Present: Karissa & Elijah Canfield, Bonnie Charette, Dan Mercurio, Phil Crutchfield (friend Kathy), Kris Krzyzanski, Thad Bogart, Cheryl VanVliet, Hal Hultman, Tim Root, Maureen Posler (via phone), (Guests: Alex Hanson-S. Lyon Creek Clean-up, Ryan DeSana-Principal of Bartlett Elementary School), and Theresa Furget.
Elijah called the meeting to order at 6:30 PM.

1. Additions & Corrections: Thad added Civitan Project Planning Template to 6d.
2. Approval of March 13th, 2025, Minutes: Thad made a motion, and Phil seconded it to approve the March minutes. Motion passed,
3. Treasurer’s Report: Elijah went over the general and MP accounts for April 2025 in Diana’s absence.
   1. Finance & Budget Committee: No report
4. Correspondence: None.
5. Member Recruitment & Retention (MRR) Committee Update: Karissa reported that she has a meeting tomorrow with the Lyon Today editor about an ad.
6. Open Discussion:
   1. Washer/Dryer-Barlett Elementary-Ryan DeSana/Principal: Ryan explained the need for this. He also explained the need for clothing for the first and second graders (underwear in particular). Mark (Roundabout Resale Shop) indicated at the March meeting he could help with this. Ryan will contact him. A brochure was passed around for a washer/dryer combo that costs about $1,802.00. An electrician is donating his labor to set up the electrical for the machine. Phil made a motion, and Kris seconded it to donate up to $2,000.00 out MP account to purchase the washer/dryer combo for Bartlett Elementary School. Motion passed.
   2. Winter Project Discussion (Goal decide by May 2025 for 2026):

i.Random Acts of Kindness Ideas: Doing antique appraisals at Sr. Center in S. Lyon, doing something with homebound individuals-Meals on Wheels. Will decide at May meeting whether to take on an activity or not for the winter quarter of 2026.

1. MI Monster Dash: Taken off the agenda.
2. Civitan Project Planning Template-Thad: The template goes from beginning to end of a project. The event’s calendar prepared by Karissa gives a glance to all events with some of the same features that the template gives only in more detail.

 
 

1. Club Officer Elections 2025-2026-Elijah: Theresa will stay as Secretary-unless someone else wants to take over, then she will hand it over. Diana has indicated that she will step down at the end of September 2025. This will leave the other three positions open-president, president-elect, and treasurer. While elections should be held in June, new club officers do not have to be turned into Civitan International until October 1, 2025. Elijah asked the members to give it some thought as to filling one of these club officer positions. There’s mutual sharing of information amongst officers, so no one is in a position by themselves, ever.
2. Project Updates:
   1. Charity Poker-April Event This was the biggest profit the club has ever taken in. Luckily, the club was part of a $150 poker tournament event which helped to raise the profit level!
3. Upcoming Projects:
   1. Adopt-a-Highway Cleanup April 12th: Meet at the New Hudson Biggby Store at 10 AM (rain date is the 13th). Need 6-8 people. Lunch afterwards. Safety vests, gloves, and grabbers will be supplied.

i.September 20th-28th cleanup TBD.

1. Scholarship April 16th-Cheryl & Maureen (via phone): There has only been a total of 2 applications from S. Lyon HS (none from East). Hopefully more will come prior to the April 16th deadline. Need to hang up more flyers around town. Maureen asked that Karissa contact the DDA and Thad the city council about the scholarship. The committee will me the first week of May to decide if there are any winners. Scholarships are to be given on Honors Night June 3rd and 4th and will need presenters. She asked Kris if he will do it. Kris will consider it and get back with her.  Also, need someone to take pictures on those nights.
2. S. Lyon Cleanup May 4th 9AM-1PM (at 400 McMunn St-MI Seamless Tube & Pipe-Truck Parking Lot)-Alex Hanson: Alex stated this is the 21st cleanup being held. They are now a 501 (c) non-profit organization. He also mentioned that the level of sponsorship has decreased. There are three tiers of sponsorship: $100-name on flyers and newspaper, $200- same as $100 and giveaways, $500-same as $100 & $200 with tent/table at event. Last year the club donated $500 and gave out coffee/hot chocolate, granola bars and bananas. Tim made a motion, and Bonnie seconded it to donate $500 out of the MP account to The S. Lyon Area Cleanup Project. Motion passed. The members discussed providing coffee, hot chocolate, and snacks (no fresh fruit). Karissa stated that the beverages will include cups, sugar, and creamer. Kris made a motion and Tim seconded it to spend (not to exceed) $300 for the coffee, hot chocolate, and snack items out of the MP account. Motion passed. If no member steps forward to obtain the food items, then Thad will take care of it.
3. Youth Entrepreneur Market (YEM)-Elijah:

i.2025 Dates: May 10th, June 14th, July 12th, August 9th, and September 13th, 10 AM-3 PM. Setup 8:45 AM.
ii.25 sign-ups, 18 paid, 12 students for May.
iii.Marketing Plan: On site attractions, flyers, or other ideas? Thad indicated that it has been posted on FB and will do it again at the beginning of May.

1. Charity Poker Save the Date June 26th-29th: Thurs/Fri 6:30 PM-2AM, Sat/Sun 10 AM-6 PM.

i.New Room in Livonia starting in June-do we want to use 1 or 2 of our unused licenses? These events will run Mon-Wed from Noon to Midnite: This will be an all-day event for one charity for 3 days. This could be broken into 2 shifts for each day. Discussion was that the club had a challenging time filling 16 worker slots in April. The new event would require at least 24 worker slots and since it is 3 days (Mon, Tue, and Wed) it would also add a burden on the members that are no longer working. Elijah will let Krazy Kopz know the club will pass on the offer.

1. Next Meeting:
   1. Dinner Meeting April 24th at Teresita’s Mexican Grill at 6:30 PM.
   2. Business Meeting May 8th at Lyon Twp. Library at 6:30 PM.
   3. Dinner Meeting May 22nd: Theresa explained that the Plymouth-Canton Civitan Club will be joining KVCC at Teresita’s, as on May 15th they have Charity Poker and had to cancel their dinner meeting for that night.
2. Adjournment: Meeting was adjourned at 7:58 PM.

Minutes taken by Theresa Furget on April 10th, 2025, and respectfully submitted on April 11th, 2025.

Present: Karissa & Elijah Canfield, Mark Blondy (Guest Annette Newton), Diana Bolton, Guest Dan Mercurio-soon to be new member), and Theresa Furget.
Elijah called the meeting to order at 6:34 PM.

