Tentative Minutes to be approved at the next board meeting:

September 26, 2019 

Call to Order

A meeting of the Executive Board was held on September 26, 2019 at the EMS building.  It began at 1 PM and was presided by Jim O’Brien, Assistant Commissioner.

Attendees

Voting board members in attendance:

Bob Johnson, Bill Krieger, Bill Kouvolo, Jim O’Brien, Craig Niederpruem, and Jack Zupan

Voting board members not in attendance:

Mickey Angelo, Ray Buchichio,  Jim Mahoney, Ken Riess, Carl Weigand

Non voting members in attendance:

Dave Borden, Jack Galloway, Mark Rodill, and Bill Schwartz 

Approval of Minutes

Minutes of the August 29th board meeting were approved without objection.

Officer Reports

Treasurer, Craig Niederpruem:

• Balance on Hand (7/31/2019) is $7315.62

• August 2019 Expenditures total $1244.02 (C. Wright $25.02 for gas; Middletown Fee of $300; J. Zupan $319 for softballs; and $600 for Umpire Fees)

• Balance on Hand (8/31/2019) is $6471.60

• September 2019 Expenditures total $813.99 (B. Krieger $13.99 for registration forms; $800 for Umpire Fees)

• Deposits of $2400 for 2020 player registration fees

• Balance on Hand (9/25/2019) is $8057.61

Assistant Commissioner, Jim O’Brien:

• The League’s website has been updated so all previous reports, including team pictures, have been consolidated and moved to a website archive page; the 2020 registration form is also available on the website for download by prospective members;

• Many thanks in appreciation to the retiring 2018/19 board members: Ray Buchichio, Bill Kouvolo, Jim Mahoney, and Ken Riess.

• A  special thank you to Jim Mahoney for his 10 years of service as league Commissioner!  

Standing Committee Reports

Registrar, Bill Krieger:

• 24 players have registered for the 2020 softball season with another 6 or 8 registrations received today.

• Reminder email sent out to all players who have not yet registered.

• Media posters have been shared with players from different communities.

August 29, 2019

Call to Order

A special meeting of the Executive Board was held on August 29, 2019 at the EMS building.  It began at 1 PM and was presided by Jim Mahoney. 

Attendees

Voting board members in attendance:

Ray Buchichio, Bob Johnson, Bill Krieger, Bill Kouvolo, Jim Mahoney, Jim O’Brien, Ken Riess, Carl Weigand, and Jack Zupan

Voting board members not in attendance:

Mickey Angelo & Craig Niederpruem.

Approval of Minutes

Minutes of the previous meeting were approved without objection.

Agenda Items:

Election Committee (Bill Kouvolo & Jim Mahoney):

Election Process:

1. August 29:  The current Executive Board nominates and endorses a slate of candidates for vacancies on the 2020 Executive Board. 

2. August 30-31: The endorsed slate of candidates and election dates (Sept. 14th to 21st) will be announced to the league at large.

3. Any 2019 player, who wasn’t nominated by the board and is interested in running for the 2020 Executive Board, must declare their candidacy with the Commissioner by 7 days prior to start of election voting.

4. If are no additional declared candidates, then the endorsed slate of candidates will be elected by acclamation.

5. If there are other declared candidates, then an electronic election will be held Sept. 14th to 21st. 

Nominations Process:

• All league players were asked, in a July 26th email, to indicate, by August 14th, if they are available to serve for a one year term and/or two year term of office on the next Executive  Board and, therefore be considered for nomination by the board.

• 11 players responded:  Mickey Angelo, Dave Borden, Jack Galloway, Bob Johnson, Bill Krieger, Craig Niederpruem, Jim O’Brien,, Bill Schwartz, Carl Weigand, and Jack Zupan.  Bob Johnson later withdrew his name from consideration.

• On August 10th, the candidates were sent a follow up email which asked two questions regarding which board positions that they are willing to serve.                                                         

• Five candidates replied to the August 10th questionnaire:

Dave Borden, Jack Galloway, Bill Krieger, Jim O’Brien, and Mark Rodill (Carl Weigand replied to a followup email reminder)

• Two candidates, Jack Galloway & Jim O’Brien, included their resumes (sent by email to all board members). 

Post Season Tournament:

• Regular season ends on Thursday, September 12th.

• A Double Elimination Tournament begins on Tuesday, September 17th and ends on October 3rd.

Return to a 9:30 AM & 11 AM start times:

• There will be railroad crossings that may inhibit some routes to the ball fields.

Extra Fall Season:

• Bob Johnson volunteered to supervise informal pick up games after the completion of the post season tournament.

Forfeit Game Rule:

• Discussion regarding teams not being able to field 9 players and having to forfeit games with eight players. 

Priority status of ground crew workers:

• Discussion of the pros and cons of giving the ground crew workers priority status in the sub process.

2020 Registration Fee & Registration Form:

• Projected cost of having paid umpires, instead of volunteer umpires, is approximately $5800 for 35 regular season games and post season tournament.

• Discussion of what the registration fee should be for 2020 softball season.

• Discussion about including, on the 2020 registration form, a proposed rule that players who miss 8 games for any reason, be removed from their team roster and placed on the priority sub list.   

Banquet:

• The end of season banquet will be at Puss N Boots Tavern after the completion of games on Thursday, September 12th.

Motions:

Motion passed that election voting be done electronically beginning on Sept 14th and ending on Sept 21st.

Motion passed that the 2020 elected board members should be invited to attend the last regular board meeting of the 2019 Executive Board and, if agreeable to them, possibly determine their 2020 officers at that meeting (Elect one year Commissioner, Assistant Commissioner, Secretary, & Treasurer.  New Commissioner can appoint 5 director at their first regular meeting for 2020).

