2021 AGM
House of Gordon USA (HoG USA) Annual General Meeting (AGM)
Grandfather Mountain Highland Games in Linville, NC
July 10, 2021
Federal IRS EIN # 26-0285250
Call to Order: 2:06 PM Location Gordonville campsite, Grandfather Mountain
Attendees: 11 (10 Votes)
| Lois Todd – Outgoing President | Jen Mills Martin – Incoming President |
| David Martin – Membership Secretary | David Gauthier – Secretary |
| Geof Baker – Treasurer | Amy Lynn Edwards |
| Mark A. Memmo | Penny L. Pierson |
| Barbara Gordon Wray | Derek and Carin Pryor |
Membership and Quorum: Jen Mills Martin reported the membership at 282 members, with 20% (57 votes) required to achieve a quorum to conduct official House of Gordon business. A quorum was met by the 10 voting members present and 231 proxy votes received from absentee members.
Reading of the 2020 AGM Minutes: Barbara Gordon Wray distributed and read the minutes. Motion to approve (Dave) Second (Geof) The Minutes were unanimously approved as written.
Slate of Officers
| Jennifer Mills Martin | President (incoming) |
| Lisa Gordon | Vice President |
| David Gauthier | Secretary |
| Geof Baker | Treasurer |
| Lois M. Todd | Member at Large |
| Tony T. Williams | Member at Large |
| Malcolm Todd | Member at Large |
Notes: Lois received a resignation notice from Cynthia Gordon Patrick, the Communications Chair and agreed to assume her duties. Jen appointed David Martin as Membership Secretary, replacing herself in that capacity.
No nominees from the floor.
Motion (Lois) to approve slate, Second (Dave G) Vote carried unanimously
Report Summaries: The reports were published and reviewed prior to the meeting. When Lois opened them for discussion, none ensued. The Reports were unanimously approved as written and summarized below.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT (Summary)
Lonely year due to Covid. No Gatherings…bad politics! Proud that HoGUSA continued to be respectful of one another. Thanks to the Facebook Admins for keeping politics off of the social media site. Great job! Thanks for remembering we are family first. Proud of my big extended Gordon family.
This year I step down as President and move into the position of board Member at Large. I have loved carrying the torch for HoGUSA, but it is time for new blood to take the reins. I have worked hard to find younger, talented, enthusiastic people with leadership skills to lead HoGUSA into the future. I am proud of the work we did as a board, and I am also proud of our growing cast of Conveners. Their talents allow me to confidently step back knowing the fine work we’ve done to build the House will carry on. Please support our leaders as you have supported me and HoGUSA will continue to grow and thrive.
CONVENER CHAIR REPORT (Summarized and Event Dates added)
I’m so looking forward to renewing the Highland games this summer. Our new Conveners have been on hold for awhile. Kansas Convener Tracy Penwell’s first event is the Great Plains Renaissance and Scottish Festival in Wichita (September 25-26), followed by the Oklahoma Convener Terry Moore’s first solo event, The Iron Thistle Scottish festival September 10-11 in Yukon, OK…followed by the Oklahoma Highland Gathering October 15-17 in Midwest City. Phil Gardner took over convening in central and northern California. He hopes to host his first event, the Scottish Highland Gathering and Games in Pleasanton, CA on September 4th and 5th.
Katherine Tomas from Las Vegas volunteered to take over the Las Vegas Highland Games and possibly the Reno Games. These games have been cancelled in 2020 and 2021. Hoping she’s still able to support these games scheduled for April and May 2022. She will need supplies.
With no events scheduled in MN, I’ve asked Convener Michael Hilden to host a tent at a game in WI this summer. Also, since the OH Scottish Games are virtual, I’ve asked Ohio Convener, Duane Mills, about hosting at the Detroit Highland Games (He has agreed). We still need Conveners in Michigan and Illinois.
This year has highlighted the importance of Social Media to our Convening efforts. Please post your event pictures on our Facebook page. If you are not active on Facebook, please encourage members that attend events to post their pictures.
Colorado Conveners Fred and Remy Anderson are moving to Wyoming. I want to thank them for their years of service to the House of Gordon USA. I also thank Ira Akens for taking over Colorado Convening and all of our Conveners for the hard work they do giving us a presence at the Highland Games.