1. Additions & Corrections: None.
2. Approval of February 13th, 2025, Minutes: Karissa made a motion, and Diana seconded it to approve the minutes. Motion passed.
3. Treasurer’s Report: Diana went over the general and MP accounts for March 2025. Karissa made a motion, and Mark seconded it to accept the treasurer’s report. Motion passed.
   1. Finance & Budget Committee: Diana went over the budget for 2024-2025 explaining her thoughts and reasoning as prepared. The discussion was that this will continue to be tweaked as this is the first year of having an actual budget.
4. Correspondence: None.
5. Member Recruitment & Retention (MRR) Committee Update-Karissa: Karissa was contacted about putting out a flyer for this individual’s business and wanted to include the Youth Entrepreneur Market also, at no cost. Karissa passed around what it would look like. It will be a direct flyer that will reach 5,000 homes. She has been in contact with the Lyon Today Magazine about placing an ad for the club and YEM. She is still waiting to hear back about the cost. There has been no meeting of the committee to discuss the software previously discussed at the February meeting.
6. Open Discussion:
   1. Washer/Dryer-Bartlett: Elijah: Thad has a meeting set up at the school to discuss this further next week. There was discussion as to what school Bartlett or Brummer will receive the washer/dryer. Mark asked whether clothes could be donated to help the kids out. Further discussion was whether an all-in-one appliance would be obtained, new or used. Thad will report the details at the April meeting.
   2. New Project Checklist-Karissa: Karissa went over the KVCC Events 2025 Calendar, explaining that members need to sign up to lead the various events. Mark indicated that he would be willing to lead the Kitefest in June if the club decides to participate. Here’s the link to review the calendar, then just let Karissa know what event(s) you want to lead:  https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16xMMdHyLYQw7FizR2EnDEER2_kSXcbFO/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=113762036340398725003&rtpof=true&sd=true
   3. New Hudson Bench-Karissa: Karissa passed around a picture to share the concept of what the benches will look like along with the sculptures of the horses. The location is the southwest quadrant of Ring Rd. The benches have a frame over them, and this is where the mural will be placed. The Downtown Development Authority (DDA) is looking to have the first bench placed sometime in 2025 (nothing has been decided yet). Karissa thinks it will be more like in 2026. 
   4. Winter Project Discussion (Goal decide by May for 2026)

i.Random Acts of Kindness ideas, other ideas? Several members like doing an act of kindness to group homes, senior nursing homes or special ed students to either celebrate birthdays or to just limit it to Valentines Day and St. Patrick’s Day. Could give out movie baskets to the facilities. For the seniors, Mark indicated that he could appraise items, like what is done on Antiques Road Show, only he is not able to do jewelry.

1. MI Monster Dash: TBD, sometime in October.

1. Project Updates: None to report.
2. Upcoming Projects:
   1. Scholarship April 16th: Essays are due to the committee (Maureen, Cheryl, Paige, and Paulina). A decision must be made by May 16th, and the schools are notified of the winners. Per the February minutes only two awards are going to be given out this year. Flyers were given to members to post within the community concerning the essay/scholarships.
   2. Charity Poker Save the Date: June 26th-29th.

i.The current event is April 3rd-6th. Thurs and Fri will be from 10 AM-6PM and Sat and Sun are 6:30 PM to 2 AM. The June event will be the reverse (night/day). Make sure you arrive ½ hour early at Vision Lanes located at 38250 Ford Rd. Westland, 48185. Wear your club tee shirt and name badge during the event.
Signup Genuis Link for April Event:   https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0C4DAEA62CA6FC1-55668882-kvcivitan
ii.Training Session: Elijah handed out the Charity Poker Notes and went over them. He indicated the Poker Box has the club’s application/ license for the event, money, the dowel for the singles, paper, pens, and blank name tags etc. He emphasized that the sign in sheet the day of the event must have 3 workers and 1 chairperson signatures. The chairperson signs the end-of-day form (Daily Cash Accountability). The end-of-day account of money should be exact and match what is being reported. On the fourth/final day 2 checks will be made out. One to Vision Lanes for rental location and the other to Krazy Kopz for their cut of the profit. Each check should be noted in the memo line the dates of the four days of the event and what the check is for-rental location and Krazy Kopz profit/share etc. The final statement that goes to the State of MI will be signed by the club’s president-Elijah. The complete Charity Poker Notes will be onsite for reference if needed.

1. Adopt-a-Highway Cleanup April 12th: Meet at the New Hudson Biggby Store at 10 AM (rain date is the 13th). Need 6-8 people (invite your friends and family). Usually everyone goes to lunch afterwards. The safety vests and grabbers will be supplied. Bring gloves. Thanks to Sue Meisner she went to MDOT and picked up the garbage bags to put the trash in.

i. September 20th-28th cleanup TBD.

1. S. Lyon Creek Cleanup May 4th: Elijah stated this will be finalized at the April meeting.
2. Youth Entrepreneur Market (YEM)-Elijah:

i.2025 Dates: May 10th, June 14th, July 12th, August 9th, and September 13th., 10 AM-3PM. The location is the grassy area between the Biggby Store and Lucas Coney Island on Pontiac Trail Rd. He has 10 signed up/interested. Only 5 have paid the refundable deposit so far. This is the first year of the refundable deposit (receive a refund when the youth vendor shows up for the event). Hopefully, this will cut down on the no shows. The total number of vendors last year was about 20 for one month. He estimates there’s room for 25 vendors and can squeeze in 26 if needed. He still must submit the city application and obtain insurance. He will also reach out to past youth vendors.
ii.Marketing Plan: On-site attractions, flyers, other ideas? Discussion was concerning how to increase the foot traffic at the YEM. Need something to attract people to YEM. Karissa reported that she has not heard back from the two grants she applied for (to cover the costs of inflatables etc.,). She is thinking the grants went to other groups. Elijah will create flyers to be hung around town and have someone hand out flyers at the farmer’s market. Mailers have already been discussed under item 5. Mark showed a Tom Cruise impersonator (Tom Dawson), and he works free for charities-but still would have to get the word out to the public. Discussed food trucks and ice cream truck.

1. Next Meeting
   1. Dinner Meeting March 27th at Teresita’s Mexican Grill at 6:30 PM.
   2. Business Meeting-April 10th at 6:30 PM.
2. Adjournment: Meeting adjourned at 7:48 PM.

Minutes taken by Theresa Furget on March 13th, 2025, and respectfully submitted on March 14th, 2025.

Kensington Valley Civitan Club Business Meeting Minutes
02/13/25
Present: Diana Bolton, Thad Bogert, Karissa & Elijah Canfield, Cheryl VanVliet, Hal Hultman, and Theresa Furget.
Elijah called the meeting to order at 6:37 PM.

1. Additions & Corrections: None.
2. Approval of Minutes of January 9, 2025: Hal made a motion, and Karissa seconded it to approve the minutes. Motion passed.
3. Treasurer’s Report & Budget Committee Report-Diana: Diana went over the general and MP accounts for February 2025. It was discussed that both accounts are not taking in enough money to break even, and eventually this will become an issue. For now, it is ok as the club has been very frugal in expenditure and is able to cover all expenses. Thad mentioned that dues may need to be increased to $35 sometime in the future. Karissa made a motion, and Hal seconded it to accept the treasurer’s report. Motion passed.
4. Correspondence: The club received a thank you card from military personnel in Iraq that received a Desert Angels Miracle Box.
5. Member Recruitment & Retention (MRR) Committee Update-Thad: Thad stated no committee meeting was held; however, he did some research on a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) program- Springly. He shared the link with Karissa, whose has been checking it out. The Springly program allows for registration, and tracking. With a contact database which allows you to send out emails that can be tracked and has an option for opting out (unsubscribe). It also helps with creating a newsletter. Karissa is still going through the tutorials for the program. Thad indicates that it costs about $49 per month and offers a lot. Currently the club has a Weebly subscription that costs about $10 per month. The best nonprofit CRM for your organization
6. Open Discussion:
   1. Blessings-Volunteer Opportunities at Centennial Middle School (CMM) & Millennium Middle School (MMS): Discussion was about volunteering at these events as an individual or as a group. Thad will check about group opportunities and report back. If you want to volunteer now, here are where they need the help and the links to volunteer.

i.Weekley delivery to CMS/MMS: Looking for volunteers to put food bags in lockers at CMS & MMS every Friday. Link:  Blessings in a Backpack: Weekly MMS and CMS Delivery.
ii.Monthly packing & delivery: Once a month packing larger food bags and delivering them to the students’ homes. Link: Blessings in a Backpack - South Lyon: February 15 - Monthly Packing & Delivery.