Motion passed that Dave Borden, Jack Galloway, Bill Krieger, Jim O’Brien, and Mark Rodill be nominated for a two year term on the Executive Board.

Motion passed that the board vote by secret ballot to nominate four candidates for a one year term.

Motion passed that the 2020 registration fee for all players (new and veteran) be $100, if paid by December 1st ( $110 after December 1st).

Motion passed that, on the 2020 registration form, players be informed that if 8 games are missed for any reason, he will be removed from his team roster and placed on the priority sub list.

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Executive Board will be at the at the Northern Middletown Station (1741 Langhorne-Yardley Rd) on Thursday, September 26th, at 1 PM.

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned without objection at 3.10 PM.

July 25, 2019 Executive Board Meeting

Call to Order

A meeting of the Executive Board was held on July 25, 2019 at the EMS building.  It began at 1:15 PM and was presided by Jim Mahoney.

Attendees

Voting board members in attendance:

Mickey Angelo, Ray Buchichio, Bob Johnson, Bill Krieger, Bill Kouvolo, Jim Mahoney, Craig Niederpruem, Jim O’Brien, Ken Riess, Carl Weigand, and Jack Zupan

Also attending the meeting:

Jerry Barsky

Approval of Minutes

Minutes of the previous meeting were approved without objection.

Officer Reports

Commissioner, Jim Mahoney: 

• Referred to a previously recommended 20 minute Youtube video by Doug Casa, in charge of the Korey Stringer Institute at Storrs CT at the University of Connecticut. 

• Distributed a heat index information chart with recommendations.

• Will be submitting motions regarding our league’s heat cancellation policy.

Treasurer, Craig Niederpruem: 

• Balance on hand 7/25/2019 - $7568.15

• Deposits: $24.00 - extra jersey - Ray Giberson

• Expenditures: $ 237.44 - misc. uniforms 

• Cash on hand - $7315.62.

Committee Reports

Registrar, Bill Krieger:

• Two new players have signed on as priority sub players.

Bylaw Committee, Bill Kouvolo, Jim Mahoney, & Ray Buchichio:

• On June 15th, all league players were sent a copy of the board approved amendments for their review and informed that a subsequent voting survey would be sent to them to vote on, by July 15th.  Including the votes of the Executive Board members, seventy (70) players voted and 100% voted yes to approve the amendments. The amended Constitution and Bylaws will be posted on our league’s website.

Nominations Committee, Jim Mahoney & Bill Kouvolo:

• The election committee will solicit nominations by sending all league players the following email: “Our Bylaws have been amended to reduce the number of members serving on the Executive Board from eleven (11) to nine (9), with staggered 2 year terms.  To initiate this change, an election will be held to select four (4) board members, who will serve a one year term of office, and to select five (5) board members, who will serve a two year term of office. The Executive Board will nominate nine (9) players to fill those board positions. Any league player, who is not nominated, may choose to challenge those players nominated by running against them in an open election.  If no challengers, then the nominated players will be elected by acclamation. If you are available to serve on the next Executive Board, please reply by August 14th to this email and indicate whether you are available to serve for a one year term and/or two year term of office.”

Umpire-In-Chief, Jim Mahoney:  

• Due to circumstances, there may be a need to hire one paid umpire to work the remaining scheduled games.  

Liaison Committee, Bill Kouvolo:

• The Middletown Township Parks & Recreation Department has accepted our request for use of the softball fields from August 1st to October 31st (Tuesdays & Thursdays from 9:30AM to 12:30 PM). 

• Patrick Graham, Program Director for Middletown Township Parks & Recreation, has informed us that there have been several incidents where one or more of our players have driven past the summer camp barricades, which is not permissible.  If we have recurrence of these violations, the recreation department may not permit us to reserve the softball fields during summer camp weeks.

Unfinished Business

• No Unfinished Business

New Business

• July & August Heat Issues were extensively discussed and four motions were debated and voted on (see Motions).

• Jerry Barsky updated the board on the status of his teammate, Frank Jones.

• The padlock to Langhorne Athletic Association (LAA) was removed and not returned to the LAA tool shed.  LAA will be notified.

Motions:

• Board approved notifying all players about the situation regarding parking lot restrictions during Middletown Township Summer Camp.

• Board approved the purchase of 5 gallon water coolers and cooling towels for use at the games.

• Board approved the allocation of funds for the Umpire-In-Chief to hire umpires, from a pool of available certified umpires, for the remainder of the 2019 season.  Volunteer umpires will still be utilized.

• Motion approved that, if the forecasted heat temperature and/or heat index exceeds the league policy guidelines for the second game only, the first game (playable under league guidelines) will not be cancelled.

• Motion approved that games, played in the heat and humidity of July and August exclusively, will be limited to a one and ½ hour game time. No new inning can start after that time mark; if an inning is in progress, it will be completed; if the score is tied at the end that inning, the game result is recorded as a tie. 

• Motion approved that the current cancellation guideline of 94 heat temperature and/or 98 heat index be revised to 90 heat temperature and 91 heat index.

• Motion approved that, if the heat temperature and/or heat index exceeds league policy guidelines during a game, the game will be suspended for a time out meeting of the two managers to decide on appropriate action to be taken by the team managers and players.

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Executive Board will be at the at the Northern Middletown Station (1741 Langhorne-Yardley Rd) on Thursday, September 26th , at 1 PM. 

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned without objection at 3:55 PM.

June 13, 2019 Executive Board Minutes

Call to Order

A meeting of the Executive Board was held on June 13, 2019 at the EMS building.  It began at 1:04 PM and was presided by Jim Mahoney.

Attendees

Voting board members in attendance:

Ray Buchichio, Bob Johnson, Bill Krieger, Bill Kouvolo, Jim Mahoney, Craig Niederpruem, Jim O’Brien, Ken Riess, Carl Weigand and Jack Zupan.

