Valley Free Radio » Board of Directors

VFR Board Meeting Agenda 2.6.08

Bill Baue — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 17:26:37 +0000

Friends Meetinghouse, Room 3
43 Center Street, Northampton
Wednesday 7-9 pm

AGENDA

-Financial report
-Fundraising update
-Operations Committee progress
-Programming Committee progress
-Revised website policies
-Changing the studio door key & report on lockbox combo change
-Board member attendence
-Transitioning to the new Democracy Now! time
-Show recorder
-Lawsuit update

VFR Board Meeting Agenda 1.9.08

Bill Baue — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 15:34:03 +0000

Friends Meetinghouse Social Room
43 Center St. Northampton
7-9 pm. Wednesday

-Operations committee: powers/spending authority, definition & mandate.
-Financial report
-Grantwriting workshop
-More website support
-Recorder update
-Privileges and responsibilities
-board retreat

VFR Board Meeting Minutes 12.5.07

Bill Baue — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 20:02:10 +0000

7-9 pm MEF

In Attendance: Fidel Hidalgo, Matt Dineen, Strong Oak, Tony Shannon, Tony Udell, Bob Gardner, Richard Moody, Bob Gutowski, Dana Prescott

1.) Edwards Church streaming: Decision deferred to Programming Committee.
2.) Recorder: Bob Gutowski will ask Bill Childs for permission to fix CD burner 12/6/07.
- Digital Marantz Recorder will be donated by Edwards Church and Bob Gutowski will install it 12/6/07.
- Tony Udell will do research on computer for the purpose of recording VFR programming 24/7.
3.) Keys: Operations Committee will put a list of 5 people that live near VFR that have a key to VFR.
- Operations Committee will ask Florence Community Center about putting another box for VFR keys at the other entrance as a backup.
- There will be reprimanding for misplacing keys.
4.) OpCom: Bob Gardner and Tony Shannon are Operations Committee interim coordinators.
- Operations Committee tasks and responsibilities include:
– Volunteer Coordination.
– Scheduling Studio Managers.
– Repair and Maintenance of equipment.
– Keeping Supplies Stocked.
– Internal Communications.
-Further description of OpCom to be presented at December’s GM
-Contact OpCom at: vfroperations@gmail.com

Board Meeting Agenda 12.5.07

Bill Baue — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 02:46:49 +0000

Media Education Foundation
7 pm

- Operations Committee
- Keys

VFR Board Meeting Minutes 11.7.07

Bill Baue — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 19:47:19 +0000

MEF
7:00-9:15 pm

In Attendance: Matt Dineen, Tony Shannon, Bush-I Harvey Ahmai, Mo Ringey, Strong Oak, Fidel Hidalgo, Lundy Bancroft, Tony Udell, Michelle LeBlanc, Bob Gutowski, Dana Prescott, Ed Russell, Bob Gardner.

-Introductions/New board member welcome
-Hopes and dreams for growing and sustaining the station
-Board contracts distributed, signed, and given to clerk
-Election of board officers: Co-chairs: Matt Dineen and Fidel Hidalgo; Clerk: Mo Ringey; Treasurer: Tony Shannon
-Liaison to the programming committee: Bush-I and Tony S. will share this position
-Vote to establish an operations committee, find interested members before the GM where we will elect OpCom coordinators.
-New legal liaison group: Matt Dineen, Lundy Bancroft, and Strong Oak.
-Transfer of license: Tony Udell will take this on and contact Alex from MEF about working together.
-Financial report presented: Over $2,000 has come in from the mass mailing initiated by Tony S. last month.
-Fund drive next week: Tony S. and Johanna have been coordinating volunteers, article in this week’s Valley Advocate mentions fund-drive with quotes from Michelle LeBlanc.
-Voted to provide ATM/ Debit access for checking account
-Voted to add an additional check signer when current check book runs out; Tony Shannon (Treasurer) to replace Jane Braaten as signer along with Bob Gardner and Ed Russell
-Executive session (Lawsuit update)

VFR Board Meeting Agenda 11.7.07

Bill Baue — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 17:04:19 +0000

Wednesday
MEF 60 Masonic St
7-9 pm

-New board member welcome
-New & old: hopes and dreams
-Board contracts
-Election of officers
-Liaison to the programming committee
-Establishing an operations committee & operations coordinator
-New legal liaison group
-Transfer of license; new task group?
-Volunteer coordinator
-Financial report
-Fund drive coordinator?
-ATM/ Debit access
-Check acct signers and policy [2 signers?]
-New credit card service
-Membership requirement
-Programmers log requirement & other FCC compliance issues
-Executive session (Lawsuit update)

Biographies of Board Nominees

Bill Weye — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 12:41:24 +0000

We have posted the biographies (that we have) of the nominees running in the board election.The election is scheduled for Wednesday, October 17 at the monthly general meeting at MEF in Northampton. You can find the biographies here: http://www.valleyfreeradio.org/bios/.