1. Scholarship Planning:  Cheryl reported that Maureen and Paige are in the process of updating the forms and will send them to the two high schools, S. Lyon, and S. Lyon East. Elijah will update the artwork and the website for the essays. The deadline to submit entries is April 16th and the club needs to notify the schools of the winners by May 16th. Discussion was how many scholarships ($1000 each) to award. The past two years the club has awarded four ($1000 each for a total of $4,000). The first year just two awards ($1,000 each) were awarded. It was decided to award just two awards this year, which can be discussed and modified if there are more than two students deserving. Cheryl made a motion, and Thad seconded it, that two awards of $1,000 each (for a total of $2,000) be awarded out of the MP account. Motion passed. Paige is coming back to assist with this event and will serve on the committee with Maureen and Cheryl. Hope I did not leave anyone off the committee. Just a note that the scholarship is the biggest expenditure from the MP account.
2. Brews & Chews May 17th:  Elijah stated that Larry Berg of the American Brain Tumor Association of MI sent him flyers of the upcoming BT5K Brews & Chews event to be held at the Kensington Metro Parks (4570 Huron River Parkway, Milford) with registration starting at 8 AM and the Brews & Chews at noon. There are various levels of sponsorship which would allow the club to have a booth at the event. Members did not seem interested in staffing a booth. It is not clear whether there are volunteer opportunities or not. They probably would take a monetary donation.
3. New Project Checklist: Discussion was that for each event there would be a point person/chair/person in charge that would coordinate the event. Karissa has prepared a google spread sheet for members to indicate their preferences. At this time, the spreadsheet is in ‘view’ only mode, she is the only one that can edit the spreadsheet. Just let her know what you would like to chair, and she will make the necessary changes. Here’s the link: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16xMMdHyLYQw7FizR2EnDEER2_kSXcbFO/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=113762036340398725003&rtpof=true&sd=true
4. S. Lyon Creek Clean Up: Thad indicated this will be held on May 4th. Members are interested in doing the hospitality booth and again provide the Biggby coffee and hot chocolate, along with granola bars and fresh fruit-bananas.
5. Winter Project Discussion (Goal: Decide by May for 2026):

i.Inspire Movement Project: Thad indicated that he will start working on this.
ii.Random Acts of Kindness Ideas: Elijah indicated that Cheryl produced a list of ideas that are included on the back of the agenda. Her examples are: delivering snacks to the local police fire and EMS; adopting seniors at local assisted facilities and give them a small holiday gift/birthday gift or sponsor an event at the facility.; leave monthly treats/cards for homebound seniors; work with Active Faith for children birthdays; donation of needed items to Blessings in a Backpack; sponsor a party for Special Olympics group; sponsor a craft/event for a special education classroom; and purchasing books for young kids to own. Karissa and Elijah talked about Civitan International’s (CI) Four Impact Areas: 1. Accessible & Inclusive Communities; 2. Education & Employment; 3. Health & Wellness; 4. Family & Community Support. They passed out a copy of the impact areas. Elijah talked about sponsoring a public exercise park (under Health & Wellness). Karissa talked about working with the Lyon Downtown Development Authority (DDA) with an ART Park/Mural, in particular a circular arch bench that would be paintable. The club would be able to collaborate with the artist and DDA to produce a design to be painted. It will cost about $12,000. Here’s the link that tells more about it:

Thad talked about sponsoring a clergy lunch and a lunch at the senior center.

1. Michigan Monster Dash-TBD: Karissa stated this will probably be held the third Saturday in October (18th??). Volunteers will be needed. Awaiting further details.

1. Project Updates: None.
2. Upcoming Projects:
   1. Adopt-a-Highway Cleanup: April 5th-13th; July 12th-20th; and September 20th-28th: Elijah will chair this event and will obtain additional bags. It was decided to meet at Biggby’s on April 12th at 10 AM. Rain date is the 13th.
   2. Youth Entrepreneur Market-Elijah:

i.2025 Dates: May 10th, June 14th, July 12th, August 9th, and September 13th.
ii.S. Lyon Superintendent Steve Archibald Letter-Cheryl: Cheryl is still waiting to hear back from the Superintendent concerning marketing the event on the school’s websites/calendars.
iii.Marketing Plan-on site attractions, flyers, other ideas? Need to increase the foot traffic for the YEM dates. Discussion was to buy ads in various community papers. Lyon Today, Hometown Herald was mentioned. Karissa indicated The Lyon Today Magazine has a much larger reach of about 21,000 homes. And would cost about $200 or .10 per home. She is waiting to hear back from them about the actual price and whether it could go in the May magazine. Karissa also talked about direct mailings with postcards. This would cost about $200 and go to about 600 homes and postage would be an additional $130. She could try to get a better price on the postcards if it were decided to go this route. Thad talked about sponsoring signs to be put up in the high schools’ fields on the fences. He thought it cost about $350, but it also depends upon the actual sport (football, baseball, etc.) Karissa has applied for two grants to get inflatables and yard games for two different YEM dates to help increase customers.

1. Charity Poker-April 3rd-6th & June 26th-29th:

i.Sign up Genius coming in March for the April event.

1. Training session at the March Meeting.

1. Brummer Elementary School Washer/Dryer (Just added)-Thad: This was discussed at the previous dinner meeting. Many of the kids come to school in dirty clothing and more schools (such as Detroit) are providing this for their students. It is estimated that the cost would be about $1,500 for the washer and dryer with additional costs for the electrical and plumbing.
2. Dinner Meeting:  February 28th at Teresita’s Mexican Grill.
3. Next Business Meeting: March 13, 2025.
4. Adjournments: Meeting adjourned at 8:08 PM.

Minutes taken by Theresa Furget on February 13th, 2025, and respectfully submitted on February 14th, 2025. Happy Valentines everyone!

Present: Phil Crutchfield, Diana Bolton, Karissa & Elijah Canfield, Cheryl VanVliet, Hal Hultman, Thad Bogert, Mark Blondy, Tim Root, guest Chiara Mattieson, and Theresa Furget.
Elijah called the meeting to order at 6:33 PM.

1. Additions & Corrections: Karissa added Member Recruitment & Retention under 5c.
2. Minutes of October 10, 2024: Phil made a motion, and Thad seconded it to accept the minutes. Motion passed.
3. Treasurer’s Report:
   1. January 2025 Financial Statement: Diana went over the general and Millionaire Poker (MP) accounts. She pointed out that the Pumpkinfest ticket sales netted $1,306. Karrisa made a motion, and Phil seconded it to accept the treasurer’s report. Motion passed.
   2. Finance & Budget Committee: Diana went over the working draft of the KVCC budget for 2024-2025. This shows side by side of the general and MP accounts. This gives an overview of the two accounts. She also pointed out the club has spent more from the MP account than it has taken in over the past couple of years.  At this point, it is not an issue as there is a large amount in the account and it has covered all expenditures to date.
4. Correspondence:
   1. Lyon Twp. Article: The latest copy of the Lyon Today magazine was passed around in which there was an article about the club. Karissa gave an excellent and detailed overview about the club and the club’s community involvement.
   2. Giving Tuesday (12/03/24) Donation-Elijah & Theresa: Club officers decided to donate $425 to Civitans at the Helm which benefits the Civitan International Research Center (CIRC). The amount was based upon $17 per member (at the time) and Civitan International (CI) tripled it and gave the club credit for $1,275.
5. Open Discussion:
   1. New Project Checklist-Karissa: Karissa made up a chart with KVCC events for 2025. The chart covers the date of the event, time, point person (person in charge), number of volunteers needed, whether marketing is needed, resources needed and type of follow-up-if needed. Incredibly detailed chart with all that is needed. She explained the question marks next to a couple of events. 2024 was the first time the club participated in the River Cleanup; Kitefest-club has not participated in the last couple of events. Christmas in July (Carl & Joanne Foundation) club has not participated. The chart gives all upcoming events for the club and community and makes it easier to put on the upcoming agendas for discussion. It was noted that the Camp Civitan MI Raffle Tickets need to be added to the chart. Fantastic-Karissa. Thad indicated that he has a meeting set up to discuss the Inspire Movement Project timeline and costs.
   2. 3rd Major Club Projects-Elijah: December through May are slow months as far as events the club participates in. He would like to fill this gap in 2026 and set a goal to have a new project by May 2025 (for 2026). This would help to put the club’s name into the community and have an impact. Elijah will keep this on future agendas for ongoing discussion/decision. Here are some of the ideas that were brought up and discussed:

i.Cheryl talked about sponsoring a dance for special needs individuals one to two times a year.
ii.Karissa talked about February having random acts of kindness to the Police, fire department, non-profit groups, senior facilities, group homes etc. She also discusses having a chili cook off.
iii.St. Patrick’s Day event-such as a shamrock hunt.
iv.Mark talked about a bowling fundraiser.  He has some old coffee urns (about 20) that could be used as targets for throwing balls (softballs etc.) at them. He also has a cotton candy machine and the spin art spinner that can make tie-dye tee shirts.

1. Member Recruitment & Retention-Karissa: Karissa asked the question as to whether former club members have ever been asked to rejoin the club or come to an event? Theresa did indicate that all former members are kept on the club’s contact list and the business meeting minutes and newsletter are sent to them. Need to actively seek out members whether it is at Desert Angels or the Youth Entrepreneur Market or asking former members to come back. Need to have membership recruiting party by inviting individuals to a pizza party like at the senior center or such. Discussed the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) which tracks customers’ interactions and can categorize groups to target etc. Need to establish a committee to investigate how best to recruit and retain members. Thad indicated that he would take the lead, Karissa and Phil will also be on the committee. It was decided to call the committee: Member Recruitment & Retention, (MRR).

1. Project Updates Since 10/10/24:
   1. Goodies on the Grand (Trunk or Treat)-10/19/24: Diana and Theresa worked on this event.
   2. Desert Angels Packing Party-11/14/24: There were about 103 volunteers of all ages that worked at this event resulting in 194 boxes being packed for overseas military. Karissa stated it was utter chaos, and it needs to be revised/reorganized. Her thoughts are:

i.Need additional time to set up and organize.
ii.Need to start collecting items sooner.
iii.Allocate club money to purchase items that have not been donated.
iv.Solicit more monetary donations.
v.More flyers need to be distributed.
vi.More collection areas are needed.
vii.Need to recheck the Amazon Wish List as products change continuously and delivery dates change with vendors.
viii.Space is an issue and more tables are needed.
This brought up the discussion of where to hold the packing party in 2025. Need a gym, cafeteria type location at an elementary school or even a church (St. Joe’s). The Roper Barn was brought up. Thad will contact The Roper Barn to see if this is possible. He knows that The Roper Barn will need to pull a special permit to have the packing party there. Also, more setup time is needed to set up and organize items prior to having the public come in and start packing.

1. Abby Park Festival of Trees-11/29/24: Cheryl, Tim and Theresa decorated the tree. Cheryl reported that St. Vincent DePaul was the winning tree. Their tree was decorated with food like items, grocery bills, and shopping lists etc. Cheryl and Theresa took the ornaments off the tree.
2. Giving on the Grand/Inflatables-11/30/24: Cheryl indicated that she purchased a third inflatable to use-Snoopy. Sue took the inflatables down and is providing storage.
3. Adopt-A-Family Shopping (12/07/24) & Wrapping (12/12/24): Cheryl, Hal, Karissa, Elijah, Mark, Maureen, Tim, Diana, and Theresa did the shopping for the three families of kids. Carol delivered to the one family and Cheryl & Hal delivered to the second family and Karissa & Elijah delivered to the third family. The families were appreciative for the gifts.
4. Club Christmas Party -12/12/24: The gifts were wrapped prior to dining. All the food was great, and everyone had an enjoyable time. Thanks, Paulina, for letting the club use the Salem-S. Lyon District Library for the Christmas/Wrapping Party.
5. Light Up the Grand/Flashlight Candy Cane Hunt 12/14/24: Karissa, Elijah, Tim, Mark, Thad, Theresa, and her niece Diana participated. Unfortunately, flashlights were not provided (as promised) and it was so dark and the candy canes were so small, making it hard for the kids to gather them up. About 30-40 kids participated. It was great to have the club’s tent set up as this sheltered people from the wind.

1. Upcoming Projects:
   1. Youth Entrepreneur Market (YEM)-Elijah:

i.2025 dates: May 10th, June 14th, July 12th, August 9th, and September 13th (8:30-3). Elijah already has eight individuals wanting to sign up.
ii.Participation Certificates sent: Maureen sent them out to the kids.
iii.Facebook Group Creation: Thad reported this has been done.
iv.Implement Refundable Deposit: Elijah reported that he has individuals sign up and then they do not show up. He wants to implement a $20 deposit for each date that would be refundable when they show up. Venmo would allow the refund to go directly back to the individual and money left in the account (individuals that did not show up) could be directly deposited into the club’s general account at the end of the season. Elijah will investigate setting up the account for YEM. This also brought up the discussion about increasing foot traffic for the YEM. Discussion was:

1. Need more marketing around town.
2. Possibility of having a food truck or ice cream truck.
3. KVCC sponsors a booth at the Farmers Market and handing out flyers to the public and directing them to YEM. This would cost the club $70/75 each week if it had a booth.
4. Handing out flyers to the public at the Farmer’s Market on the days of the YEM and/or having signs at the Farmer’s Market.
5. Having free food (hot dogs, ice cream).
6. Charity Poker Save the Dates-April 3rd-6th & June 26th-29th-Elijah: He does not have the morning/evening hours yet. He needs to apply for the license. Hal made a motion, and Phil seconded it to use $200 out of the general account to apply for the license from the State of MI. Motion passed.
7. MI Monster Dash-October-Karissa: Tabled for a later date to discuss.

1. Dinner Meeting: January 23rd at Teresita’s Mexican Grill.
2. Next Meeting: February 13, 2025.
3. Adjournment: Meeting adjourned at 8:15 PM.

Minutes taken by Theresa Furget on January 9th, 2025, and respectfully submitted on January 10th, 2025.

Present: Cheryl VanVliet, Diana Bolton, Thad Bogert, Phil Crutchfield, Maureen Posler, Hal Hultman, Karissa & Elijah Canfield, Paulina Poplawska, guest-Mark Blondy, and Theresa Furget.
Elijah called the meeting to order at 6:30 PM.