Voting board members not in attendance: 

Mickey Angelo 

Approval of Minutes

Minutes of the previous meeting were approved without objection.

Officer Reports

Commissioner, Jim Mahoney:

• There have been 8 Rain-outs out of the first 13 scheduled game days.  Under new business, discuss what can be done to alleviate that situation. 

• Compared to last year, opening day went very smoothly.

• 1st time spring luncheon was held on opening day and had the highest attendance ever of 60 players.  Thanks to Kevin Culp and Bill Kouvolo for making those arrangements.

• New players have been very pleased and complimentary of our league. 

• Thanks to Jim O’Brien for setting up and maintaining a successful first ever Phone Hotline 

• Some additional players have expressed interest in joining our league.

Treasurer, Craig Niederpruem: 

As of 4/1/2019:  

• Deposits = $1878

• Expenditures:

1. ASA Insurance = $320

2. B. Krzykowski refund = $80

3. M. Cruz refund = $65

4. Middletown Township Field Permit = $450

5. Uniforms = $3892.13

6. Gas, oil = $35.17

7. Scorebooks = $59.28

8. Luncheon expense = $188

9. Internet Domain Name = $19.98 (2 year subscription)

10. Telephone svc. Hotline = $102.35 (3 year subscription)

11. Reimbursement Jim O’Brien = $10.33

12. Reimbursement Jim Mahoney Umpire Supplies = $28.76

• Cash on hand = $7568.15

• Discussion of registering as an official 501 c (7) non profit and tax implications for the league and our sponsors.

• JIm O’Brien was previously approved to have access to our league’s bank account.

Registrar, Bill Krieger:

• Discussion of the registration status of Arvie Powel. 

• Discussion of the possible registration of Art Lazlo as an honorary player.

Committee Reports

Draft Committee, Jim O’Brien:

• After draft was completed, the competitive level of some teams have been changed due to players on injured reserve or personal reasons.  

Bylaw Committee, Bill Kouvolo:

• The Bylaw Committee (Jim Mahoney, Ray Buchichio, and Bill Kouvolo) thank all board members for their extensive input into reviewing and updating our current Constitution/Bylaws.

• If approved, the amended Constitution/Bylaws would include the following changes:

1. Renaming our Bucks 65+ Senior Softball League as the Bucks Senior Softball League. 

2. Reducing the number of members on the Executive Board from 11 to 9 with staggered 2 year terms.

3. Appointment of the Commissioner, Assistant Commissioner, Secretary, and Treasurer by each newly elected Executive Board in their annual reorganization meeting. 

4. Stipulated oversight duties of all nine Executive Board members.

5. Provisions for Electronic Meetings and Voting by Electronic Survey.

6. Player registration requirements and refunds.

7. Player suspension for failure to comply with the League's rules of play and code of ethics.

8. Return of players, who were declared ‘out for the season’.

9. Stipulated team manager duties.

10. Provision for amending bylaws by electronic vote.

• Under our current bylaws, all players will be surveyed to approve proposed amendments.

Unfinished Business

• No unfinished business

New Business

• Discussion of the 2019 nominations and election to the 2020 Executive Board.

• Discussion regarding creating a ‘bulletin board’ page on our league’s website for the purpose of players seeking or providing personal services, etc. 

• Discussion of how to rectify field drainage problems (field tarps, french drains, infield dirt renovation & regrading).

• Discussion regarding the possibility of making up rain out games and/or having rain delay starting times.

• Discussion of sub runners rule; location of commit line; and chalking of batters boxes.

• Jim Mahoney, Bill Kouvolo, Ray Buchichio, and Ken Riess announced that they will not run for re-election to the Executive Board.  

• Elections for the new Executive Board to be held this year. Bill Kouvolo and Jim Mahoney were appointed co-chairs of the nomination/election committee.

Motions:

• Secondary Motion passed to revise the order the last three sentences in Article IV Membership and Player Eligibility, Section 1. Membership, Provision letter c.   Before game uniforms are ordered, 70% of the registration fee may be refunded.  After game uniforms are ordered, and before May 16th, 40% of the registration fee may be refunded.  After May 15th, no fees will be returned for any reason. 

• Secondary Motion passed to add the same last sentence found in item 2 to item 1:   For the first offense, the individual shall be given a documented verbal and written warning by the Commissioner.  The said individual shall be given an opportunity to be heard in his defense of such reason to do so.

• Secondary Motion passed to indefinitely suspend a player after his third offense of the Code of Ethics:  On the third offense of the Code, the individual shall be indefinitely suspended, by a majority of affirmative votes of the Executive Board,  The said individual shall be given an opportunity to be heard in his defense of such reason to do so.

• Secondary Motion passed to suspend a player for a first time egregious offense:  If the offense is egregious, the Executive Board has the right to take appropriate action. 

• Secondary Motion passed to replace the term ‘percentage’ with the term ‘number’:  The candidate with the highest number of votes will win the first position, the candidate with the second-highest number of votes wins the second position, and so on, until all vacant positions are filled.

• Motion passed (unanimously) to approve all amendments to the  Constitution/Bylaw.

• Bill Kouvolo and Jim Mahoney appointed as Co-chairs of the 2020 Election Committee.

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Executive Board will be at the at the Northern Middletown Station (1741 Langhorne-Yardley Rd) on Thursday, July 25, at 1 PM.

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned without objection at 3:36 PM.

March 28, 2019 

Call to Order

A meeting of the Executive Board was held on March 29, 2019 at the EMS building.  It began at 1: 15 PM and was presided by Jim O’Brien.