VFR Board Meeting Minutes 10.3.07

Bill Baue — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 15:57:32 +0000

MEF 7-8:15pm

In attendance: Bob Gardner, John Prettman, Dana Prescott, Bob Gutowski, Mary Wheelan, Michelle LeBlanc, Scott Lahteine, Matt Dineen (took the minutes), Tony Shannon (facillitated)

1.) Board Election
-The election will be held at this month’s GM (10/17). There are currently 4 open spots that need to be filled. The nominations committee is comprised of Bill Weye, Bob Gardner, and Mary Wheelan. All members are encouraged to assist with the effort of nominating potential candidates. Bios should be e-mailed to Bill Weye: billhector@gmail.com by 10/14 to be posted on the website.

2.) Fundraising Updates
-We raised $25 at the Farmers Market this past Saturday and $40 at the “Passions and Survival” film event. Tony S. and others are working on a mass mailing to past VFR supporters. This will happen the third week of October to promote our next on-air pledge drive from 10/22 to 10/28. Volunteers are needed to help with the pledge drive and can sign up at the GM meeting for shifts. A series of Halloween-themed house parties will take place on Saturday 10/27 to raise money for the station. Contact Matt Dineen if you are interested in hosting a party: passionsandsurvival@gmail.com There was also discussion of applying for grants both for fundraising and to fund a weekend-long anti-racist training for board members in November which Bob Gardner is writing. Underwriting is still in the works and contracts are currently being written for worker-owned businesses that wish to underwrite syndicated programs. *The next Fundraising Committee meeting will take place this Sunday 10/7 at Cafe Evolution on Maple st. in Florence at 11:00 am.*

3.) ATM/Online Access for Checking Account
-When the board elects a new treasurer at November’s meeting we will name an admininstrator to access the checking account online and also enable ATM deposits at any time.

4.) License Transfer
-Our license still needs to be transferred upon the wishes of MEF.

5.) New Website
-New website is up and ready and has been met with positive feedback. It will be voted on at this month’s GM along with a revised mission statement that appears on the homepage, which will be distributed before that meeting.

6.) Mics and Headphones
-The over $600 that was raised from the mic tax will be used to purchase new equipment.

7.) GM Agenda
-Election
-Approval of new website/mission statement
-Underwriting
-On-air pledge drive sign-up
-Collective Reformation

VFR Board Meeting Agenda 10.3.07

Bill Baue — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 12:53:21 +0000

MEF Community Room, 60 Masonic St. Northampton
7:00-9:00 pm

AGENDA

-October Election/Nomination Committee
-Approval of online, debit, and appointment of cardholder administrator
-Fundraising updates/October Pledge Drive
-Application for mini-grants to haymarket for Peoples Institute attendance
-purchase of new mic and headphone for MCR
-License Transfer update

VFR Board Meeting Minutes 9.5.07

Bill Baue — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 17:57:49 +0000

Media Education Foundation 7-9 pm

In attendance: Tony Udell, Michelle LeBlanc, Lundy Bancroft, Mary Wheelan, Tony Shannon, Matt Dineen, Bob Gardner, Ed Russell, Dana Prescott

1. Programming Commitee Reportback
Tony U. and Michelle gave an overview of last month’s Programming Committee meeting. They are combining their revised restructuring proposals into one. This proposal will be voted on for approval on the 19th at September’s General Membership meeting.

2. License Transfer
An electronic form must be filled out by both VFR and MEF for FCC approval. Tony S. will send the link to form to the board and we will check in about it at the fundraising event at the Friends’ Meetinghouse Sunday evening.

3. Board Election
An election committee will be formed at September’s General Membership meeting to seek candidates to replace board members who are stepping down after this term is completed. The election will be held at October’s General Membership meeting.

