September 3, 2009 approved minutes - University of Illinois Extension

University of Illinois Extension, Ford-Iroquois Unit
Unit Council Meeting Minutes
September 3, 2009 6:30 P.M. Ford-Iroquois Unit Office
The meeting was called to order at 6:30 by Karen Moore, County Extension Director
Unit Council Members Present highlighted in bold and underlined:
Susan Bence, Dave Hastings, Barb Haynes, Karen Jean, Jennifer Lindgren, Larry Littlefield,
Aracelli Lopez, Jim Meyer, Carrie Miller, Jody Munsterman, Bill Pool, Kathleen Reum,
Holly Rice, Justin Swan, Larry Thorndyke, Joe Wier, and Roger Wycoff
Staff Present:
Karen Moore
4-H Federation Representatives:
Present:
Guests Present: None
None
Karen Moore welcomed new council members: Larry Littlefield, Jody Munsterman, Bill Pool,
Kathleen Reum, Holly Rice, Larry Thorndyke, Joe Wier, and Roger Wycoff.
Tenure of Council Members:
A year of service for council members is September 1 through August 31. Color-coded name
cards indicate the present term of membership. Green represents 1 st year of 1 st term; yellow is the
2 nd year of 1 st term; white is the 1 st year of 2 nd term; and blue represents the 2 nd year of 2 nd term.
Susan Wynn Bence made a motion to approve the minutes of the May 7, 2009 meeting. Carrie
Miller seconded the motion. The minutes were approved after a vote was taken.
Karen explained that over 450 individuals are receiving the Extension Newsletter electronically.
A time for questions and answers related to the Orientation Meeting was provided. Karen
reviewed the responsibilities of being a council member. Karen shared the beginning stages of a
4-H Alumni Association. In the future, there will be a link off the web site for this Association.
Karen took the time to point out the Extension Partners flyer, and the H1N1 flyer, and the flyer
directed at helping children succeed in school. When asked by a member if schools could
incorporate the extension link as a related information link Karen gave the OK.
Members introduced themselves.
Election of Officers:
Karen Moore asked for nominations for Unit Council Officers. The following 2009-2010 slate
was presented:
Council Chairman: Susan Wynn Bence
Vice Chairman: Justin Swan
Secretary: Holly Rice
Treasurer: Barb Haynes
Executive Council Board Members :
Joe Wier and Larry Thorndyke – Ford County
Carrie Miller and Jody Munsterman – Iroquois County

County Board Representatives appointed for 2009-2010
Dave Hastings - Ford County and Jim Meyer– Iroquois County
Roger Wycoff made a motion to elect the officers, Executive Council Board, and County Board
Representatives as named. Holly Rice seconded the motion and the slate was elected.
Dave Hastings moved to appoint Justin Swan as local representative on the East Central
Regional Advisory Council. Larry Thorndyke seconded the motion and Justin was selected to
serve.
Financial Matters:
Signatures for the In and Out Checking Account will be Susan Wynn Bence, Council Chairman;
Barb Haynes, Council Treasurer; along with Extension staff member-Karen Moore. Approved
signatures for the 4-H Federation Account will be Barb Haynes, Council Treasurer; Extension
staff member- Karen Moore, and whoever is elected as the 4-H Federation Treasurer. Dave
Hastings moved to approve these signees and Larry Littlefield seconded the motion. The motion
was approved.
Larry Throndyke moved to approve charge accounts at the following local businesses: Best Super
Market, Onarga; Hometown Family Foods, Gilman; Paxton IGA Foods, Paxton; Big R Stores,
Watseka & Gibson City; County Market, Gibson City; and Berkot’s, Watseka. Barb Haynes
seconded the motion; the business charge accounts were approved.
Karen Moore discussed the County Board Match (CBM) received in July 2009 for FY 09 at 85%
with tentative fund at 84% for current year if Governor and IL Dept of Ag move forward. Karen
Moore also shared other sources of funding for FY10 which are Ford-Iroquois Extension
Agribusiness Partners, New & continuing stakeholders, new & continuing grants and program
fees ( GOAL: 10% of local funding from FY 10 budget = $18,610) Aimee Chandler’s 8:15 am
Monday morning WGFA live question/answer time was recognized.
Karen shared Kim Rahn’s position or new job descriptions. Kim will be part of a Special Interest
Group developing special interest projects that are volunteer lead but staff assisted. This is a sign
that 4-H is evolving. This group will target new 4-H members with a desire to increase 4-H by
1,000 members in Illinois.
Karen shared that the In and Out Account Audit will be completed on September 9, 2009
Auditors include 2 area bankers who also serve as Unit Council Members along with a visiting
auditor, a staff member from Champaign County Extension Office.
Updates:
Karen shared janitorial services and commented Kenny is recovering from a hospital visit.
4-H Foundation meeting will be Monday, September 14; at 6:30 p.m.
4-H Federation has a youth leadership of 16 individuals having various activities.
This group raised $4,500 at the Ford County Fair at their food stand.
Their next meeting is Monday, September 28 th , beginning at 7 p.m.
Web Usage Statistics proved to be extremely positive. The site is 11 th out of 87 State office sites
and 5 th out of 18 Region sites and 51 st out of ALL Extension websites in the state as of July 2009.
How EXCITING!!!

Unit Council Meetings 2009-2010 beginning at 6:30 p.m.
December 3, 2009
March 4, 2010
May 6, 2010
September 2, 2010
December 2, 2010
These dates were moved by Dave Hastings and seconded by Joe Wier.
Extension Program Updates:
January 23, 2010 will be a 1 st Annual 4-H Auction at Christ Lutheran High School at 4:00 p.m.
All 4-H clubs will be asked to collect and donate items and/or services. The goal will be to raise
money for the membership fee for 4-H members.
New Business:
Council members broke into groups and reviewed the results of Together We Can, a survey
conducted in 2009 with an effort to discuss possible workshops already addressing the results or
workshops that may need to be considered in the future. Each group reported back to the entire
Unit Council for their review.
Roger Wycoff moved to adjourn the meeting and Bill Pool seconded the motion. The meeting
was adjourned.
The next meeting will be December 3, 2009 at 6:30 p.m.