I.  We met on November 1 at the Bismarck Public Library.  There were 24 members present.  President Vetter called the meeting to order and we addressed the flag.

II.  Treasurer’s Report:  CDGMC has 7405.11 in the bank.  The AmVets and postal service have been paid.  To be paid yet are the taxes for the year.

III.  New Business:
—Christmas Party – The CDGMS Christmas party will be on Sunday Deceberm 6th beginning at 1:00 pm at A&B Pizza, north.  The same place as last year.  Pizza and softdrinks will be provided by the club.  Just like last year there will be another gift exchange.  Each person who wishes to participate in the exchange, please bring one gift.  To keep things reasonable and simple, don’t spend more than $10 on a gift.

—Dues.  2016 dues will not be taken at the part.  So bring them to our January meeting.

— Metal Detectors:  The club has 7 brand new metal detectors.  They are available for club members to use.

— Club Elections:  Remember there are no elections this year.  Club officers serve a 2 year term.

— Education Lead:  Carol Doll was appointed the education lead for the club. Carol did indicate for our fall show to be recognized by the schools we would need to provide more educational stations for the kids.  She will be digging into the online resources and researching this idea with the schools.  I am sure she would appreciate any assistance.

— Technical and Communications Committee:  Becky reported now we have one years of web page data to look at.  In the winter months the visits to the page are up with the visits dropping during the summer months.  With our 50th anniversary year Becky is asking club members to consider writing an article for the newsletter.  Consider writing about places you may have been, rock shows you may have visited, etc.

The club has a library at the ND Heritage Center.  Contact Becky by club email if you wish to review the library or check out a book. Hours she is available during the day at the Heritage Center are from 8 till 4:30.

There was an email received through club email asking if our insurance covers mall shows.   The insurance only covers club sponsored events.

 

— Becky’s Soap Box moment:  There are some who say we don’t do anything new.  Doing the same thing year after year.  It should be noted, the availability of places to visit is very limited due to rules and regulations.  We do not have a trove of spots to visit.  We do have the opportunity to hunt pinecones each fall.  We are always looking for new opportunities. Becky also invited club members to come and explore her yard where you can find snail fossils.   Now for some editorial license.  If you have ideas for rock, gem or mineral adventures, please let the club know.

 

— Back to new business:  The club has suggested partnering with the Treasures of Sea and Earth to obtain grit for rock polishing.  We would need to let them know what 4 grits would be best to have on hand and what would be a good place to obtain the grit from for a reasonable price.

 

— Tom T.’s Soap Box:  Tom requested we form a committee to promote the show.  The committee would handle obtaining grab bag items, handle promotion activities, one idea was to tap into contacting more home schools.  Dawn, Becky, Erica and Darwin volunteered to be on the committee.

 

The meeting was concluded, and those interested participated in a wire wrapping class coordinated by Diane Rau.