BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING MINUTES

Corrected and Approved Minutes

Date of Meeting:  Sunday, October 1, 2023 @ 9:00 am

 

Members Present: Nancy Glynn (Chair); Emily Cooper; Lauren Avery; Elizabeth Geraghty (Library Director)

Members Absent: Catherine Paden; Tracy Mingarelli; Betsy Anderson (Alternate)

Note: This meeting was conducted on ZOOM for all present. The Board met in person at the Sutton Free Library for their Board of Trustees Meeting. The public, per the Governor’s Executive Order 2020-04, Section 8, Emergency Order #12 Section 3, had the option to Zoom in to this meeting.

Public Present: No members of the public were present 

 

CALL TO ORDER:

Roll Call, Introduction of Guests:

The Sutton Free Library Board of Trustees meeting was called to order at 9:04 a.m. by Board Chair Nancy Glynn, and roll taken. There were no members of the public present. Further, no members of any households of Trustees were present within listening of this meeting. 

Public Comments: none

Review of Minutes:

Board Member Lauren Avery made a motion to approve the August 24, 2023 sealed non-public session minutes. Board Member Emily Cooper seconded. The motion was carried unanimously in the affirmative.

Minutes from the August 24, 2023 public session meeting were reviewed with corrections made. Board Member             Cooper made a motion to approve, with revisions, the minutes to the August meeting, seconded by Board Member Avery. The motion was carried unanimously in the affirmative.

Correspondence: 

Board Chair Glynn made a motion to approve a $100 donation from a library patron. Board Member Cooper seconded. The motion was carried unanimously in the affirmative.

Director Elizabeth Geraghty received an email from Elly Phillips  requesting details about the requested 2024  warrant article for an ADA compliant lift for the library. 

Director Geraghty received an email in regards to the library garden and a patron wanting to make a donation for the front gardens since they had fallen into disrepair. They wanted to know whose responsibility it is to maintain the beds. Director Geraghty was asked to respond thanking them for the potential donation and that it can be used to purchase annuals/ perennials but that the maintenance of the beds (weeding etc.) is the responsibility of the town.    

REPORTS:

Financial/Treasurer’s Report:

August financial reports were emailed to trustee members by Board Treasurer Catherine Paden. The beginning balance on the Operating Account in August was $28,932.49, with an ending balance of $23,499.53. Interest earned on the Operating Account for the month of August was $9.80.  

The beginning balance of the Trustee Account at Sugar River Savings Bank in August was $6,550.67 with $2.50    interest earned and a debit of $140.71 for a museum pass and book purchases for an ending balance of $6,412.46.

Buildings & Grounds:

An invoice for 2022-2023 snow plowing hasn’t been received yet. Board Member Avery will contact Lorri Himes at the town hall about this. Board Member Avery will look into creating a document to fill out and send to the town for Building and Grounds requests. Director Geraghty emailed the Town Administrator last week requesting yearly furnace maintenance but hasn’t received any correspondence back regarding the request. Board Member Avery will reach out to the Town Administrator about this. 

 

Director’s Report:

• Director Geraghty noted that she was contacted by Kearsarge Regional Middle School about the possibility of library staff coming in to be a part of district efforts to get public library membership cards into the hands of more students . Director Geraghty responded with interest and awaits further details.
• Storytime attendance has been lower this month because of children going back to school. 
• The next featured book on the Sutton Free Library StorywalkⓇ will be The Thing to Remember about Stargazing by Warner, NH author Matt Esenwine. 
• Director Geraghty mentioned an increase in book bans and first amendment audits in NH and has shared this information with library staff. 
• Director Geraghty requested help from the trustees to organize the library basement now that it has been cleared for use. 
• The Artist in Residence program is scheduled for the end of November. 

Friends of Sutton Free Library Liaison/ NHLTA Liaison:

The Friends of the Sutton Free Library did not meet in September. The next meeting will be Wednesday, October 4th at 6:00pm via Zoom to talk about the future of the Friends.

OLD BUSINESS: none

NEW BUSINESS:

The first draft of the 2024 Library Operating Budget  has been sent to the assistant town administrator. There was discussion about the  requested warrant article for an ADA compliant lift for the library. The possibility of increasing substitute pay was also discussed. Board Member Cooper made a motion to approve the proposed budget, seconded by Board Member Avery. The motion was carried unanimously in the affirmative.

Motion to enter Non-public Session made by Board Member Cooper, seconded by Board Member Avery. Entered non-public session at 10:35 am and roll taken. The board entered into a non-public session under RSA 91-A:3, II (a) the dismissal, promotion, or compensation of any public employee. Motion to leave non-public session and return to public session by Board Chair Glynn, seconded by Board Member Cooper. Motion:  PASSED  Non-public session ended at 10:38am. Minutes to the non-public session were sealed.

 

Board Chair Glynn made a motion to adjourn. Board Member Cooper seconded the motion. The motion was carried unanimously in the affirmative and the meeting was adjourned at 10:38am.