Cemetery Board

City of Roswell Cemetery Board Tuesday, January 21, 2014 South Park Cemetery Conference Room Committee Members Present: Myrline Chance, President Jake Trujillo, Vice President Rita Kane-Doerhoefer, Member Millie Schaeffer, Member Terry Mitzel, Member Committee Members absent: Joanne Rose, Member Other Elected Official present: ---- Staff Present: Barbara A. Patterson, City Attorney Mike Kirk, Cemetery Sexton Yolanda Duran, Cemetery Bookkeeper Others present ---- The meeting was called to order at 4:03 p.m. by Ms. Chance. Committee members Chance, Trujillo, Kane-Doerhoefer, Schaeffer and Mitzel were present, representing a quorum. Committee member Rose was absent. Ms. Kane-Doerhoefer moved to approve agenda as presented. Mr. Trujillo was the second. A voice vote was unanimous and the motion carried. Ms. Kane-Doerhoefer moved to approve the November 19, 2014 minutes. Mr. Trujillo was the second. A voice vote was unanimous and the motion carried. Public Participation on Agenda Items: No public participation Sexton’s Report: Sexton Kirk reported there were twenty five burials in November, thirty five burials in December and twenty funerals to date in January. He also reported to the committee that the sprinkler system in the new area is working properly and that cemetery personnel are in process of going block by block to clean-up the Cemetery. Work in the East part of the Cemetery started last Saturday. Sexton Kirk also informed the board members about the discontent of the general public with the Cemetery for enforcing the rules about decorations in graves and monuments at the new Baby Land. Regular Items: A). Reconsider the Motion for Headstones for new Baby Land Ms. Mitzel made a motion to remove the motion made in October to add the cost of the headstones in baby land and the board will address the size of the headstone and uniformity at a later time Ms. Kane-Doerhoefer seconded the motion. A voice vote was unanimous and the motion carried. B. Appointment of New Board of Directors Secretary Ms. Kane-Doerhoefer stated that in the Cemetery Board By-Laws mentions only a board member can be the Secretary but that the board can appoint an assistant to the secretary. Ms. Mitzel made a motion to appoint Ms. Duran to be the assistant to the secretary. Ms. Kane- Doerhoefer seconded the motion. A voice vote was unanimous and the motion carried C. Discuss and consider proposed amendment to the CB By-Laws concerning term limits. Ms. Kane-Doerhoefer proposed some changes in the Cemetery Board By-Laws from Article II Membership: Section 1: The Board shall be comprised of no less than five members with two ex officio members. There shall be no members or family members of the funeral homes as this may be seen to be a conflict of interest. From Section 3: Term office: Once a member of the Board’s term expires, that member may be allowed to state in writing that he/she will continue to serve for another term, providing there is no other individual that wants to be a member of the Board or at the Mayor’s discretion. From Section 4: Residence of Member: Each member of the Board shall be a resident of Chaves County, New Mexico by special appointment by the Mayor of the City of Roswell, New Mexico during his/her term of office. At this point the Cemetery Board President, Ms. Chance, took the opportunity to announce Ms. Mitzel’s resignation as a Cemetery Board Member due to her moving out of the State of New Mexico. Ms. Mitzel presented Ms. Chance with a letter resigning her position as a Cemetery Board Member effective January 31, 2014. Ms. Kane-Doerhoefer made a motion to accept the mentioned changes in the Cemetery Board By-Laws and have it submitted to the Buildings and Lands Committee. Ms. Schaeffer seconded the motion. A voice vote was unanimous and the motion carried. Old Business: President of the Board, Ms. Chance, mentioned that some of the Cemetery Board members including her were not notified about the dedication of the Veteran’s Cemetery. New Business: None. Public Participation on Non- Agenda Items: None. Next Meeting Date: The next board meeting will be February 18, 2014 at 4:00 p.m. The meeting adjourned at 4:56 p.m.