4. Fundraising
Bob G. presented the financial report showing that recent fundraising efforts have raised over $1,000. Despite this, the current budget will only ensure 7 more months of operations. September fundraising events include: 8th-Farmer’s Market table, 9th-Eddie Bartok-Barrata poetry performance at Friends Meetinghouse, 11th-talk at MEF (Matt will table), 13th-Trivia Night at WWII Club, 22nd-Pulaski Park outdoor concert, 29th-House Parties. An on-air pledge drive will take place the final week of the month from Sunday the 23rd to Saturday the 29th. The next Fundraising Committee meeting will be at 6:00pm at the Friends Meetinghouse in Northampton before the event.

5. Underwriting
Will Hall recently made phone calls to potential underwriters, all of whom responded positively. Matt will follow up with a specific proposal to each of them: Collective Copies, Food for Thought Books, River Valley Market, Pedal People, National Priorities Project, Peace Development Fund, and Pelham Auto.

Minutes taken by Matt Dineen

Board of Directors Meeting Minutes 7.10.2007

Bill Weye — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 10:35:46 +0000

Meeting of the Board of Directors

Media Education Foundation
60 Masonic Street, Northampton, MA
Tuesday, July 10, 2007, 7pm

Minutes

Attendance: Lundy Bancroft (BM), Jane Braaten (BM), Matt Dineen (BM), Bob Gardner, Bob Gutowski, Michelle LeBlanc (BM), Tony Shannon (BM), Chris Tinson (BM), Tony Udell (BM), Mary Wheelan (BM).

BM= Board Members

Minutes taken by Chris Tinson

Announcements:

Michelle announced that the Farmerâ€™s Market (Northampton) tabling was successful. She suggested that more VFR members may want to table during the next Farmerâ€™s Market between 9am â€“ 12:30.

Questions from Non-Board Members: None.

1. Fundraising update/Pledge driveâ€¨â€“ August to September: Matt Dineen

Begin: Friday, August 3rd
End: Tuesday, August 7th

Two-year VFR Birthday Celebration on August 7th, 2007 â€“ 7-11pm at the Florence Community Center

Matt D. is in conversation with Florence Community Center management to obtain cost of renting the facility. He will have more concrete estimate at next meeting.

September Events Week

Begin: Friday, 9/7/07
End: Thursday, 9/13/07

September Events include the following:

7th â€“ Film and potluck
8th â€“ Polaski Park
9th â€“ Eddy Bartock
11th â€“ Media Education Foundation
12th â€“ The Basement

Matt also suggested that there be a sign-up sheet to obtain more participation from VFR programmers throughout the September Events Week.

2. License Transfer: Tony Udell reported that the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) has a form for LPFM transfers (Application for Consent of Transfers). He is currently researching the FCC regulations and will report to next Board meeting.
3. Volunteer Coordination: report and discussion tabled to next meeting.
4. Membership Defined: Bob Gardner and Lundy will draft a new membership policy
5. Renewal of Rental Lease: Bob Gardner reported that there will be a slight increase in the VFR rental fees. Asked for Boardâ€™s approval to pay for difference whenever VFR is billed for the increase. Board approved.
6. New operations committee and appointing a chairperson: Bob Gardner expressed need to reform the operations committee. Discussion tabled.
7. Studio lock timeline: Ed Russell will install the new mic and begin locking the door as of this Sunday, July 15th, 2007. Programmers must contact Bob Gardner for keys.
8. New Mic Installation: (see Item 7 for related information).
9. Tentative Agenda for Next General Meeting

General Meeting July 18th, 2007, 7pm

Announcements

Report back from grassroots radio and allied meeting conference, US Social Forum

Birthday celebration planning (August)

September events week planning (September)

Recommendations for scheduling subcommittee

Underwriting

Volunteer coordination

Board Meeting adjourned at 8:25pm

Board of Directors Meeting Agenda: 7.10.07

Bill Weye — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 15:08:01 +0000

Board of Directors Meeting: Tuesday 7.10.07
Agenda

7-9pm Media Education Foundation
60 Masonic St., Northampton
AGENDA
Announcements

-Fundraising update/Pledge drive
-License transfer update
-Volunteer coordination
-Membership defined
-Renewing our rental lease
-Establishing a new operations committee/Appointing a chairperson

VFR Board of Director’s Meeting Minutes 6.6.07

Bill Baue — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 15:23:18 +0000

7-9pm Media Education Foundation
60 Masonic St., Northampton

MINUTES

Attendance: Mary Wheelan, Matt Dineen, Tony Shannon, Michelle LeBlanc, Jane Braaten, Tony Udell, Lundy Bancroft
Absent Board members: Chris Tinson, Anthony Ratcliff
General members/others: Bob Gardner, Bill Weye, Joan Tabatchnik, Alisa Klein, Dana Prescott, Ed Russell
Minutes taker: Jane B.