Attendees

Voting board members in attendance:

Mickey Angelo, Ray Buchichio, Bob Johnson, Bill Krieger*, Bill Kouvolo*, Jim Mahoney*, Craig Niederpruem, Jim O’Brien, and Ken Riess

*Skype connected

Voting board members not in attendance:
Jack Zupan & Carl Weigand

Approval of Minutes

Minutes of the previous regular meeting were approved without objection.

Officer Reports

Commissioner, Jim Mahoney:

• With regret, the passing of Ted Kilkuskie is announced.  Teddy was one of the original players, who help start and recruit players for the development of the Bucks 65+ Softball League.

• Former umpire, Gary Purpura, sent an email with regrets about Teddy’s passing and his regards to all Bucks 65+ players.  In his opinion, the Bucks 65+ Senior Softball League is one of the best run leagues that he has ever been associated with.

Treasurer, Craig Niederpruem:

• As of 3/28/2019, cash on hand in checking account is $10,826.73.  Expenditures are $562.47.

• Registrar, Bill Krieger, deposits new registration checks directly to our League’s account.  His last deposit was made on March 19th.

• After today’s meeting, Craig and Jim O’Brien will go to the bank and register Jim’s signature card so that he will be able to sign League checks.  

Registrar, Bill Krieger:

• As of the March 28th registration deadline, there are 110 players registered for the 2019 softball season (23 newly registered players; 87 veteran registered players).

Committee Reports

Draft Committee, Jim O’Brien:

• The Draft Committee (Ray Buchichio, Bob Johnson, Jim O’Brien) will meet on Wednesday, April 3rd, to finalize the drafting of teams.

• Based on the 110 players registered, there will eight (8) teams drafted for the 2019 softball season.

• Seven team managers have been named for the 2019 softball season. One additional team manager is needed for the eighth team.

Bylaw Committee, Bill Kouvolo:

• The Bylaw Committee (Ray Buchichio, Jim Mahoney, & Bill Kouvolo) have finished reviewing the current Bylaws and will send, in the next few weeks, their recommended changes to all eleven Executive Board members for approval or disapproval.

Rules Committee, Jim Mahoney:

• The Rules Committee (Team Managers - Mickey Angelo, Bob Johnson, Bob Esterly, Jim Mahoney, Jim O’Brien, Jack Zupan) recommended two rule changes to the Executive Board:  1) Return to the 0-0 count and 2) follow the ASA rule that the runner is not called out for leaving the base when a batter swings or when the pitched ball crosses the plate.

• The Rules Committee recommend that the sub rule be modified to have the managers select one replacement player in order of their team’s win-loss record (last to first).  If more than one player is needed, a second selection round will be done in the same order.

• In past seasons, pitchers were allowed to utilize a pitching screen to protect against being injured by hard hit line drives and/or ground balls.  The Rules Committee could not reach an agreement and tabled further discussion on the matter.

Audit Committee, Bill Kouvolo:

• The Audit Committee (Kevin Culp and John Lutz) will meet in May to audit the 2018 financial summary report of former Treasurer, Frank Deon.

Monday Softball Committee, Bill Kouvolo:

• The Monday Softball Committee (Ray Buchichio, Bill Krieger, Bill Kouvolo, Jim Mahoney, Jim O’Brien, Ken Riess, and Carl Weigand) have decided to schedule 3 teams for the inaugural season of Monday Softball.

• Twenty-six (26) registered players have signed up for games in May and June.  

• The opening game will be played on Monday, May 6th, at 10 AM on Field #3 of Community Park.  A practice session will be held on Friday, May 3rd, at 10 AM.

• If Monday Softball is successful, then the Executive Board approval will be needed for extended play after the summer break (July 1 to 15).

Umpire-In-Chief, Jim Mahoney:

• Twenty (24) players have signed up to be volunteer umpires.

• An umpire clinic will be held on Monday, April 29th.

League Website, Jim O’Brien:

• Our League’s website will be updated to include a link to the current USA Softball approved bat list, the 2019 team rosters, the 2019 softball games schedule, the 2019 umpire schedule, and updated game rules.

• Dicks Sporting Goods provides our current website free of cost, as long as we use their domain site tshq.bluesombrero.com.  In order for our league’s website to have its own unique URL domain name, but still be linked to the Dicks free website, it would cost approximately $10 to $15 per year.  This would make access to our league’s website easier to do.

Unfinished Business

• No unfinished business

New Business

• Before Carl Weigand can order hats and jerseys, he needs to know about any manager requests to change colors, team name change, sponsor name, etc.

• Discussion regarding access and use of our storage box and equipment by the ‘Monday-Friday League’.

Motions:

• Motion approved to have the spring luncheon on Tuesday, April 30th at Puss N Boots Tavern.

• Motion approved to purchase our own URL domain name for our league’s website.

• Motion approved to appoint Jerry Barsky as a 2019 team manager.

• Motion approved to return to the 0-0 count game rule.

• Motion approved to follow the ASA rule regarding a base runner leaving early:  “Runners can leave their bases when a pitched ball has reached home plate or is hit.  If the batter does not hit the pitch, the base runners must return to their bases immediately”.  

• Motion approved to modify the sub rule by having the managers select one replacement player in order of their team’s win-loss record (last to first).  If more than one player is needed, additional selection rounds will be done in the same order.

• Motion approved to reinstate the rule that 9 players are necessary to avoid a team forfeit.

• Motion approved to keep the sponsor fee ($400) and registration process the same as in 2018.

• Motion approved that the ‘Monday-Friday League’ will not be permitted to utilize our equipment or storage box with the exception of utilization of the AED in the event of an emergency.  If the AED is utilized the ‘Monday-Friday League’ must replace the pads utilized as quickly as possible.

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Executive Board will be at the at the Northern Middletown Station (1741 Langhorne-Yardley Rd) on Thursday, May 30th, at 1 PM.

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned without objection at 3:30 PM.

