The general meeting was hybrid, held in-person at Bayland Community Center and via Zoom. The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Natalie Wiest, Commodore. Natalie stated that she is very happy to see so many people attending the meeting in-person. Officers in attendance and introduced were Natalie Wiest, Commodore; Bob Naeger, Purser; Bruce Bodson, Fleet Captain; Tim Brooking, Boatswain; Christy Long, Newsletter Editor; Alice Nissen, Recorder. Also present were Tom Douglas, Conservation Chairman, via Zoom, and Ann Derby, Sergeant at Arms.
First order of business was approval of last meeting minutes by Alice Nissen, which were unanimously approved.
Bruce Bodson gave the fleet captain’s report. Since January, there have been 10 events for a total of 160 miles. Individual miles accrued: Constantin Platon 102, Karen Suggs 65, Brent Hwang 49, Bruce Bodson 34, Alice Nissen 22, and Fran Wilcox 13. Fifteen different members participated in trips. Kent Walters led a trip in Arkansas on Lake Hamilton – Electric Island Paddle and Hike for 4.3 miles. February 27 was the Buffalo Bayou Regatta scouting trip for 15 miles. Christy Long sponsored the San Marcos River Cleanup on March 4–6 for 3.6 miles with 9 other participants. March 5 was the Buffalo Bayou Regatta for 13.4 miles with 7 members participating. Upcoming trips: March 13, Colorado River, Smithville to Plum Park for 16 miles; March 26, Trash Bash on Armand Bayou; April 23, Bay City Rally on the River; April 30, Lake Woodland Night Paddle and Concert.
Tim Brooking gave the boatswain report. He stated we have one new member for a total of 141 members; Facebook has 800 followers. He introduced Gary Faust, a new member, who stated he is new to Houston and a lifelong paddler.
Bob Naeger gave the purser report: Income through February is $525, spending $199, for a balance of $7552. He stated, “we are in good shape.”
Christy and Natalie presented the slides for Tom Douglas’s conservation report in his absence (he later joined the meeting via Zoom). The Clear Creek Watershed Partnership Kickoff was on March 3. The San Marcos River Cleanup was on March 5. The Cypress Creek Flood Control Projects meeting was today; more information at www.hcfcd.org/CCWIP. The Trash Bash on Armand Bayou is on March 26; register on event calendar. The Regional Conservation Initiative is on March 30; links to the projects on HCC conservation forum. Tom recommends “Viva Texas Rivers,” which he says is a great book that celebrates Texas rivers.
Christy asked us to send trip photos for the newsletter. They will be archived and can be found quickly in the index.
Harmon Everett gave the safety minute. He suggested we review safety minutes in past issues of the Waterline. He talked about skin cancer. He recommended wearing sunscreen and applying generously 15 minutes before exposure, use more than you think you should use, reapply every 2 hours, and use SPF 15 or higher. He also suggested wearing big floppy hats, long sleeves, long pants, and sunglasses. Natalie suggested wearing BUFF face masks.
Natalie stated that we are still searching for a webmaster.
Janice Walden from the group “Friends of Don Greene” was introduced as tonight’s presenter. Don Greene was a native Houstonian. He began paddling as a child and as an adult led many trips for many people on the Rio Grande, Colorado River, Brazos River, Guadalupe River, and Buffalo Bayou. He was very safety conscious. His trips were always fun. He was proud of being an Eagle Scout. He was a serious thinker. He cared a lot about the Buffalo Bayou and raised awareness and appreciation with events on the bayou and networking with leaders such as Terry Hershey. He helped design Thunder River at AstroWorld. He helped the Wortham Center create an outdoor performance arena. He was fascinated with boat structure and went to Venice to see how gondolas were made. He was one of the first outfitters to run trips in the Grand Canyon. After Don passed away, Friends of Don Greene was formed to preserve his land and honor his wishes that his land be kept a wildlife sanctuary and urban scout outpost. More than 12 native grasses are grown in the park. Don created rainwater harvesting, solar power, passive air conditioning and edible gardening on his land. There is a hiking trail and great bird watching in the park. One can volunteer helping with various tasks in the park on the third Saturday of every month from 8 to noon. Janice’s presentation was very well received and appreciated.
Meeting was adjourned at 8:45 p.m.
Houston Canoe Club
Board Meeting
March 2, 2021
Officers in attendance via Zoom were Natalie Wiest, Commodore; Constantin Platon, Vice Commodore; Tim Brooking, Boatswain; Christy Long, Newsletter Editor; Alice Nissen, Recorder. Also present was Tom Douglas, Conservation Chairman. Natalie Wiest called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Last board meeting minutes were approved.
The vice commodore report was given by Constantin. He stated that he will attend the general meeting via Zoom. Christy stated that she will contact Ann Derby to practice having a hybrid meeting. So far, two people have registered for the general meeting via Zoom. Bob Scaldino will present in April. We need a May speaker. Constantin would like to have suggestions. One idea he has is for members to talk about their trips and include pictures. Christy stated that presenters would have to bring their own thumb drives. Tom suggested Rachel Windham with the Houston-Galveston Area Council who is an expert on clams. Constantin suggested Karla Klay with Artist Boat. Natalie suggested finding a speaker who can talk about Caddo Lake canoe trails. Christy asked about reinstituting treating presenters to dinner before the meeting. Constantin wants to keep it simple by either giving a book or an honorary membership in HCC as a gift of appreciation. Christy stated we are almost out of books. Tim stated that giving out memberships is economical as it incurs no expense to the club.
Natalie gave the purser report for Bob who was absent. He emailed his current report to the officers and Natalie stated that everything looks good.
Christy gave the newsletter report. She stated that she had missed a few articles in the March issue as they went into her spam. She asked us to inform her if something is missing from the newsletter.
Tim gave the boatswain report. He stated we have one new member (an honorary member), and five renewing members for a total of 141 members. Facebook has 795 followers. Christy stated Club Express currently sends out 700 emails for the newsletter and she would like to get together with Tim to trim down the list of recipients.
Tom gave the conservation report. He stated that he may not be able to attend the general meeting and asked if Christy and Natalie would show his slides for the meeting and they agreed. His report and slides will include the Clear Creek Watershed Partnership kickoff (information is on the conservation forum in the March Waterline); the San Marcos River Cleanup on March 5; the Cypress Creek Flood Control projects (details are on the forum); the Trash Bash on March 26 at Armand Bayou (register early on the event calendar); the Houston-Galveston Area Council which will meet March 30 for the Regional Conservation Initiative (the links are on the conservation forum for a list of projects). He also encouraged us to purchase the book “Viva Texas Rivers” for speaker gifts.
Natalie asked Tom if he spoke to Carol Woronow about helping with our website. He stated that Carol is not familiar with Club Express.
Natalie brought up the upcoming Buffalo Regatta. Constantin stated they have enough sweepers but would welcome extra help. Beginners and non-racers start at 9 a.m. and racers start at 9:30. Natalie stated she would obtain more information and post it on the forum.
Natalie stated that we need to have a safety minute for the general meeting. Christy suggested Harmon. Constantin suggested showing maps of rivers that are not safe. Natalie said that Frank could always come up with something
Meeting adjourned by Natalie at 8:00 p.m.