, and so called for a motion to elect the Executive Committee as advised. This was proposed by Alain Bedard, seconded by Eric Lloyd, and the motion was passed by a unanimous show of hands.
6. Any Other Business
Amendments to the Constitution
JF advised that the Executive Committee had amended the DBYC Constitution to include the positions of Commodore, Vice Commodore and Rear Commodore, as well as formally adding the post of Training Representative.
Administrative Secretary
In addition to expanding the Executive Committee as already described, JF recommended that the Club employ a part-time General Secretary to handle much of the administration currently undertaken voluntarily by a few Committee Members in their spare time. He explained that the post would be advertised and a contract negotiated for a trial period.
Club Subscription Levels
In order for the Club to afford the salary of a General Secretary, JF proposed increasing the annual subscription for family memberships from $ 300 to $ 600, for individual membership from $ 200 to $ 400, and for junior membership from $100 to $200. He called for a motion for this to be accepted by those present and this was proposed by Paolo Alvera and seconded by Jug Thornton; the motion was passed by a unanimous show of hands
JF reiterated that the new DBYC events calendar would make it easier for members to plan ahead and make prior arrangements to participate in more Club events. This would be posted on the Club website for easy reference.
JF concluded the meeting by outlining arrangements for the up-coming TMR, and advised that he had received many enquiries from people looking for crewing positions. He invited skippers who could take extra crew to step forward.
There being no other business, the meeting closed at 2105 hrs.