1. Additions & Corrections: Hal made a motion, and Thad seconded it to accept the agenda. Motion Passed.
2. Minutes of September 12, 2024:  Thad made a motion, Maureen seconded it to accept the minutes. Motion passed.
3. Treasurer’s Report: Diana went over the October general and MP accounts. She stated she sent out the fourth quarter (July) and first quarter (October) dues to members. She stated that Civitan International (CI) increased the dues to $22.50 per quarter and Regional dues remain $4.50. Thus , the clubs dues can remain at $30 per quarter. Hal made a motion, and Phil seconded it to accept the treasurer’s report .  Motion passed.
4. Correspondence: None.
5. Open Discussion:
   1. Club Officer Training due November 30th, 2024:  Elijah stated he’s completed the president training. Diana and Theresa will complete their training by the deadline.
   2. Finance & Budget Committee:  Elijah stated that CI is really pushing clubs to have a yearly budget. Club members were in agreement with this. Diana will chair it, and Paulina and Elijah will serve on the committee. The budget will include the general and MP accounts,
   3. Third Major Club Project: Elijah stated that in the summer there’s the Youth Entrepreneur Market, fall has the Desert Angel collection for the troops, and the club needs to have a project for the first quarter (Feb-March). Members discussed sponsoring a service dog (Paws With a Cause, Blue Star Service Dog etc.),  dance for special needs individuals. There’s all that money in the MP account waiting to be spent on something within the community. Elijah wants members to give it some thought and produce some ideas for the January business meeting.
   4. Club Christmas Party December 12th @6:30 PM: While this is a business meeting, normally it’s the Christmas party in which we wrap the gifts for the family adopted through Active Faith. Kroger’s chicken can be the main entre and members can bring a side dish to bring. Paulina will check to see if her library (Salem-S. Lyon District Library) has their room available for the party.
6. Project Updates:
   1. Youth Entrepreneur Market (YEM)-Elijah:

i.Mail Participation Certificates-Members felt this should continue to be done. Maureen and Cheryl will do this, and Elijah will give them the names and addresses of the youths.
ii.Implement Refundable Deposits- Elijah explained that only about 50% of the individuals that sign up to participate show up. As the market grows larger, this could impact on available space. If they had to pay a deposit of $20 per event which would be refunded to them if they showed up. The application would state that a spot is reserved only if a deposit is paid. There’d be an emergency policy  that would be on a case-by-case basis. This would be decided by Eliijah.
iii.Retail Shop Update-Mark Blondy: Mark owns the Roundabout Resale shop in New Hudson. He attended the last YEM event in September and offered a table in his shop to all the youth entrepreneurs. So far, only one has taken him up on his offer-Malia of Bumble Beads. He would like to recontact them (but doesn’t have any contact info for them). Members felt since they’re minors, Elijah should send out an email to the youth and let them contact Mark if they’re interested in participating. He would have contracts with the youths stating all profits are theirs. Malia of Bumble Beads has a table with two tabletop signs, one addressing YEM and the other one addressing KVCC in his store. Karissa stated Malia has also been selling her items at the Biggby Stores. Malia’s profits go to the Blue Star Service Dog organization.
iv.Facebook Group Creation: Elijah stated Malia’s mother reached out to him concerning a Facebook group that would be beneficial to youth that are interested in starting a business and all it involves. It would be a support group and would only be open as a private group and not open to the public. KVCC would be the administrator of the group. Members felt this was a great idea and would be helpful to YEM.

1. Pontiac Trail Cleanup-Hal: Hal reported it was a great day. They only had 4-5 bags and filled them up. Need to contact Sue about getting more bags-Cheryl will handle this. New motto: Don’t toss trash-We pick it up”-Hal Hultman author.
2. Pumpkinfest-Thad: Took in 1,306 tickets, which will be a profit of $1,306 for the club. Cheryl estimated the club gave away 500 stuffed animals, have 700 left for 2025 Pumpkinfest. The Wheel of Fortune was nicely divided up between the various sizes of animals (small, medium, and large) with the LED rings and candy.
3. Scarecrows on the Grand-Cheryl: Sam the scarecrow was put up at Inspiration Park on October 6th, by Maureen, Cheryl, Theresa, and Hal. Sam can be taken down November 1st , no later than the 6th.Cheryl submitted a bill for $56.51 for Sam’s costume. Theresa made a motion, and Phil seconded it to reimburse Cheryl for $56.51 out of the general account. Motion passed. Cheryl also submitted a bill for $33.00 for the stand to hold the laminated placard about KVCC. Thad made a motion, and Phil seconded it to reimburse Chery $33.00 out of the general account . Motion passed.

1. Upcoming Projects:
   1. Focus Hope October 12th-Cheryl:  The Plymouth-Canton Civitan Club will leave the Costco parking lot (I-96 service Dr. and Middle Belt Rd.) at 8:30 AM to carpool down to Focus Hope.  Otherwise meet down at Focus Hope by 9 AM to build food boxes for seniors and low-income families. Afterwards lunch at Polonia’s and a trip to the New Palace Bakery. About six club members will be going, Diana, Carol, and friends.
   2. Goodies on the Grand (Trunk or Treat)-October 19th 4:30-6 PM-Karissa:  Members will need to set up between 3:45-4 PM.  Will use the left-over candy and LED rings to hand out. Diana, Theresa, and Elijah will be attending. Will use the back end of Diana’s truck to hand out the treats. Cheryl will give Theresa a Halloween  tablecloth and decorations to use.
   3. Desert Angel Packing Party November 14th-Karissa: This will be held at the Lyon Twp. Municipal Center located at 58000 Grand River Ave. New Hudson 48165. Members need to show up at 4:30 PM to help set up and organize. Will open to the public at 6 PM. The club will supply pizza, cookies, and beverages for the event. Karissa made a motion, and Diana seconded it that $500.00 out of the general account be used for the food, beverages, and supplies for the event. Motion passed. Theresa will pick up the paper products (plates, cups, and napkins). Hal will pick up the beverages and Cheryl will pick up the cookies. Donation boxes will be placed at the Biggby Stores , Lyon Twp. Center, and  the senior center next week. Wal-Mart is being contacted for donations. The  Turtle Creek subdivision is having a fundraiser at Aubree’s on October 23rd, with 20% of the food bill going towards Desert Angels. Must mention Desert Angels or Turtle Creek when ordering. The members decided to move the dinner meeting from the 24th to the 23rd and have it at Aubree’s to take advantage of the fundraiser. 
   4. Light Up the Grand December 14th-Karissa: Will need to bring the tent and battery lights for the tent. Also bring the KVCC sign. The Flash Light Candy Cane Hunt supplies and treats will be provided. The hunt will go from 4:30-6 PM.
   5. Adopt-A-Family Planning-Cheryl: Last year there were two families with a total of six kids. Members decided to keep it at 6 kids. Cheryl will have Vivian contact Active Faith for the names and wish lists. The members doing the shopping will meet at the Wixom Target Store on December 7th at 10 AM. 
   6. Abby Park Festival of Trees-Cheryl: No info has been sent out by Abby Park. This year’s theme for the tree is patriotic. Cheryl has the decorations. Tentative date to assemble the tree is November 29th.
   7. Charity Poker 2025 Dates-Elijah: April 3rd-6th and he was able to get the June dates changed to the 26th-29th.  Mark your calendars with the dates.
2. Next Meeting:
   1. October 23rd (Wednesday) at Aubree’s @ 6:30 PM. Desert Angel fundraiser.
3. New Business:
   1. Active Faith-Thad: Need help on October 23rd to move to their new location across the street.
4. Hal made a motion, and Maureen seconded it to adjourn the meeting at 8:16 PM.

Minutes taken by Theresa Furget and respectfully submitted on October 14th, 2024. 

