Present: Steve Driskill; Amelia Driskill; Mary Gough; Connie Nichols; Jimmy Hamilton; Jim Henderson; Will Henderson; Austin Quick; Carlton Gough; Ann Burnette; Mark Day; Revely B. Carwile, Jr.; Bob Ware; Sally Ware; Charlie Martin; Gladys Martin; Ed Booth; Aubrey Booth; Will Cardwell.
The annual meeting of the DHCA was called to order at 2:30 PM by Will Cardwell, President, who welcomed all in attendance.
A prayer was offered by Charlie Martin to open the meeting.
Aubrey Booth read a resolution of thanks to honor James E. Hamilton, for volunteer work to assist DHCA and for his donation of land for improved access to the cemetery, with honorary lifetime membership hereby bestowed upon Mr. Hamilton. All in attendance joined to applaud and to honor Mr. Hamilton.
Aubrey Booth read a resolution of thanks to honor Glover D. Gilliam, for volunteer work to assist DHCA and for his donation of land for improved access to the cemetery, with honorary lifetime membership hereby bestowed upon Mr. Gilliam. Mr. Gilliam was not in attendance; the certificate will be delivered to him soon.
Will Cardwell informed the group that the deeds for conveyance of parcels for improved access have been prepared. One is being signed today, the second will be completed within a few days. Will expressed his thanks to Campbell County Historical Society for allowing DHCA to use their meeting room.
Mary Gough, as a representative of CCHS, informed the group of a coming event, to which the public is invited to attend. On Oct. 22, 2017, at 2:30 PM, the CCHS is hosting Mr. Ken Farmer, well known as an appraiser on the PBS television show, “Antiques Roadshow.” Members were invited to submit items for appraisals by Mr. Farmer. The fee will be $ 25 per item to be appraised; anyone interested would need to submit a digital image of the item and its description, with the fee, by Oct. 1. Mr. Farmer will do some research prior to the event (limited to approx. 20 items). Each person bringing items for appraisals would be given an appraisal by Mr. Farmer, who will select five or six of the items for discussion to the group for the program.
Minutes of the November 6, 2016 meeting were distributed by Austin Quick. Will Henderson offered a motion to accept the minutes as written, seconded by Austin Quick, which was carried by all in attendance.
A Nominating Committee report was provided by Sally Ware, committee chair. Other members of the Nominating Committee were Jim Henderson and Amelia Driskill, who met together at the end of August at the home of Will and Dolly Cardwell. To fill the places of three members of the Board of Directors whose staggered, one-year term has ended, the committee nominated Ed Booth, Connie Nichols, and Will Henderson. The slate was opened for any additional nominations from the floor, of which there were none. Gladys Martin called for the nominations to be closed. The vote was unanimous to accept the slate of three new members to the Board of Directors, for 3-year terms.
Will Cardwell provided a recap of the status of DHCA and its future plans. Will explained our lawyer had recommended revisions to our bylaws, to change DHCA from a trust or LLC to an incorporated entity, in order to meet the requirements for DHCA to be eligible to be a 501c3 corporation as defined by the Internal Revenue Service.
Will described the progress toward completion of deed conveyances for parcels of land to improve access to Dixon Cemetery and an improved right- of- way.
Will told the group that four cemetery cleanups are scheduled for October – November, 2017, and two cleanups scheduled to take place sometime in the spring of 2018. Will noted that Gladys Martin has compiled photo albums of the cemetery and the volunteers working there.
Aubrey Booth, Treasurer, provided a Treasurer’s Report. The Dixon Cemetery Fund balance is $5774.21. Aubrey noted a recent expenditure of $ 100 to the State Corporation Commission and that the DHCA website has been paid for, through the next three years. Aubrey stated the books of DHCA are open to any member of DHCA who wishes to review them.
Will Cardwell distributed a calendar with projected milestones. Discussion was initiated regarding the budget. It is anticipated that expenditures for Phase I, to begin work with the entry driveway, will total $ 1000.