1. Sexual offense policy: Joan Tabatchnik (sp?) and Alisa Klein presented materials to be used in formulating recommendations for a policy regarding sexual offenses at the station. Alisa and Lundy will confer on what recommendations to make.
2. License transfer â€“ VFR is undertaking to transfer our broadcasting license from MEF to VFR. Tony U., Chris and Anthony R. will address the license transfer paperwork.
3. Jane B. currently is the check signer for VFRâ€™s new account. Jane will email Ed R. and Eric about the possibility of empowering an operations/tech person to be check signer.
4. Financial report â€“ short version, current balance
5. Publicity spending: the Board agrees that in principle we should be ready to spend on publicity (example, an August anniversary event), despite scarce resources.
6. New program schedule: Tony U. presented two proposals from the Scheduling Subcommittee, to simplify the collective structure to 4 collectives, each responsible for allocating time slots in respective time blocs. These proposals are intended to simplify and increase accountability of program schedule management. The Board agrees that these proposals are moving in the right direction, though further discussion is necessary. They will be proposed and refined in this weekâ€™s Prog Com mtg and presented to the General Membership.
7. Webstreaming has been down and some tech fixes are necessary. Tony U. will be emailing Bob Gutowski.
8. Some restructuring/revitalizing suggestions will be addressed at the Fundraising meeting June 10. Organizational restructuring suggestions were tabled until the next Board meeting.
9. The next Board meeting will tentatively be held July 10 (instead of 4th). Matt will check on room availability.

General Meeting Agenda (?)
1. Program Schedule/Program Committee restructuring
2. Webstreaming needs
3. Fundraising/publicity initiative
Presentation: VFRâ€™s historical role (Jose Tolson â€“ see his recent email)

Board of Directors Meeting 6.6.07 Agenda

Bill Baue — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 14:40:07 +0000

7-9pm Media Education Foundation
60 Masonic St., Northampton

AGENDA
Announcements
Legal affairs updates

-Organizing the publicity for the June 10th fundraising meeting
-Sut Jhally/MEF/transfer of license
-Signers on new checking account
-Mini financial report
-Spending for publicity committee
-Executive Committee: Legal & financial
-New program schedule
-Streaming
-Restructuring suggestions

Board Meeting Minutes 5.2.07

Bill Baue — Sat, 05 May 2007 00:32:32 +0000

VALLEY FREE RADIO | WXOJ-LP 103.3 FM
MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
NORTHAMPTON, MA
WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 2007

Attendance: Bob Gutowski, Anthony Shannon (BM), Michelle LeBlanc (BM), Bob Gardner, Noemi Valentin, Matt Dineen (BM), Tony Udell (BM), Jane Braaten (BM), Dana Prescott, Frances Crowe, Ed Russell, Mary Wheelan (BM), Chris Tinson (BM)
(BM=Board Members)

1. Welcome

2. Questions / Announcements from the floor:
Announcements: Allied Media Conference in Detroit convening June 21-24, 2007; Grassroots Radio Conference in Lowell, MA also convening June 21-24, 2007.

3. Updates on legal affairs â€“ Jane B. reported that we are in a waiting stage but a settlement is still being considered; unsure of lawyers outreach to other party; potential trial later this year, but nothing confirmed; VFR informed to prepare docs for trial at this point. Bob Gardner spoke with J. Morneau this week and Morneau confirmed that the other party has denied any request for settlement.

Note added 5.6.07 by Bill Baue per Chris Tinson: The discovery process is continuing toward a possible trial this Fall. Our most recent effort to settle with the Plaintiff, like earlier attempts, has been refused.