January 31, 2019

Call to Order

A meeting of the Executive Board was held on, January 31, 2019 at the EMS building.  It began at 1:15 PM and was presided by Jim O’Brien.

Attendees

Voting board members in attendance:

Mickey Angelo, Ray Buchichio, Bob Johnson, Craig Niederpruem, Jim O’Brien, Ken Riess, Carl Weigand, and Jack Zupan.  Bill Krieger, Bill Kouvolo, and Jim Mahoney attended by Skype Connection (Thanks to Jim O’Brien for managing the Skype Connection).

Approval of Minutes

Minutes of the November 7 and November 29 board meetings were approved without objection.

Officer Reports

Commissioner, Jim Mahoney:  

Much time and energy have gone into understanding the implications of a new M-F League and into coordinating efforts about how to respond to this presence. Many full Board meetings as well as smaller group conferences have occurred in an effort to come to consensus on the Board’s position as well as how and when to give our members adequate information to answer their questions and doubts. I have also answered many individual calls and emails from our members about this topic.

In addition, we worked on presenting and passing a pilot project in which players who might wish to play an additional day a week with peers of their own skill ability could do so. A survey to our membership has gone out and, at this point, over 50% have responded, resulting in interest for about 35 members. We have not yet made a decision about going forward with the project, based on present interest.

I personally have fielded about 5-6 phone calls from prospective members who have seen our ad in the papers. I sent these names on to Bill Krieger and Jack Zupan for their use/information.

I have drafted several proposals and sent them to the EB for deliberation prior to the meeting scheduled for this day, 1/31/19, for discussion and possible adoption. One has to do with simple rules changes and the other has to do with an Organization Day for our first official day of meeting/playing for the 2019 season.

I have had tentative discussions and study with the Bylaws Chair, Bill Kouvolo as he, Ray Buchichio, and I have begun information gathering on our first item, running meetings electronically.

I have not been able to gather a committee of managers for the Rules Review. So far, only Jim O’Brien and I make up the group. I sought a third manager back in December.

As Umpire-in-Chief, I will soon begin gathering the names of umpires from the past as well as recruiting from past members and new sign-ups, to get enough umpires to cover the absence of Gary Purpura. I plan to run an umpire clinic prior to the start of the season for new members and any others interested in attending.

Treasurer, Craig Niederpruem:

As 1/24/2019, cash on hand in checking account is $9304.73. Expenditures since 10/18/2018 ( Date assumed treasurer responsibilities) are $552.47. Agreed that second board member should be on signature card, just in case. Jim O’Brien volunteered for this position.

Committee Reports

Registrar, Bill Krieger:

96 players are registered for 2019.  88 are returning from 2018 and 8 new players. An add'l 6 people have expressed interest but no registration as yet.

The Draft Committee is in the process of accumulating data for the 2019 draft.

The draft will be conducted like the 2018 draft whereby returning players will be distributed to teams and then new registrations will be distributed.  Number of players and teams will be final by 3/28. Each team should end up with pretty much the same number of new and returning players.

Rules Committee, Jim Mahoney:

Only two managers have signed on to the committee. Jim was looking for a third manager to volunteer for the committee but no one else volunteered so Jim and Jim O’Brien presently make up the committee to report to the Board. Jim Mahoney made a motion 1) to return to the 0-0 count and 2) to follow the ASA rule that the runner is not called out for leaving the base when a batter swings and misses or the balls first crosses the plate. The motion was no followed through in discussion. 

Bylaw Committee, Bill Kouvolo:

The Bylaw Committee (Bill Kouvolo, Jim Mahoney, & Ray Buchicio) has had discussion, by phone and email, regarding provisions to guide electronic decision making.  When we complete our review of the current Bylaws and have an agreement on proposed revisions, we will submit them to the Executive Board for approval.

On our Bucks 65+ Senior Softball League website, our current Bylaws are posted for everyone to read.  In our Bylaws, ARTICLE III  REGULAR, GENERAL AND SPECIAL MEETINGS, section (f) states:

The rules contained in the current edition of Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised, shall govern all meetings of the League in all cases in which they are not inconsistent with this Constitution and Bylaws, and any special rules the League may adopt.

Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised, commonly referred to as Robert’s Rules of Order, RONR, or simply Robert’s Rules, is the most widely used manual of parliamentary procedure in the United States.

November 29, 2018

Call to Order

A special online meeting was held at 1 PM with some members participating by Skype Video Conference and others by telephone.  The meeting was presided by both Jim Mahoney and Jim O’Brien (computer base).

Attendees

Voting board members in attendance:

Ray Buchichio, Bob Johnson, Bill Kouvolo, Jim Mahoney, Craig Niederpruem, Jim O’Brien, and Jack Zupan

Voting board members not in attendance:

Mickey Angelo, Bill Krieger, Ken Riess, and Carl Weigand

Also attending the meeting:

Jerry Barsky

Special Orders:

Jerry Barsky and Jack Zupan presented plans (on behalf of themselves and Bill Schwartz) to form a proposed 70 and over Monday-Friday league with games to be played at Community Park.

After answering questions from the members of Executive Board, Jerry disconnected from the online meeting.

The board then went into executive session and adopted a three point position:

1. Our Executive Board recognizes their right to organize as a separate entity and will not hinder their efforts in that regard.

2. Our players, who have registered to play in our Bucks 65+ Senior Softball League, have every right to choose whether or not to play in one or both leagues.  We do not support the MF league organizers’ proposal to require participation in both leagues by our registered players.

3. Because our Executive Board believes that the proposed MF league may unintentionally become a potential competitor for skilled players, we will not endorse nor facilitate its formation.

Motions:

Motion carried to acknowledge the right of the proposed 70 & Over League to distribute a letter to all of our Bucks 65+ league players in order to solicit their participation.  We request that, before that letter is sent, the league organizers will share the letter with our Executive Board before hand, so that we can first send an advisory note to our members.  

