Dear Members,
We are well into ‘grants season’ and we have received 43 eligible grants - some familiar and a few new. Our committee will meet on the 21st to dig in. If you are unfamiliar with the procedure, the chair is an administrator, not a decision maker - that honor and duty belongs to the committee members. As chair, I ensure each application meets Community Assistance League (CAL) criteria (and they all did this year) and provide binders for each member with copies of all 43 applications, plus our relevant policies, procedures, and criteria.
The first meeting is really just housekeeping and getting those binders into individual hands. We meet for The Big Meeting on May 5 for what is often a four-hour, brain-taxing, number-crunching good time (all bit of sarcasm there). Those three weeks in between are where each member thoroughly reads each application and determines for herself who should get how much. Occasionally some will get none. At the second meeting, committee members discuss their individual decisions and reasons, and together reach consensus.
The treasurer attends and tracks the numbers. When we get to the last of the requests, she tells us if we have money left over or…sadly…have given away more that the board allotted. This year, we are able to give $157,500 to grant awardees. This year’s requests total more than $200,000…thus, the challenge.
Many thanks to our intrepid committee: Norma B, Sherry F, Linda G, Katie H, Cathy H, Maribeth L, Char M, Ann N, Barb P, Ann T, Pam T, and Leilani W, as well as our two alternates: Jackie C and Kathryn L.
This year’s chair, me, Jan H, appreciates your commitment.