4. Board Orientation, Assignment of Officers, etc.
Jane handed out a brief write-up identifying the roles of the board officers as part of orientation process for new members.
Officer: Co-Chair: Matt Dineen
Officer: Secretary: Chris Tinson
We clarified the process of posting the agenda and minutes. Bill Baue should receive any relevant posting materials. Bill Weye receives all web-related requests not related to agendas and minutes
Officer: Treasurer: Jane Braaten
Board Role: making financial decisions for the organization, advisory capacity, among other duties as specified in governing documents.

5. VFR â€“ Atty. Liaison
4 members originally assigned to serve as liaison between board and attorney: Libby, Adam, Noemi, Jane; Libby and Adam have gone. Jane is willing to continue, but wants to see if duties can be relieved. (Postponed to end of meeting for exec. Session)
Tony Shannon expressed interest in serving as a liaison. Jane B. will mentor Tonyâ€™s service on liaison sub-committee.

6. Mic Tax (Paying for the Stolen Mic)
Not all members have responded to Bob Gardnerâ€™s request for mic replacement payment of $5 from each program. So far he has received payments amounting to $360 with half the membership (including programmers) paid; Â½ programmers have paid (37 out of 75).
Decision: Draft a letter from the Board requesting that all members submit their fee to recover the stolen mic. Chris Tinson to draft a letter for Board input.

7. Security
Michelle suggested the possibility of webcamming to deter theft. Discussion.
Decision: construct an equipment checklist for studio managers (implement immediately); changing key codes monthly (pass to GM); Ed and Eric suggested as members to construct a checklist for studio manager equipment checks during their shifts.

8. Insurance
Bob Gardner raised questions for discussion about insurance against lawsuits; equipment insurance for the transmitter $198/year covers transmitter equip (approx. $17K worth of equipment); legal liability insurance: such as officers insurance against lawsuits, was too expensive the last time we checked. (Further discussion tabled to a later unspecified date.)

9. Continue Volunteer Coordination
Jane is working with Eric Nash and Lundy Bancroft on list of jobs that can be done by volunteers at the station. We discussed publicity, outreach, etc.
Decision: Continue to discuss; Jane and Michelle will begin brainstorming ideas to coordinate publicity

10. Webstreaming
Bob Gardner expressed a concern regarding webstream accessibility. Consensus reached on need to move to a more functional streaming system. Other low-power FMs have one-click access, why not VFR?
Decision: eliminate two non-working links; keep/re-title â€œthe linkâ€ instead

11. MEF-VFR relationship
Chris Tinson raised issue of MEF-VFR separation. MEF looking to separate before next fiscal year (beginning June-July 2007). License is the binding document between parties. License binds MEF to VFR. What does the separation look like? Structural, financial, etc.?; educational or government organizations can hold Low Power FM licenses. Discussed possibility of transferring license to VFR sole ownership. Board agreed to allow Tony Udell, Anthony Ratcliff and Chris Tinson to continue to discuss the process of MEF-VFR separation with MEF officers.

12. GM agenda and Facilitators: 5/16/2007
Security (Key Codes); process to be decided; Studio Mgr. checklist
Mic Assessment (or tax)
Facilitators: Michelle and Jane

Meeting adjourned at 9:32pm
Minutes submitted by Chris Tinson, Board Secretary

Board of Directors Meeting 5.2.07 Agenda

Bill Baue — Mon, 30 Apr 2007 16:39:02 +0000

7-9pm Media Education Foundation
60 Masonic St., Northampton

AGENDA

Announcements
Legal affairs updates

1. Continue new Board member orientation (and if necessary contracts, designation of officers)

2. Update State incorporation document

3. Reconstitute VFR-Attorney liaison

4. New microphone â€“ a) finish collecting â€˜taxâ€™, b) studio security questions

5. Continue volunteer coordination

6. CORI checks – Mary: I basically think that we need a policy in place to make sure it is not possible that any adult programmer would ever be alone with a programmer under 18. Without such a policy I think we would probably have to do CORI checks as a matter of law,not just because of concerns about liability. (And, there’s all sorts of reasons why CORI checks are not a great thing to get into including that it’s expensive for a small organization, although sometimes they are a necessary evil.) I could check out the legalities with the Criminal History Systems Board if you’d like me to do so.