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Executive Board will be at the Northern Middletown EMS Station (1741 Langhorne-Yardley Rd) on Thursday, January 31st, at 1 PM

Adjournment

November 6, 2018: Executive Board Minutes

Call to Order

A meeting of the Executive Board was held on November 6, 2018 at the EMS building.  It began at 1 PM and was presided by Bill Kouvolo.

Attendees

Voting board members in attendance:

Ray Buchichio, Bill Krieger, Bill Kouvolo, Craig Niederpruem, Jim O’Brien, and Ken Reiss.

Voting board members not in attendance:

Jim Mahoney, Carl Weigand, and Jack Zupan.

Also attending the meeting:

Bob Johnson

Approval of Minutes

Minutes of the August and September regular meetings were approved without objection.

Officer Reports

Treasurer: Craig Niederpruem

• A discussion was held regarding projected costs for the 2019 season and the remaining bills to be paid for the 2018 season.  Once finalized, an end of season financial statement will be completed and shared will all league players.

Assistant Commissioner:  Jim O’Brien

• Congratulations to all concerned for a very successful 2018 softball season!  The new executive board, in their first year, deserves props for their many accomplishments.  In 2019, it is expected that the executive board will continue to make improvements in regards to communications, decision-making, and league administration.  

Committee Reports

Unfinished Business

• Our league’s banner has been returned to the banner company to have a better weather backing applied (no charge).

New Business

• A printed list of administrative tasks was shared with board members and posted on our google group email.

• A discussion of how many teams should be formed for the 2019 softball season was tabled.

Motions

• Motion carried to schedule our 2019 Executive Board meetings on the last Thursday of January (31), March (28), May (30), July (25), September (26), November (21*) 1 PM, at the Northern Middletown EMS Station (1741 Langhorne-Yardley Rd) EMS building room.  *Thursday before Thanksgiving  

• Motion carried to appoint Bob Johnson and Mickey Angelo to the Executive Board.

• Motion carried that Ray Buchichio, Bob Johnson, and Bill Krieger be appointed to a 5 member draft committee (Jim O’Brien, Chair).  The fifth draft committee member to be determined. 2019 team managers are welcome to attend meetings of the draft committee to lend their insight regarding player evaluations.

• Motion carried that the team managers should be responsible for reviewing the game rules of our league and collectively make recommendations to the executive board for approval.  Also, that duties of team managers be further stipulated.

• Motion carried that a phone ‘hotline’ be established for the 2019 season and that a online domain name be purchased for our league’s website.

• Motion carried to form an ad hoc bylaw committee to be chaired by Bill Kouvolo.

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Executive Board will be on January 31st, 1 PM, at the EMS building.

Adjournment

Moved that the meeting be adjourned at 3 PM without objection.

September 25, 2018 

Call to Order

A meeting of the Executive Board was held at the Community Park Softball Fields.  It began around 10:30 AM and was presided by Jim Mahoney. Minute notes provided by Jim O’Brien.

Attendees

Voting board members in attendance:

Ray Buchichio, Bill Krieger, Jim Mahoney, JIm O’Brien, Craig Niederpruem, Ken Riess,  and Jack Zupan

Voting board members not in attendance:

Bill Kouvolo and Carl Weigand

Frank Deon and Fred Evans (Resigned from the Executive Board)

Approval of Minutes

Officer Reports

Treasurer: No report

Commissioner: No report

Committee Reports

Unfinished Business

Post Season Tournament:

• There was a discussion regarding the playoff schedule.  In previous meetings it was agreed that the tournament would be double elimination and that we would not schedule teams to play double-headers.   The discussion at the meeting was focused on reducing the schedule to minimize the number of days required by eliminating days where only one game was scheduled.  This could be accomplished by having teams in the Loser bracket participate in 2 double headers. Schedules were reviewed and discussed. It should be noted that managers should inform players that do not feel physically capable of playing two games should withdraw from the second game and utilize the sub process.  Jim O’Brien volunteered to document the schedule that was agreed upon and approved by the committee. Jim O’Brien later provided a diagram for review. The teams shown reflect the current standings which are susceptible to change based on results from games on Tuesday 10/2.

New Business

• A motion was passed to re-confirm that remote participation and voting be acceptable and that the by-laws should be updated to include this information.  The initial discussion was in relation to offsite or remote access to board meetings. It was agreed at previous board meetings that members could participate and vote using remote access technology but were the league by-laws ever updated to include this information.

• The topic then moved to issues associated with the usage of subs during the Tournament.  Two points were agreed upon. If a team is playing a double-header with substitute players, the players assigned in the first game will not be retained for the second game.  A redraw of available subs will determine which subs they use in the second game. Priority sub status will not be available during the tournament. All subs applicants will have equal opportunity to sub based on pill values.  

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Executive Board will be at the Northern Middletown Station (1741 Langhorne-Yardley Rd) on Tuesday, November 6th, at 1 PM.

Adjournment

August 30, 2018 

Call to Order

A meeting of the Executive Board was held on August 30, 2018 at the Middletown Township Station #22.  It began at 1:18 PM and was presided by Jim Mahoney.

Attendees

Voting board members in attendance:

Ray Buchichio, Jim Mahoney, JIm O’Brien, Fred Evans, Bill Kouvolo (connected by Google Hangouts), Craig Niederpruem, Ken Riess,  and Jack Zupan

Voting board members not in attendance: 

Frank Deon, Bill Krieger (unable to connect by Google Hangouts), and Carl Weigand

Also attending the meeting:

Kevin Culp (Social Chairman)

Approval of Minutes

Minutes of the July regular meeting were approved without objection.