Will Cardwell noted one estimate to complete the driveway was for a cost of $ 4000. This included the costs of hauling heavy equipment, fees to VDOT as a deposit and for a license for connection of the driveway and installation of a culvert. Discussion included that DHCA may need to install a second culvert at the point where the entrance driveway moves uphill. Additional estimates are being sought, including local contractors to help hold down costs.
Sally Ware discussed the need for priorities- based planning, to be set at a meeting of the board of directors. Various needs would be discussed and prioritized, such as the culvert, the driveway ramp, a fence and gates to separate the cemetery parcels from adjacent pastures, and seeding necessary to prevent erosion.
Gladys Martin offered a motion to approve the budget, with a modification to authorize spending of up to $ 2000, an increase from the $ 1000. Discussion included this would authorize the spending of up to $2000 to meet priorities of Phase I, in the event costs exceeded the forecast $ 1000, and would save time by precluding the need for additional meetings to authorize an increase. Sally Ware seconded this motion which passed without opposition.
Will Cardwell and Steve Driskill distributed copies of the DHCA articles of incorporation. Revisions were to correct errors with Aubrey Booth’s zip code and Will Henderson’s mailing address. Discussion included the revisions necessary to change from an LLC to an incorporated group per the lawyer’s recommendations. Aubrey Booth made a motion to accept the revised articles of incorporation. This was seconded by Sally Ware and was passed unanimously.
Discussion was held regarding the revised bylaws. Bob Ware noted on page 7, article 12, the need to change the word “association” to “corporation, also an issue at the 1st and 4th lines of article XI, at any similar part of the document. Will Cardwell proposed that the revised bylaws be further revised with these two changes: (1)replace Article IV Section 1 with: “be any person who submits a written request for membership, pays their dues or is voted a member by the membership, and complies with the provisions of these Bylaws.” and (2) replace Article IX Section 2 Part A with: “Membership dues for a fiscal year shall be determined by the Directors, normally at the Spring meeting of the preceding fiscal year, but no later than 21 days before the Annual Meeting of the fiscal year to which the dues apply.
Mark Day asked for further discussion of page 6 regarding dues categories and types of membership.
There was discussion of ‘group membership,’ by other organizations, as members of DHCA, but without a vote. The concensus was to take this issue under advisement with no bylaws changes at this time concernng possible group or organizational memberships.
Aubrey Booth offered a motion to accept the revised bylaws as written, with the wording changes from “association” to “corporation” as needed, and with Will Cardwell’s two revisions. This was seconded by Bob Ware and passed unanimously.
Discussion was held to set the dues, for the period from September 1, 2017 to August 31, 2018. The amount of dues to be set as $ 25 per individual and $ 35 per family, with a maximum of two votes per family. Steve Driskill offered a motion to accept these dues rates for the coming year. Seconded by Sally Ware, the motion was passed.
Will Cardwell then read the list of committees and committee chairperson appointments: Bylaws Committee (Sally Ware); Grounds & Maintenance Committee (Jim Henderson & Austin Quick); History & Genealogy Committee (Amelia Driskill); Webmaster (Justin Barricks); and the ad hoc Hospitality Committee (Dolly Cardwell). Will noted that Aubrey Booth will appoint members to the Finance Committee.
Will Cardwell led discussion of the calendar and milestones.
The board of directors will meet at the Dixon Cemetery to walk the ground and set priorities for Phase I work. Weather permitting, this meeting was set for Tuesday morning, September 19 at Dixon Cemetery.
Will discussed the need for a fundraising letter with photos of the cemetery, work being done. Discussion involved this project to be an action item for the spring 2018 meeting of the board of directors.
It was noted to add to the 2018 calendar the spring cleanup date(s), as a date to be determined.
There being no further business, Will Cardwell adjourned the meeting and invited all in attendance to enjoy fellowship and the light refreshments provided.
Submitted by: Revely Carwile, Jr. Secretary