A regular Meeting of the Board of Directors of the Catholic Defense League (CDL) was held pursuant to Notice on November 21st, 2006 at the offices of CDL in St. Paul, Minnesota. Present at the Meeting were the following Board Members: President, Patrick Phillips, Merlyn Scroggins, Thomas Schramer, Kelly Rowe, Ed Wollerman, Patrick Shannon and Dick Houck. The Meeting was called to order at 4:15p.m. which began with a prayer to St. Michael and the following business ensued:
1.) Minutes. The minutes from the last Board meeting, which was in July of this year, were submitted and reviewed for approval and acceptance. Upon a motion duly made seconded and unanimously passed, it was,
RESOLVED, that the minutes from the Regular Board Meeting in July be and the same hereby are approved and accepted..
FURTHER RESOLVED, that the minutes regarding a bank resolution be approved and the proper officers of the Catholic Defense League (CDL) are authorized to open the necessary bank accounts on behalf of CDL Patrick Phillips is added as an authorized signee for checks.
2.) President’s Report.
a.) Pat reported that the Voters Guide sent out by CDL was successful and noted what a great job Dick Houck did in getting it done. It was noted by Pat that someone asked CDL that since we are not officially affiliated with the Archdiocese, why should Catholics follow our advice such as the Voters Guide. Pat told this person essentially you’re right. Merlyn noted that we should have aour disclaimer should indicateing that we are not representatives of the Archdiocese, but are Catholic laymen not that we are not affiliated with the archdiocese.
b.) Pat reported on the updates concerning the scandalous play, “Pope and the Witch” scheduled to be shown at the University of Minnesota next year in March. Pat wrote an excellent letter in response to the University’s position (which was in the papers) and got the word out to CDL supporters. Word from the Archbishop is that he does not want CDL to take things any further. However, individuals are at liberty to pursue their own course of action.
c.) Pat also noted that Star Tribune writer, Katherine Kersten, who seems to be sympathetic to our causes, has a good blog through the Strib. Everyone was encouraged to check it out in the Star Tribune website. Ed Wollerman noted that Miss Kersten has been affiliated with the Center for the American Experiment and Trinity and was instrumental in getting Profiles in Learning knocked out of our public schools.
4.) Treasurer’s Report. Tom Schramer made the most timely entrance in CDL Board Meeting history when he was called upon to present the Treasurer’s Report. He indicated that Clete Tauer had the most recent numbers and Pat indicated that they would be posted on the website.
Tom submitted a Historical Financial Data for CDL dating back to 1999. It was noted that after the administrative person was let go, funds went down. It was proposed that there be a person to help answer phones, pick up mail, etc. to help get money coming in. Ray Marshall has agreed to be that type of office person for CDL on an independent contractor basis at about $250.00 per week month.
Upon a motion duly made seconded and unanimously passed, it was,
RESOLVED, that CDL will enter into an independent contractor relationship with Ray Marshall and his duties will include various office administrative duties and he will be paid $250.00 a week month..
FURTHER RESOLVED, that the above-described Financial History is hereby adopted.
5.) Defender. It was reported that a good many Defenders had just been returned and that had accumulated over time because we did not have in money in our account with the post office to have the return deliveries made in response to our address Return Request. It was unanimously agreed that because of the cost, the Return Address will be taken off of the Defender in the future not be included on every mailing.
There was also discussion regarding the changed format of the Defender. Comments were all positive and Dick was commended for doing a great job.
The December Defender, it was unanimously agreed, will have a Christmas card like cover with a piece Ed will get from the St. Paul Seminary and an article written by Merlyn regarding the Voters Guide as well as a request for donations.
6.) New Business.
Pat noted that we need to get more members and supporters. We need to think about whom we are serving. The “Pope and the Witch” might provided us an opportunity to show the role CDL can play in fighting anti-Catholic behavior and bias. In fact, the play could be a good topic for the Defender.
Dick proposed again that we contact the parishes in the Archdiocese about CDL. Merlyn pointed out that we could get a directory of the priests in the Archdiocese and compare with our list of supporters to see which ones we contact first. Ed noted that the “Argument of the Month Club” is a good place to find prospective members. He will also put together a list of Catholic organizations with whom we could have a close relationship.
7.) Next Meeting: ?. No Meeting was set.
[Editor's note: We meet alternate months on the 3rd Tuesday. Thus the next meeting will be at 4:00 on Tuesday, January 15, 2007.]The Meeting adjourned at 5:20p.m.
Respectfully submitted:
Kelly M. Rowe
Secretary