VFR Board Meeting Agenda 4.4.07

Bill Baue — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 20:47:59 +0000

Board Meeting Agenda
Wednesday April 4, 2007
7:00 Media Education Foundation

1.) Lawsuit Background, settlement issues, confidentiality & related
financial situation, [All in Executive Session]
2.) Bylaws approach and redirect to Board
3.) Volunteer coordination
4.) New board members welcome and board contract signings
5.) Elect new officers and sending of Annual Report to Sec of State
6.) Distribution of the report from auditor
7.) Assign new Board positions

Another Board Bio

Bill Baue — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 14:55:02 +0000

For election at 3.21.07 general membership meeting to fill vacant board seats.

Please see also the more complete list posted here.

My name’s Anthony Udell, though most of you know me as Tony, and I’m the
41-year old father of a beautiful 4-year old daughter. I was born in Reno
NV, spent the majority of my years in South Florida, before moving up here
to W. Mass. in ’98. My previous radio experience began in high school, where
I was the program director, later I did a reggae music program for WVUM, the
voice of the University of Miami, filled in on occasion for the long-time
Jazz guru of S. Fl. radio, China Valles, and was the grave-yard shift board
engineer for a for-profit AM community radio station. I once considered
making it my profession, only to discover that I hated being told what to
play or say… Oh well. Over the years, I’ve worked a string of crappy
retail/clerical jobs, and in the meantime, became a radical. I co-founded
the Holyoke Community College Anti-War Coalition and helped re-establish a
lively activist branch of the International Socialist Organization locally.
Though I’m no longer a member, my affiliation spurned me to start a
socialist news show on Valley Free Radio called “Praxis”, which enjoyed it’s
first anniversary a few months ago.
Since I first joined VFR, I’ve maintained a weekly studio manager shift
on Fridays. For the last few months, I’ve facilitated the Programming
Committee meetings, am currently a member of the scheduling sub-committee,
and have volunteered to assist the board as non-voting member the last few
weeks. In other words, I strongly feel this station and the community that
sustains it are vital and I can think of no worse fate than to see this
precious resource forged by the efforts of so many to disappear. I recognize
that the latest spate of empty seats on the board is the result of a
multitude of pressures, and I trust that those who stepped down were
motivated by very compelling reasons, but I would like to make it clear, if
granted the opportunity to serve the Valley Free Radio community as a member
of the board, that I intend to serve the full measure of my term.
With all of the obstacles of late, and the occasional acrimony, it’s
sometimes easy to forget what we’re fighting for. We’ve got something more
amazing, more compelling, and yes, at times, more nerve-wracking, than all
of these for-profit, commercial-laden, transmitters of bad music and
government/corporate propaganda. For now, all of us, as members of the VFR
community have been entrusted with this torch. Let’s run with it and hand it
off even brighter than we found it.

Bios of Board Candidates

Bill Baue — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 13:54:09 +0000

For election at 3.21.07 general membership meeting to fill vacant board seats.

LUNDY BANCROFT

I was a founding member of VFR and have cared a great deal about the station
all along. I am currently serving as a temporary Board member because of the
high number of vacancies. My current involvement with the station also
includes working on volunteer coordination; helping my daughter do her teen
show and serving as liaison for the Youth Collective; waiting for a time
slot for my own show; and listening to the station a lot.
I believe that VFR has accomplished a tremendous amount in a short time. I
know we have some difficult lessons to learn from things that have gone
wrong, but I think overall we should feel proud. We’re broadcasting original
shows all day and much of the night seven days a week, we have a tremendous
range of different kinds of programming, and we are financially afloat. We
owe appreciation to so many people who have poured in their work as
programmers, studio managers, fundraisers, Board members, committee chairs,
and the many other pieces of work that people have taken on.
My contribution to the Board would be to bring strong leadership skills
combined with flexibility, an ability to resolve conflicts, and a strong
desire to see us move toward unity and solidarity. I think we made a mistake
early in the going by not taking adequately decisive steps to establish
ourselves as an anti-racist, anti-sexist organization that would really
watch its own process and internal dynamics. We can be a much stronger group
in the future if we stop shying away from these issues and confront them
head-on. Yes, it’s scary, and at times tense between people, but we will get
through it, and everyone benefits from the process.
About me: I’m a 47-year-old divorced white guy with two wonderful children.
I make my living as a public speaker and writer on issues of abuse, trauma,
and recovery, mostly related to domestic violence. I will describe my
politics by saying that the Democratic Party does not speak for me, but
neither does Democracy Now, because I believe in hope, courage, resistance
to oppression, and reconciliation. (Listening to Amy Goodman, much as I
appreciate her, I become afraid that her listeners will never realize how
many people are bravely and often brilliantly fighting for justice every day
all over the world, and never giving up.) My personal style is such that I
can disagree strongly with people without making them my enemy, which I
think VFR could use more of. I’m a good listener and I believe that everyone
deserves to be heard, not just the people who are the most pushy or have the
loudest voices. I think we need to deal with each other more respectfully,
and people who don’t get their way need to handle that more maturely,
without insulting other people or the group, becoming snide and sarcastic,
bullying us through the legal system, and so forth. I think the new
standards that have been put out for how we deal with each other represent a
great step forward, and I’m very appreciative of the hard work that went
into creating those.
I have a lot of faith in all of us and am eager to become more deeply
involved in the future health and direction of community radio, which is
true democracy in action. Congratulations to everybody for making VFR happen
and moving it as far as it has already gone. The year ahead promises to be a
very exciting time.