Officer Reports

Treasurer: Frank Deon  Frank was not in attendance but he did provide Jim Mahoney with an updated Treasurer's financial statement.  Financially the League is healthy and expects to have a cash surplus of $3,114 from 2018 to 2019 unless unanticipated expenses arise.  This cash surplus was used to justify a reduction in player 2019 registration fees.

Commissioner: Jim Mahoney

No Report.

Committee Reports

Community Liaison:  Jim Mahoney

• Jim Mahoney has made arrangements with Captain Andy Foley, Penndel-Middletown Emergency Squad, for our use of the meeting room at Station #22 on a regular basis.

• It was suggested, by Fred Evans, that we donate $100 to the Penndel-Middletown Emergency Squad in appreciation of their allowing us to use their meeting room.

Draft Committee:  Jim O’Brien

• Blue Jays may be short players for the rest of the season and may need of replacement players.

Social Committee:  Kevin Culp

• As of August 30th, 65 attendees have signed up for the Trenton Thunder Outing, Sept. 1st.  Suggestion for player attendees to wear the team hats to the game. Buffet served at 6:30 PM.

Indoor/Outdoor Practices:  Jack Zupan

• Jack Zupan is checking out other possible venues for indoor workouts for 2019.

Website:  Jim O’Brien

• Players stats are not posted pending resolution of several minor issues.

• Creation of a financial status web page accessible only by board members is currently in progress.

• A download page has been created that includes printable pdf versions of the league full schedule and the 2019 Player Registration form.

League Banner Committee:  Jim Mahoney

• At the June meeting, Jim Mahoney appointed a committee to develop a mockup of what the banner should look like.  The committee include Carl Weigand, Bill Krieger and Jim O’Brien. Their recommendation has now been forwarded to Ed ‘Dutch’ Powers  for creation of the banner.

• It looks like this:  

Unfinished Business

Post Season Tournament:

• A postseason schedule will be published once the regular season is completed and team seeds are determined.

New Business

• Donation to the Penndel-Middletown Emergency Squad:  Fred Evans moved that a $100 donation be made to the Penndel-Middletown Emergency Squad in appreciation of their providing a meeting room for our monthly Executive Board meetings. Approved 8-0.    

• Replacement Pitchers:  Jim Mahoney moved that a team does not need to be short players in order to be able to get a pitching replacement when the team’s pitcher is not present.  Motion defeated with 1 vote in favor and 7 against.

• Weather Cancellation Policy:  Jim Mahoney moved that the decision to cancel be put in the hands of the Commissioner or his designee.  These include decisions regarding cold, heat, rain, or field conditions. For Heat the guidelines should be 94 degrees and/or a heat index of 98.  However, in all cases, the decision is based on common sense and is not strictly bound by the numbers. In the case of cold, games would be canceled if the temperature is expected to drop to 40  or the wind chill factor is below 40. Motion passed 5-3 (with cold temperature of 40 degrees amended to 45).

• 1st Amendment to Weather Cancellation Policy motion:  Jack Zupan moved to defer game cancellation until 7AM on game day was rejected by a vote of 3 in favor and 5 against.

• 2nd Amendment to Weather Cancellation Policy motion:  Jack Zupan moved for the deletion of the sentence “However, in all cases the decision is based on common sense and is not strictly bound by the numbers.” The amendment was rejected by a vote of 3 in favor and 5 against.

• 3rd Amendment to Weather Cancellation Policy motion: A motion by Jack Zupan  to modify the cold threshold from 40 to 45 was approved 

• Modification of the run by rule:  A motion, by Jim Mahoney,  to modify the run by rule so that a player heading directly to the base, when there is a play, should be ruled out.  Motion was discussed and withdrawn.

• New Umpire Shirts: Jim Mahoney’s  motion to procure new lightweight umpire shirts was approved by a vote of 7 for and 1 against.

• Emergency contact information:  It was agreed that emergency contact information for all personnel would be printed and stored in a folder on the underside of our storage locked located behind home plate of field 4.

• JIm Mahoney petitioned for a week delay before starting the 2019 season.

• Jim Mahoney, Jim O’Brien and Jack Zupan were tasked with identifying 15 players that could be recruited as umpires for the 2019 season.  There are viable candidates in the 2018 rookie pool of players.

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Executive Board will be at Station #22 on Tuesday, September 25th at 1 PM.

Adjournment

Moved that the meeting be adjourned without objection at 3:00 PM.

July 26, 2018

Bucks County Senior Softball Executive Board Meeting Minutes for July 26, 2018

Meeting Chair – Commissioner Jim Mahoney

Present – Assistant Commissioner Jim O’Brien, Treasurer Frank Deon, Director Ray Buchichio, Director Registrar Bill Krieger, Director Acquisitions Carl Weigand. Also attending was Ed (Dutch) Powers.

Current Financial Report

The meeting opened with a review of the Treasurer's financial statement.  Financially the League is healthy and expects to have a cash surplus of $3,114 from 2018 to 2019 unless unanticipated expenses arise.  There was a discussion of publishing financial statements to all league members.

A motion was passed unanimously to “Publish a financial statement twice annually, at the start and end of each season, and to distribute to all members via email.  Additionally the monthly financial statement will be published and maintained on the a web page that would be accessible only by the League Executive Board using login and password controlled accounts.

Banner Committee

Dutch Power provided a number of drafts of what the banner should look like and what information the banner should contain.  Dutch strongly believes that the banner should not say “Home of the Bucks County Senior Softball League”, but should include a catchphrase along the lines of "Come & have fun" or "Be young again" or "Play ball again" or "Be a kid again" or "Remember the fun?".

Jim Mahoney identified that the banner should be hung on the back of the batting cage on field 4.

The banner should include the web page address in a font size large enough that it will be highly visible.

Banner size options are 4 by 8 or 5 by 10.  