Kensington Valley Civitan Club Business Meeting Minutes
September 12, 2024
Present: Cheryl VanVliet, Hal Hultman, Vivian VanVliet, Elijah Canfield, Karissa Canfield, Thad Bogert, Kris Krzyzanski, Phil Crutchfield, Maureen Posler
Meeting called to order: 6:30 PM by Thad Bogert.
Minutes: Minutes of Last Meeting: Maureen passed out copies of the August meeting minutes. There were no corrections. Kris Krzyzanski made a motion to approve, and Vivian VanVliet seconded the motion. All agreed and minutes were approved.
Treasurer’s Report: Thad reviewed a summary Diana provided to the budget. There were no questions. Maureen made a motion to approve the treasurer’s report. Hal seconded and the treasure’s report was approved.
Correspondence: No correspondence to review.
Project Updates:

1. Installation of Officers: Vivian VanVliet installed Elijah Canfield as President of KVCC for the 2024-2025 year and Thad as Incumbent Past President. There were no other officers present to install.
2. Youth Entrepreneur Market (YEM): The final YEM will take place this Saturday (9/14/2024) from 10-3. Wear your club Tee shirt and name tag and bring a chair. Please come and support the market. 32 youth signed up to attend and 18 have confirmed. Members could be used to market the club and our youth. The location of the YEM is the grassy area next to the South Lyon Biggby Coffee. Help with set-up is needed at 8:30 AM. In the last meeting, Elijah discussed a grant that was available to youth entrepreneurs sponsored by the State of Michigan. Elijah reported that one of our youths applied for a grant and needs a letter of recommendation. Maureen volunteered to write the letter and Elijah will give her the YEM participant’s mother’s email to get details of what is needed. Karissa also reported that the owner of a resale shop contacted him about setting up a booth at the YEM. The owner said he would attend anyway and see if there were any youths that had enough volume and were a match for his shop. Cheryl reported that a chiropractor, new to the area, asking if they could set up a table at the YEM.  Cheryl explained the parameters of the program.
3. Charity Poker: Dates for 2025 have been established. KVCC’s dates are April 3-6 and June 6-9. Hal brought up that the June dates are the same weekend as Camp Civitan, and volunteers would be very limited as many of the club members volunteer at camp. Elijah was asked to see if the weekend could be switched.
4. Light Up the Grand:  No Updates for the December event. Goodies on the Grand (Trunk or Treat) will be held on October 19 from 4:30 – 6:00 PM at Inspiration Park (Theresa, can you sign us up for this?).
5. Pontiac Trail Clean-up: This will be held on September 21 with a back-up date on September 22. Meet at the New Hudson Biggby at 10:00 AM.
6. Desert Angels: This event will be held on Thursday, November 14. Elijah reported that we have a second credit with the post office. Elijah also reported that there were military and postal restrictions on what can be accepted and what is preferred. Items that we have been asked NOT to send are oatmeal, printed tee-shirts, books, decks of regular playing cards, tuna, DVD’s & toilet paper. Elijah has posted a complete list of preferred items on the KVCC website. Karissa has established a wish list on Amazon.  Karissa also reported that the social committee at Turtle Creek subdivision will be collecting donations for our packing party. There was also discussion about whether the club wanted to participate in the coffee match with Biggby Coffee. After discussion, Cheryl made a motion for the club to purchase up to 30 bags of coffee and hopefully these 30 bags will be matched. Karissa seconded the motion and the motion was approved. This purchase will be made from the MP account. Maureen made a motion for the club to send up to 200 boxes at our next packing party. This will come from the MP account. Phil seconded and the motion was approved. A discussion was deferred to a future meeting on how much food to purchase to feed volunteers at the packing party.
7. Pumpkinfest: This event will be held on September 28-29 in South Lyon. Cheryl and Hal have collected over 1,100 stuffed animals as prizes. Elijah suggested we bring 900 to Pumpkinfest. Hal demonstrated the wheel that will be used to spin for prizes. The “stuffies” will be sorted into small, medium & large. In addition to stuffies, the club will purchase 400 light-up rings and 200 candy prizes. Depending on the color spun on the wheel, will determine what prize you win. Thad will send out a sign-up genius for volunteers. Set-up will be early Saturday morning.
8. Scarecrows on the Grand: The club will submit a scarecrow. Cheryl suggested a patriotic theme, and everyone liked this idea. Cheryl said the scarecrow could be built at her and Hal’s home. The patriotic theme was also suggested and agreed on for the tree at the senior residence.
9. Focus Hope: Focus Hope will take place on October 12, and we will partner with the Plymouth Canton Civitan Club. Anyone interested in carpooling should meet in the Costco parking lot at Middlebelt and I-96 in Livonia. The carpool will leave promptly at 8:30 AM.

The meeting was adjourned at approximately 8:30. Minutes taken and respectfully submitted on September 13, 2024 by Maureen Posler.

​Kensington Valley Civitan Club Business Meeting Minutes
August 8, 2024
Present: Diana Bolton, Rich Roberts, Karissa & Elijah Canfield, Phil Crutchfield, Paulina Poplawska, Tim Root, Cheryl VanVliet, Hal Hultman, Maureen Posler, and Theresa Furget.
Thad called the meeting to order at 6:35 PM.

1. Additions & Corrections: Theresa added installation of new officers as 5a.
2. Minutes Approval July 11th, 2024: Phil made a motion and Rich seconded it to approve the July minutes. Motion passed.
3. Treasurer’s Report: Diana went over the August financial statement. Rich made a motion and Phil seconded it to accept the treasurer’s report. Motion passed.
4. Correspondence: Diana passed around a thank you card from Wendy Hatem, widow of Rashid for the donation in his memory to the Back Door Food Pantry.
5. Project Updates:
   1. Installation of New Officers-Theresa: Theresa indicated this could be done at the September 12th business meeting or the dinner meeting on September 26th. Elijah chose Vivian to do the installation and he’ll leave it up to her to chose the date. Diana stated she wouldn’t be available for the business meeting on September 12th. Officers to be installed are Elijah as president, Diana as treasurer, and Theresa as secretary. Theresa will contact Vivian to see if she’s available and which date works best for her. Details will be put in the August Newsletter.
   2. Youth Entrepreneur Market (YEM)-August 10th (10-3 PM)-Elijah:  So far, Elijah has 16 confirmed vendors and 12 that haven’t. The set up will be at 8:30 AM. Wear your club tee shirt, name badge, and bring a chair. Elijah has been in contact with Susan Hollady, the Executive Director of Leadership Oakland. One of the YEM youths told Elijah about a grant he received at the July market. She oversees two programs that support youth entrepreneurs. The first is Acorn to Oak which gives out grants to youth entrepreneurs ages 8-18. This is a four-year program sponsored by the State of MI. The focus is 1. Business Entrepreneur Development, 2. Community Impact, 3. Educational Achievement, and 4. Extracurricular Investment. The second program is Junior Leadership for Oakland County youths  (and the Metro Detroit area). A three-day workshop is held for high schoolers at Walsh College at no expense to the youth. Elijah has invited Susan Hollady to come to the next business meeting on September 12th to speak.
   3. Charity Poker: No report.
   4. August Music on the Grand-August 14th: Set up will be shortly after 5 PM. Theresa has the games and some prizes: bags of popcorn, bracelets, skeleton’s. Karissa will provide the candy (non-chocolate). The band will be Elton John Tribute Band-Captain Fantastic. The church will provide picnic style food. Club members are needed to help set up and run the games. Wear your club tee shirt, name badge, and bring a chair.
   5. Lightening Up the Grand-December 14th at 5:30 PM: Karissa doesn’t have any update to give.
   6. Adopt-a-Highway Clean up: Next cleanup is scheduled for September 21st with rain date of  22nd. Meet at the New Hudson Biggby at 10 AM.
   7. Desert Angels November 14th, 2024-Karissa: She’ll set collection boxes at the Biggby Stores, the senior center, and The Turtle Creek Subdivision. A story will be in the next edition of Lyon Today. Thad will contact Jennifer from Walmart concerning a donation. Karissa will send the list of needed items to Theresa for distribution. She’ll also set up the Amazon Wish List. Last year Paige facilitated a competition between the two elementary schools for which school could donate the most items. Maureen will reach out to Paige to see if she’s willing to do this again. Maureen will also contact Amazon’s ‘Good 360’ program for a donation.
   8. Pumpkinfest September 28th-29th: Cheryl reported that she has collected over 900 stuffed animals. 700 came from Stacey the Book Lady’s contacts who replenishes the area neighborhood libraries. Cheryl suggested that KVCC members collect used books to give to Stacy for her project. Paulina has six boxes to give to Cheryl tonight. The game ‘Wheel of Chance’ discussed how the prizes would be put on the wheel. Thad needs to check his inventory of LED rings in his basement and order more. Diana won’t be around for the Pumpkinfest, and the stuff animals will need to be housed elsewhere. Thad indicated that he could put them in his garage.
   9. Focus Hope October 12th-Theresa: The Plymouth-Canton Civitan Club is inviting KVCC members to join them for a food box build with lunch at Polonia’s afterwards. To carpool, meet at the Livonia Costco (Service drive of I-96 and Middle Belt Rd.) no later than 8:30 AM. Otherwise, meet down at Focus Hop at 9 AM, located at  1400 Oakman Blvd, Detroit 48238. Parking (surrounded by a black fence) will be across the street from the building. Wear your club tee shirt.
6. Dinner Meeting August 22nd at 6:30 PM at Teresita’s Mexican Grille.
7. Adjournment: Rich made a motion and Maureen seconded it to adjourn the meeting at 7:18 PM.