Bydand
Robert S. Gordon, Convener Chairman
MEMBERSHIP REPORT FOR 2020-21:
Active Members : 282
Certified Voting Members: 241
Number Needed for Quorum: 57
Paid Members for New Year 2020-2021: 282
New Members for 2020-2021: 37
Members who passed away:
- Steven Gordon
- Richard Hartley
- Barbara Balch
- Dolores Atchison
- Glenn Randall
- Donald Davidson
- Rena Gordon
- Alexander “Sandy” Grant Gordon CBE
- Alexander George Gordon, 7th Marquess of Aberdeen and Temair
- * Mike Gordon (former Georgia Convener) * Don Bogue (former Drum Major)
(* Added to Report at Annual General Meeting)
Respectfully,
Jen Mills Martin
SCHOLARSHIP CHAIR’S REPORT: (Summary)
We awarded two scholarships this year through the Charles O. Gordon Memorial Scholarship:
Audrey Trawick, of New Port Richey, FL is a repeat recipient and newly-certified Member of the British Association of Teachers of Dance (fulfilled her goal of becoming a fully certified Highland Dance Instructor) – $500
Sage Tousey, 11, Highland Dancer from Studio City, CA (Student of former scholarship recipient Emma Schiff) – $500
(Added from AGM) The Epic Project became one of the premier Scholarships in the Pipe Band Community and is now recognized world wide. Kudos to Susan Rose for bringing this to fruition. As an International Scholarship, it has outgrown our charter and has been removed from the umbrella of HoGUSA Support.
Respectfully submitted, Lois Todd
NEW BUSINESS:
Honorary Membership for Steve Quillin: Steve Quillin, Grandfather Mountain Highland Games board President, received an invitation to attend the Aboyne Highland games in Scotland. He will attend as a guest of the Chief and of the Games Committee. Lois suggested an honorary membership be bestowed upon Steve as our blessing for the trip. Motion (Geof) seconded (Barb) and unanimously approved.
Grandfather Mountain Highland Games facilities: Steve Quillin, President of the GMHG Board brought to our attention the septic system supporting these games failed county inspection 2 weeks prior to the event. The cost to repair the system is estimated at $3500, but permits to do the work could not be obtained prior to the event. To avoid cancellation or significant sanitation issues during the games, GMHG Board funded a temporary shower facility installation and daily pump outs at a cost of $13,500. As these costs were unexpected, they put the games in a deep hole before the games even began. He asked for assistance to offset these costs. The board considered his request and decided, in keeping with Charles O. Gordon’s legacy of philanthropy, House of Gordon USA could help. Motion (Geof) to provide $500 to offset these costs was seconded (Barbara) and unanimously approved. Lois also agreed to write an open letter to other attending Clan Presidents to bring awareness to these costs for their charitable considerations. Charles O. Gordon was president of these games and integral to their development and sustainment.
Remove John Lowrie from position of President Emiratus and Incorporate in the State of Delaware
Since Incorporating the House of Gordon USA in California, John Lowrie has been listed as President Emiratus on our incorporation paperwork. Since he is no longer acting in a presidential capacity, we need to remove him from the legal documents of our incorporation so we have the freedom to make changes as needed without having to get his authorization. California’s rules for corporations are more rigid (and expensive) than most states and it would be beneficial to House of Gordon USA to move to Delaware’s more favorable corporate climate. A motion to Remove Jon Lowrie (Jen) was seconded (Mark) and unanimously passed. A motion (Mark) to incorporate under the State of Delaware was seconded (Geof) and passed unanimously.
Print on Demand (Print on Demand) Merchandizing System
Demand for HoG USA merchandise is High. A number of Print on Demand systems exist and offer this service. Lois noted that before considering a PoD service contract, Profit margins would have to be researched. Penny offered that the Grand Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star and its counterpart in Washington jointly entered an agreement similar to ours and were earning a profit margin of 20-30%. Lois mentioned that was a good number and would cut down on merchandise handling while better meeting demand for our products. There was discussion on development of a process to protect HoG USA Copyrights and Trademarks. Motion (Amy) to pursue a PoD service was seconded (Geof) and unanimously passed. Motion (Lois) to develop copyright and trademark processes for HoG USA property was seconded (Dave M.) and unanimously passed. Only copyrighted or trademarked HoG USA property would be offered in public markets. We hope this process will increase revenues for all of HoG USA initiatives. Though we’ll need to see what numbers we’re talking about, we will funnel proceeds from all sales on the PoD system through the HoG USA to divide between support for Scholarships, Charities, and Convenerships as needed. Due to the problems with copyright infringement on global platforms such as Amazon, we should probably seek to avoid them.
Custom Embroidery Capability
Penny Pierson stated she possesses the ability to perform custom embroidery provided the colors and shading are not too complex. She can work with several file types including Vector. Interested parties should contact Penny at pennypier@gmail.com
FY 2021 Goals:
1. Incorporate in the State of Delaware
2. Rebuild active membership to pre-pandemic (585) levels
3. Expand Scholarship Opportunities
Motion to Adjourn seconded and approved unanimously at 3:35 pm
Respectfully Submitted
DAVID J GAUTHIER, Secretary