Jim Mahoney appointed a committee to develop a mockup of what the banner should look like.  The committee will include Carl Weigand, Bill Krieger and Jim O’Brien. Carl took possession of Dutch’s drawings and will scan them and forward to the other members of the committee.

Community Liaison

No change in status and no long term fallout from the incident with cars incorrectly parked during summer camp.

Draft Committee

Tom Redding will be assigned to the Hawks.  The Hawks are missing Jim Sweeney, Ron Thomas and Anthony Cantazarro.  Wally has already been assigned. Tom will be a skill upgrade over both Ron Thomas and Anthony Cantazarro, but not Jim Sweeney.  Tom will be given the Hawks current spare jersey and will not have a choice of numbers.

Jim Mahoney introduced the prospects of an additional team in 2019, but all agreed that that discussion was premature.

Schedule

Two motions were passed regarding the postseason tournament schedule.

A motion to seed teams based on final standings was passed unanimously.

A motion to schedule two games on the same day for the final if the team from loser bracket wins the first game was passed 5 to 1 with Ray Buchichio dissenting.

Registration

Registration fees for 2019 were discussed and a motion was passed to reduce all fees from 2018 by $5 for the upcoming 2019 season.

Emergency contact information will be added to the form.  Bill Krieger will remove the desired position portion of the form.

Web Page

A discussion was held on stats on the web page.  Jim O’Brien reported that having stats there resulted in teams that did not provide stats immediately proving detail that were not previously available.

The stats are currently not on the web page.  A motion was passed to publish player stats on the web page with an opt out option for any players who do not want this information made public.

Next meeting will be August 30th.

June 21, 2018

Call to Order

A meeting of the Executive Board was held on June 21, 2018 at the Middletown Township Fire Station #22.  It began at 1:20 PM and was presided by Bill Kouvolo.

Attendees

Voting board members in attendance:

Frank Deon, Fred Evans, Bill Kouvolo, Jim Mahoney, Craig Niederpruem, JIm O’Brien, Ken Riess,  and Jack Zupan

Voting board members not in attendance:

Bill Krieger and Carl Weigand

Approval of Minutes

Minutes of the April regular meeting were approved without objection.

Minutes of the May regular meeting (with correction made by Jim O’Brien) were approved.

Officer Reports

Treasurer: Frank Deon

Income ($9395) - Total Expenses ($7459) = Ballance ($1936)

Ballance ($1936) + Advertising Revenue ($2000) + 2017 Cash Reserve ($1708) = Net Cash ($5644)

Commissioner: Jim Mahoney

No Report.

Committee Reports

Umpire-in-Chief: Fred Evans

• Due to injuries and other circumstances, the volunteer umpire staff has been reduced to 22.

• Recommendation that a notice, regarding the shortage of umpires and the need for additional volunteers, be included in the weekly game result reports.

Website:  Jim O’Brien

• Our league website is a tool for communicating weekly with our players, our league sponsors, and publicly open to anyone who may visit our website.

• The website is operated by Jim O’Brien and Bill Kouvolo. They are open to  any suggestions to improve the website.

Equipment Manager: Craig Niederpruem

• Thanks to Ken Riess and Fred Evans for completing the purchase and placement of our new league equipment storage bin next to the backstop of Field #4.

• Plans are to add our league’s name and/or logo to the storage bin.

• Keys to the storage bin locks have been distributed to the appropriate individuals.

• Ten smaller score books and some ASA softball rules books are available to any who needs one. In addition, two new fence scoreboards have been purchased.

• The AED device and new game balls will not be stored in the storage bin, but rather in the utility room where the temperature is cooler.

AED/1st Aid Chair:  Jack Zupan

• After the AED device is actually used, the pads need to be replace.  New pads were recently purchased and installed.

• On June 27th, Captain Andy Foley of the Penndel Middletown Emergency Medical Squad, will train twenty four of our players in the use of the AED and how to perform CPR.  PMEMS is providing this training at no cost to our participating players nor to our league.

Community Liaison: Bill Kouvolo

• During the summer, there is a children’s summer camp in operation at the Barn.  Part of the parking lot is barricaded to provide them a safe paved area for recreation activities.  No cars should be parked on the wrong side of their camp barricades.

• Thanks to Paul Kopera, Head Parks and Recreation Director (Middletown Township), for arranging the free CPR/AED training session on our league’s behalf.

League Banner Committee Chair:  Jim Mahoney

• Plans are being made to create a league banner to be displayed on one of the two softball fields.

Unfinished Business

Post Season Tournament:

• The Executive Board decided that a Double Elimination format will be used for the 2018 postseason tournament.

New Business

• Board Appointment:  Ray Buchichio was appointed by the Executive Board to replace Jack Murphy.

• Reserve Players Fees: Motion passed to charge brand new Reserve Players $45 to participate as either a priority sub or as a player assigned to specific team’s roster.  Current Reserve Players, who paid $10 to play as a sub, will be charged an additional $45, only if assigned to a specific team’s roster.

• Half Swing-Bunt Rule:  Motion passed that a batter, who contacts the pitched ball, must complete a full swing.  The batter is not allowed to take a short check swing to purposely hit the ball softly a short distance away, in the manner that a bunt would be intended.  The batted ball will be declared a dead ball strike; base runners return to their previous, and, if there are two previous strikes, the batter is out.

• Emergency Contact List:  Recommended that an emergency contact information be obtained from all players, in case of need.

• League Rules:  Game rules are posted on our league’s website under the title, ‘League Rules’.

• Media Advertisement: Recommended that, in addition to recruiting players, media advertisement should mention the need for volunteers to help keep score and/or volunteer umpire.

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Executive Board will be at Station #22 on Thursday, July 26 at 1 PM.

Adjournment

Moved that the meeting be adjourned without objection at 2:46 PM.