 
Minutes taken on August 8th and respectfully submitted on August 9th, 2024 by Theresa Furget.

                                                Kensington Valley Civitan Club Business Meeting Minutes
    July 11,2024
Present: Phil Crutchfield, Kris Krzyzanski, Karissa & Elijah Canfield, Carol Sienko, Thad Bogert, Tim Root, Maureen Posler, Cheryl VanVliet, Hal Hultman, and Theresa Furget. Special guest: Shaylin LeBlanc, scholarship recipient.
Thad called the meeting to order at 6:34 PM.

1. Additions & Corrections: Thad added Shaylin/scholarship recipient under 5a. Karissa added KVCC Volunteer opportunity under 5h.
2. Minutes Approval -June 13th, 2024: Phil made a motion and Kris seconded it to approve the June minutes. Motion passed.
3. Treasurer’s Report: In Diana’s absence, Thad went over the July statement that Diana prepared. He indicated that Diana had a few questions about the June charity poker event with withdrawals and deposits. She also indicated that two scholarship checks haven’t been cashed yet. Hal made a motion and Phil seconded it to accept the July financial report. Motion passed.
4. Correspondence: None.
5. Project Updates:
   1. Scholarship Recipient-Shaylin LeBlanc: Shaylin thanked the club for the scholarship award and will cash the check. She was waiting until she could thank the club for it. She passed around a thank-you card to the club. She’ll be attending Concordia University in Ann Arbor this fall majoring in graphic design and digital multi-media. She’ll also be on the golf team. She stated she’s always enjoyed volunteering and will continue to do so. She gave a summary of areas that she’s been involved in within the community. The club enjoyed meeting her and hearing about her future. Wishing her the best.
   2. Officer Elections: These were held at the June meeting and are noted in the June minutes.
   3. YLDC: As noted at the June meeting, YLDC was canceled, due to the lack of delegates. Kris, who had 25 years’ experience with YLDC indicated  that this gave youths a tremendous learning experience and he’s sad to see the cancellation of it and expects this might be the end .  Kris gave some background on YLDC that had been going on for at least 52 years. It appears that once Civitan International started to restructure/reorganize around five years ago, YLDC lost the support of  CI unfortunately.
   4. Youth Entrepreneur Market YEM) July 13th (10-3 PM)-Elijah:  He has 17 confirmed vendors and another 11 from which he hasn’t heard. Thad indicated that he announced the event at the last city council meeting  and the mayor Steve Kennedy is in support of the event. Tim and his kids will hand out YEM flyers at the Farmer’s Market on the 13th. Thad will try to do a Facebook boost. Karissa indicated that YEM flyers were put in grab bags that are being handed out at The Touch a Truck event on July 17th from 12-3PM at Lowes .  This should help with the August and September YEM events. Theresa indicated that she wouldn’t be able to stay for the whole day and that members are needed at the end to help Elijah take the club’s tent down etc. Set up will be around 8:30 AM. Make sure to wear you name badges, club t-shirts and bring a chair.
   5. Charity Poker June Report: As mentioned under the treasurer’s report a profit was made. Thad thanked everyone that has worked the events. Elijah indicated that the club is done for the year, unless Krazy Kopz offers the club another event. If so, it’ll be a last-minute event and probably would have to be handled via email rather than a club meeting.
   6. July Music on the Grand-July 17th: Set up will be shortly after 5 PM. Theresa has the games and some prizes: bags of popcorn, bracelets, skeleton’s. Karissa will provide the candy (non-chocolate).Also,  Nazmiye will do the facepainting. The band will be Toppermost -Tribute to the Beatles. Karissa thinks the food truck will be the Grand Traverse Pie Co. More club members are needed to help as Carol, Cheryl and Hall will not be in town. Diana previously indicated she’d be there, Tim and Maureen also stated they’d be there too. Thad  also mentioned that S. Lyon has Music in the Park at the Gazebo in McHattie’s Park every Friday from 7-8:30 PM.
   7. Adopt-a-Highway Cleanup: Next cleanup is scheduled for September 21st-29th. The 21st-22nd is the same weekend as the Region 6 convention and the 28th-29th dates are the weekend of Pumpkinfest. The discussion was to tentatively schedule the cleanup for the 21st and 22nd as the rain date.
   8. KVCC Volunteer Opportunity-Karissa: Karissa indicated that the Lighting Up  of the Grand will be held on December 14th at 5:30 PM at the New Hudson United Methodist Church. Amy of the Lyon Twp. Downtown Development wanted to know if the club would run the first  Flashlight Mini Candy Cane Hunt. This would involve the club organizing and setting up the hunt. Basically, coning off the area, placing the candy canes around and then running the hunt.  Everything would be provided to the club: cones, flashlight, candy canes etc. Members felt this was a great opportunity and would like to do it.
   9. Pumpkinfest September 28th-29th: Cheryl has put the word out on Facebook seeking stuffed animal donations. She’s been unable to place anything on Market Place, as this is a selling site. It was suggested to check out a Facebook site for community charities. Thad indicated there’s a way around this, he’ll check it further. So far, a little over 100 animals have been obtained, need at least 800. Thad will inventory his LED rings  to see how many need to be purchased.
   10. Inspired Movement Project Update (Digital Play Scape)-Just Added by Maureen:  Thad indicated there’s been some technical issues concerning this and he unfortunately hasn’t stayed on top of it due to his busy schedule. .  It was suggested that other Civitan clubs that put on special needs events such as dances might find this beneficial to use. Theresa indicated that CI has not done any follow-ups on how the club is progressing with this project and probably won’t.
   11. Club Shirts-just added-Cheryl:  She wanted to know if members were interested in long sleeve shirts. The majority are interested. A couple are interested in sweatshirts. Cheryl’s not sure what her t-shirt guy can do. Thad indicated that he deals with Big Frog in Green Oaks Twp (they have the KVCC logo) and that anyone can order whatever they want and get within  a week or two. It’s located at the roundabout at Lee Rd and US 23 next to JC Penney’s. The actual address is 9690 Village Pl. Blvd. Brighton 48116.
6. Dinner Meeting July 25th at 6:30 PM at Teresita’s Mexican Grille.
7. Adjournment: Maureen made a motion and Phil seconded it to adjourn the meeting at 7:27 PM. Motion passed.