Mark Peters of ‘What’s Cookin’ with Mark Peters’
BIOGRAPHY

Mark is a born native to Northampton, Massachusetts. Graduating from
Northampton High School in 1981 and going on to achieve several college
degrees in nursing and education, he is also a graduate of the esteemed
Coordon Bleu in Pasadena, CA . He has resided in Southern California for
the past 18 years. His love and passion for food and cooking has been a
lifestyle he continues to this day.

After starting in show business as an adult, in 1990 Mark acquired the
puppet Madame from the estate of the late Wayland Flowers. He has achieved
national acclaim on television, radio and the stage. Mark is the recipient
of 2 local Emmy awards for work in television with Madame. He continues to
travel nationally and internationally with Madame performing her tribute to
her late partner. Flowers passed away from A.I.D.S. in the fall of 1988.
Peters has full and legal rights via trademarks to use the puppet. Mark has
personally performed and rose over $750,000.00 for AIDS fund raiser with
Madame making appearances. He is also a favorite to concerts that they
performed in with: Shirley Bessie, Martha Wash, Audrey Landers (pictured),
Carol Channing Christine W., Peter Marshall, and the late Nell Carter. He
has also been a contributing writer for several major network sitcoms such
as Fraiser, Seinfeld, the Golden Girls and his own created series “Inn
Beverly Hills” which is currently optioned through a major television
network and is waiting for production line up scheduling.

Mark studied cooking at the Pasadena California Culinary Institute which is
now named Cordon Bleu school of Culinary Arts and Sciences, a sister
institute to the infamous Cordon Bleu of Paris, France..

Between 2002 and 2004 Mark partnered up with famed television chef Jackie
Olden as her executive producer for her show ‘Cooking with Jackie’ on UPN 13
in Palm Springs, CA. Mark having a love for entertainment and a quick
witted comedian became a regular guest on the show. Olden is most popular
for her cooking stint in the 1980′s on ABC’s The Home Show starring Gary
Collins. When UPN 13 saw that ratings for viewers in the show were elevated
during Peters’ appearances they decided to permanently co-host Olden and
Peters for the show. The 2 mega-talents produced over 450 shows in a 2 Â½
year period of time and were on television twice a day, seven days a week on
UPN 13. Peters and Olden also had been a daily radio talk show in Palm
Springs, CA on KCMJ 1270 AM called ‘Come Into The Kitchen with Mark &
Jackie’. Peters’ plan is to revisit that venue interest with local talk
radio stations to coincide with the new television cooking show here in the
Pioneer Valley.

Mark is now back home in Massachusetts with family and has been anxious to
get back onto television. His latest project, ‘What’s Cookin’ with Mark
Peters’ is now in the pre-production and production stages. He has
partnered up with RLM Productions’ multi-talented director Rich Morganstern
of Springfield. The partners will be shooting a series of shows to be aired
on NBC this fall. Production for studio cooking will take place at Lamson &
Goodnow Cutlery & Kitchen Tools at 34 Bridge Street in Northampton (across
from the U.S. Post office in the Talbot’s shopping plaza on Sunday July 16,
2006.
The shooting of the first four (4) of 21 shows begins at 11:00 a.m. and
plans to be there the entire day. Peters will be featuring some of the
greatest chefs from restaurants around the Pioneer Valley, so come have a
glass of wine and watch.

