Laconia Putnam Fund

Laconia Putnam Meeting August 8, 2023 This meeting was called to order on Tuesday, August 8, 2023, held at Laconia City Hall, 25 Beacon E #1, Laconia, NH at 9:00 am with the following in attendance: Jim Rogato, Linda Peary, Joanie Mercer, Rich Landry and Betty Ballantyne via phone attendance. Our guest attending is Adam Hirshan, Publisher, The Laconia Daily Sun. MINUTES: June’s minutes approved as submitted. PRESENTATION – ADAM HIRSHAN – LACONIA DAILY SUN: Adam thanked the Board for our services to the Community and hopes we collectively feature future collaborations with the Laconia Daily Sun. Adam requested monies for an author Authur Prud’home. He will discuss his novel “Dinner with the President”. It’s to be scheduled for Saturday, October 14, 2023, to be held at the Laconia Opera House for 7 pm. The Opera House will hold 200 to 225 people. This is to be a bipartisan relationship, a non-political event. Mr. Prud’home’s fee will range from $2,500 to $5,000. Firstly, it was discussed to be a round table event with assigned head table captains with guided conversations. Adam discussed the goal to improve relationships, minimize civil discourse and create a non-political atmosphere. Concerns with the board is to not present it as a political event, dismiss the round table concept and the lecture only to be presented by Laconia Putnam. We mutually agreed to be followed by cocktail reception after the lecture to include bubbly and desserts and conversations. The Laconia Library will provide funding for the expense of the Laconia Opera House, The Laconia Daily Sun will provide the promotion of the events, and tickets will be mandatory. Adam will reach out to Betty to identify how the ticket process is to be handled along with the promotion of the event. Linda made a motion to approve $3,000 for the expense of the lecture, with more discussion in knowing we were on the low end of the price range, Betty suggested and made a motion to approve $3,500, it was agreed Adam would handle the negotiations with Authur, therefore, giving him the opportunity to secure the event without having to come back to the board to close the deal. It was voted and unanimously approved at $3,500. TREASURER’S REPORT: Per Linda, Glen is still closing out the books effective July 1, 2023. Currently we have spent $65,823.01 plus $750 for the New Horizons Bank and $5,000 for the Pemi Choral therefore with a grand total spent $71,743.01. Available monies at the start of the fiscal year were $104,677.82 now less the $71,573.01 spent leaves a remaining balance of $33,104.81 plus the new allocation effective July 1, 2023, $46,600 leaves us with spending monies of $79,704.81 till July 1, 2024. SPECTACLE W/SUSIE MEETING: Jim & Linda met with Susie along with Kirk Beattie, City Manager, to discuss dates moving forward and operating costs with us. One discussion was the contract to the City was for them to receive 10% revenue from their concession stand effective July 1, 2022. No one has policed it, and it was found the fund was in a negative balance. Further discussion will come before the City’s Advisory Board. Jim has been invited onto the Board. Also discussed was the shadowed expense to us when hiring lights and sound outside the Colonial. We had asked for a production quote effective August 4th still without any responses. Dates made available to us are Thursday, October 26th, Sunday, Wednesday, November 5, Wednesday, November 15, Friday, November 24th, Wednesday, December 20 and Saturday, December 30th. Susie request dates for 2024. We are submitting these dates to be a Thursday, Friday and Sunday for each month. Here are the dates we proposed: September 12, 13, 15 September 19, 20, 22 September 26, 27, 29 October 3, 4, 6 & 10 October 17, 18, 20 November 1 & 3 November 7, 8, 10 November 21, 22, 24 April 4, 5, 7 April 11, 12 & 14 No dates requested December, January, February, March and May. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: Pemi Choral 20th Anniversary – Rod Dyer presented this request in the amount of $5,000 to be held in May 2024. Unanimously approved. Production Quote from the Colonial is still pending from Jobe. Love Dogs can perform on Wednesday, November 15th for less than $5,000, it is still not yet voted and approved. Jim is working on securing Jay Seigle along with the Rockin Daddio’s for December 20th. With no further business to come before the board, the meeting was adjourned at 10:40 am. Respectfully submitted, Betty Ballantyne Laconia Putnam Board Member/Secretary Julie is working on acts for November 5, 2023.