 
 
 
Minutes taken on July 11th and respectfully submitted on July 12th, 2024 by Theresa Furget.

Present: Julie Pelletier, Diana Bolton, Paulina Popowski, Phil Crutchfield, Cheryl VanVliet, Hal Hultman, Karissa & Elijah Canfield, Carol Sienko, and Theresa Furget. Guests: Travis Tomlinson & Tim Root.
Meeting called to order by Elijah Canfield (in Thad’s absence) at 6:33 PM.

1. Additions & Corrections: Elijah added Travis Tomlinson under 5a, and Theresa deleted Greater Brighton Area Chamber of Commerce under 5h on the agenda.
2. Minutes Approval-May 9th, 2024: Phil made a motion and Karissa seconded it to accept the May minutes. Motion passed.
3. Treasurer’s Report-Diana:  Diana went over the general and MP financial statements for June. Hal made a motion and Phil seconded it to accept the treasurer’s report. Motion passed.
4. Correspondence: Diana received a thank-you card  from the Back Door Food Pantry for the donation the club made on behalf of Rachid Hatem.
5. Project Updates:
   1. Travis Tomlinson: Elijah introduced Travis as an area youth that has been very active within the community and has received many accolades that his school has nominated him for. Travis will be entering high school this fall. Travis went over all the recognition/certificates he’s received this year:

i.US House of Representatives 7th Congressional District-Elissa Slotkin for Recognition of Volunteerism.
ii.District 13 Board of Commissioners-Phil Weipert, certificate.
iii.52nd District Court  1st Division  Novi, certificate.
iv.6th Judicial Circuit Court Family Division, certificate.
v.Oakland Co. Executive-David Coulter, certificate.
vi.Oakland Co. Sherrif-Michael Bouchard, certificate.
vii.MI House of Representatives Kelly Breen, certificate.
viii.S. Lyon Area Youth and Assistance-2024 Outstanding Youth, certificate.
ix.MI US Senator-Gary Peters, Certificate of Senatorial  Recognition.
 
Members congratulated Travis with applause for the recognition that he’s received                   Elijah stated that Travis would be a tremendous asset to the club , maybe under the family club plan. Theresa stated she wasn’t sure how Civitan Internation did this, but she’ll figure it out and members saw no problem to have Travis become a club member. Elijah made a motion and Paulina seconded it to have Travis become a member of the club, with the club paying his dues for him out of the general account for the first year. Motion passed.

​Present: Diana Bolton, Phil Crutchfield, Thad Bogert, Carol Sienko, Julie Pelletier, Paulina Poplawski, and Theresa Furget. Guest: Tim Root, he has participated in Desert Angels packing party and his children participate in the Youth Entrepreneur Market.
Thad called the meeting to order at 6:30 PM.

1. Additions & Corrections: None.
2. Minutes Approval-April 11th, 2024: Phil made a motion and Carol seconded it to accept the April minutes. Motion passed.
3. Treasurer’s Report: Diana went over the general and MP accounts for May. Phil made a motion and Carol seconded it to accept the treasure’s report. Motion passed.
4. Correspondence: None.
5. Project Updates:
   1. Officer Election for 2024-2025: Need a member to run for president elect. Diana Bolton will continue as treasurer if no one else is interested in taking over this position. Theresa Furget will remain as secretary and Elijah Canfield  is the incoming president.
   2. CI Convention: Will be held in Albuquerque, NM August 4th-7th, at the Embassy Suites by Hilton with room rates at $159 plus tax. This includes breakfast and the manager’s afternoon reception. Further details can be found at: https://civitan.org/convention/.
   3. Youth Leadership and Diversity Conference (YLDC) July 7th-12th: The cost is $375 per delegate. Vivian’s great granddaughter Alyssa Gall will be attending on a KVCC scholarship. Diana has submitted the payment to YLDC.
   4. Camp Civitan June 6th-9th: Theresa reported that Cheryl has about 62 campers attending. She’s all set with counselors, nurse and has enough bingo prizes.
   5. 20th Annual S. Lyon Area Creek Cleanup Report: Thad reported that it was a cold day, still had over 100 participants, which included a large group of high schoolers getting their community service hours in. They ran out of hot chocolate and just had a few granola bars and banana’s left over. A lot of trash was hauled out of the creek.
   6. Adopt-a-Rd Cleanup Report: A large group participated which made it go faster. There wasn’t a lot of trash as would be expected after winter. It was the normal trash, except Diana had an interesting item-a skeleton. She showed the picture of the skeleton which was a small plastic size that probably went on a key chain.
   7. Essay Scholarships: Thad read the note from Maureen indicating the committee chose four winners (two from each school) that were all deserving of a scholarship. Julie made a motion and Paulina seconded it to give each winner a $1000 scholarship (for a total of $4000) from the MP account. Motion passed. The winners are JD Burch, Shaylin LeBlanc, Ravneet Minhas, and Kylie Rumberger. Theresa gave the letters to the winners for Thad to sign, and she’ll deliver them to Cheryl on Friday so they can be mailed. Paulina stated the S. Lyon High School winners will be awarded on June 5th; she doesn’t know when S. Lyon East will have their event.
   8. Charity Poker: This is currently ongoing. Theresa indicated that Hal was able to get two of the Plymouth-Canton Civitan Club members (Mary Stewart and Gary Turnquist) to fill in as the runners for Saturday and Sunday’s event from 10 AM-6 PM.
   9. Youth Entrepreneur Market (YEM) May 11th: Thad indicated that Mary of the Farmer’s Market will be posting on their website about the YEM. Theresa indicated that the Greater Brighton Area Chamber of Commerce will be holding a ribbon cutting ceremony at 9:45 AM. Theresa has the cookies and Thad will buy some water. Karissa will be supplying the hot chocolate from Biggby. Members need to arrive at 9 AM to help set up the tent. Bring your own chair.
   10. Music on the Grand June 12th:  This goes from 6-8 PM. Members need to arrive around 5 PM to help set up the tent and organize the craft for the kids. Not sure if Nazmiye will do facepainting . Bring your own chair.
   11. Focus Hope May 18th: Theresa explained this is a food box build for low-income families and senior citizens. Gary contacted her requesting the help of KVCC members. Diana stated she’s going as is one of her kids. If interested, meet at the Costco parking lot located at I-96 and Middle Belt Rd at 8:15 AM to carpool down to Focus Hope. Otherwise, you can drive directly to Focus Hope (by 9 AM) located at  1400 Oakman Blvd, Detroit 48238. Parking (surrounded by a black fence) will be across the street from the building. Afterwards the group will go to lunch at Polonia’s and make a visit to the New Palace Bakery.
   12. Pumpkinfest September 28th-29th: Theresa reported that Cheryl and Hal have a game; Wheel of Chance that’ll be used as there are already two charities with a duck pond game. The application was submitted, and the fee has been paid. She requested  a Lake St. location, will just have to wait, and see where they put us.
6. Dinner Meeting May 23rd at 6:30 PM at Teresita’s Mexican Grill.
7. Adjournment Diana made a motion and Phil seconded it to adjourn the meeting at 7:15 PM. Motion passed.

Minutes taken on May 9th and respectfully submitted on May 10th, 2024 by Theresa Furget.