Mary Wheelan
Bio

Mary Wheelan co-hosts Independent Muse, a show that has been on Valley Free
Radio for over a year. Mary has quite a bit of experience working with
boards. As Executive Director of the Williamsburg Council On Aging for over
four years, she works with a board that includes 9 voting members, 4
associate members, and 3 emeritus members. As Executive Director, Mary is a
town employee and reports directly to the Select Board. Mary is also
currently Vice-chair of the Hilltown Consortium of Councils On Aging and
served for two years as Chair. From 1998-1999 Mary, while employed at a
mental health agency in Holyoke, was a member of the PVTA Appeals Board, a
board which reviewed appeals of people with disabilities who had been denied
van transportation. A singer/songwriter, Mary is President of the Hilltown
Alliance of Musicians and Songwriters, Inc. When Mary lived in Rhode Island
she founded the Rhode Island Songwriters association and served on the board
for a few years. Mary has fiscal management ang grant writing experience.
She also networks with lots of agencies, elders, business owners,
politicians, musicians, etc.

Michelle LeBlanc

Michelle LeBlanc has been with Valley Free Radio since November of 2006 when
she joined the Indie Collective and began broadcasting her program “Dead Air
Nightmares” every Monday night from 11pm to 1am. Dead Air Nightmares is the
extension of a website of the same name that she created and currently runs
with a couple other writers featuring music news and reviews. Before joining
Valley Free Radio Michelle held many other positions in many other
music-related organizations. She was a part of WDJM in Framingham, MA from
2002 to 2006, starting off as a programmer and serving 3 years on the
executive board, one of which was spent as Assistant General Manager. In
that role she brought new levels of listenership to WDJM by providing a
solid administrative base and organizing extensive events and promotions,
such as the first annual WDJM spring festival and the first annual WDJM
Boston Marathon event. She also held an internship in the music department
at 101.7 WFNX Lynn/Boston and worked on their promotions street team. These
experiences have given her a knowledge of radio marketing, events, and
promotions as they exist in both the community and commercial radio spheres
that she greatly wishes to share with VFR. She has also worked in Music
public relations. She currently works in marketing research and resides in
Northampton.

Board Meeting Minutes 02-07-2007

Bill Weye — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 15:53:48 +0000

Valley Free Radio Board
Meeting Minutes Feb 07, 2007
Media Education Foundation
7-9pm

present: Jane Braaten, Matt Dineen, Bob Gardner, Bush-I Harvey, Revan
Schendler, Ed Russell, Lundy Bancroft, Dana Prescott, Tony Udell, Eric Nash

notes submitted by Revan

1. Lawsuit update

2. New Treasurer needed: Jane will assume this position until new board
members join following elections in March

3. Board Elections in March
Eric, Lundy and Revan will form nominations committee, seeking suggestions
from general and board members; nominations will taken at Feb. 21 general
membership meeting; all bios to be sent to Eric at endotox1@hotmail.com by
board meeting March 7 for posting on website; elections March 21 (first day
of spring: a good omen!)

4. Publicity and Fundraising
Lundy, Tony U. to discuss volunteer coordination and implementation of
two-hour work requirement for all programmers; will consult with Patti and
Emily about work already done; define tasks, etc.

5. Financial report presented by Bob Gardner
serious cash crunch

6. Linux crash problem, following power shut-offs and surges last year:
board approves $500 for purchase of two Uninterruptible Power Supplies

7. Streaming: Eric to research monthly cost of more efficient streaming from
website

8. Recording Shows: Tech Committee to research legal requirements for having
copies of shows for FCC; costs of a friendlier CD burner

9. Richard Moody’s request concerning Edwards Church connection: Eric, Jane
to clarify request with Richard before sending the question of live
webcasting of religious services back to the Programming Committee with
boardâ€™s recommendation

10. Station security/ recent theft of studio mike and minidisk player: Ed to
research keycards; Bush-I and Ed to solicit donation of a microphone; also
suggestions of volunteer donations

AGENDA FOR GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING 2/21/07

1. Nominations Committee presentation/ nominations taken for March elections
2. Report on Volunteer Coordination Effort
3. Report from Scheduling Subcommittee
4. Station Security and recent thefts/suggestions for ways to replace them
5. Volunteers needed for Grievance and Mediation Committee

meeting to be facilitated by Tony U. and Jane B.

meeting adjourned at 9:10

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