The Newkirk Chamber of Commerce met on June 4, 2018 for their regular monthly meeting at 6:00 p.m.  The meeting was called to order by president, Debbie Leaming.  Also in attendance were directors, Roy Chaney, Marvin Johns, and Theda Sheets along with Glenna Blair, secretary.  Karla Cheek was absent.  Dawn Brakey from Pioneer Tech was a guest.  The minutes were approved by Marvin and seconded by Roy.  Roy moved that the financial report be accepted and Marvin seconded the motion.  Glenna gave the secretary’s report which was approved after a motion by Marvin, seconded by Roy.
Under old business, an update was given on the 4th of July Celebration on the Court House lawn.  The Chamber will hand out water which is donated by Quality Water.  Glenna has requested six 20 lb. bags of ice donated by Jiffy Trip.  There was discussion on Christmas decorations for Main Street.  Marvin made a motion to spend up to $400. on 4 banners and it was seconded by Roy.  Glenna will contact Joe about the brackets.  Debbie will work on an article for the newspaper to let people know what the Chamber is doing.  Debbie will take care of ordering shirts for the Chamber directors–royal blue polo shirts.  Glenna will check on having them embroidered.  Lisa Kubik will sponsor a Business After Hours on July 12 at the Senior Center.  Glenna will call to reserve the building.
Under new business, Locke Auto Parts was selected as the Business of the Month.  Glenna was asked to call the City Office and get on the agenda to request our new contract with the City.  Debbie will put together a presentation.  It was suggested that we list all of our business members on our website.  Glenna will take care of this.
Roy moved that the meeting be adjourned and Marvin seconded.

The meeting was called to order at 6:00 P.M. by Debbie Leaming, president. Other board members present were Roy Chaney, Marvin Johns, Kirk Brown, and Theda Sheets along with Glenna Blair, secretary. Karla Cheek was absent. The minutes of the last meeting were changed to show that there was a charge for garage sale ads by the newspaper office but that advertisers would receive a free garage sale sign. Roy moved that the minutes be approved as corrected. Marvin seconded the motion which was approved. The financial report was approved on a motion by Roy and second by Marvin. Glenna started the secretary’s report by showing members the letter that she and Debbie worked on to send to prospective members along with a flyer that explained why they should join the Chamber. She also told everyone about an invitation from Pioneer Tech for a bar-b-q lunch on Friday, May 11 for their supporters. For Business of the Month, it was decided that it would be changed to every other month.
There was no old business to discuss.
New Business:

1. The first order of new business was a 4th of July Celebration on the Court House Lawn that the Chamber was asked to participate in. It would have a Patriotic theme with everyone asked to bring their own lunch and lawn chair or blanket to sit on. The Chamber was asked to hand out the bottled water. More details will be decided later.
2. Next, the group talked about what we could do to make Main Street look more appealing to visitors. Flags for light poles, Christmas decorations, and flower pots were discussed. Marvin and Kirk will talk to city officials about the idea. Glenna will work up some budget numbers.
3. The Chamber was assigned an area for the city-wide cleanup. Our area is behind the football field from South Street to Peckham road. It was decided to meet on Tuesday, May 22 at 6:00 behind Butler Trucking. Roy will pick up gloves, trash bags, etc. from the Main Street Office.
4. It was decided to put a 3 X 5.5 ad in the Graduation tab of the Newkirk Herald Journal to congratulate the seniors.
5. We were asked to submit an article to the newspaper to let people know what was happening with the Chamber. Debbie volunteered to do this once a month.
6. Glenna asked about the possibility of getting a business credit or debit card for the Chamber. She will talk to Bobbie at Equity Bank to see if she thinks one would be better than the other. The motion was made to approve by Marvin, seconded by Theda. Motion passed.
7. There was some discussion on shirts for the directors. Medium blue shirts with the Chamber emblem embroidered was suggested. Glenna will check on costs.
8. Business After Hours was the next topic. Glenna was asked to see about getting a sponsor for a date in June.
9. Theda presented the idea of having a Friendship Feast in Newkirk. The Chamber would only be asked to support this through possible advertising.

Meeting was adjourned on a motion by Theda, seconded by Kirk.

The meeting was called to order by president, Debbie Leaming. Other board members present were Marvin Johns, Roy Chaney, Theda Sheets, and Kirk Brown. Karla Cheek was absent. Glenna Blair, secretary, was also in attendance. The minutes for March were reviewed and approved on a motion by Marvin, seconded by Theda. Roy moved that the financial report be accepted. Theda seconded the motion which passed. Glenna gave the Secretary’s report and passed out copies of current Chamber members. Marvin made the motion to accept the report and Roy seconded.

Under old business, Theda reported for Paisley Howerton, Advertising for the Cowley County Courier, that the Newkirk Herald Journal will have a dedicated one-page ad for the city-wide garage sale on May 5. Those who purchase a permit from the city office and turn in their ad to the Newkirk Herald Journal will be given the ad for free. The Chamber website was the next item of discussion. Glenna is working on getting everything updated. The board wants to look at a way to make payments online for joining the Chamber and other events that require payments. We also need to keep our Facebook page updated with something new often. We have several businesses that we need to look at doing ribbon cuttings. Glenna will work on getting these set up. Debbie has been working on a Mission Statement. The board approved the following: The Newkirk Chamber is dedicated to protecting and promoting our business community. We will be working on a flyer which will list “reasons to invest in the Newkirk Chamber of Commerce”. We also want individuals to have a voice and become members as well.

New Business included selecting our Business Partner for April which will be Hair Candy by Shelsey. It was also recommended that we not neglect having a quarterly coffee or after-hours event.

Meeting was adjourned on a motion by Marvin, seconded by Theda.

Respectfully submitted,
Glenna Blair, Secretary​

The Newkirk Chamber met at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, March 5, 2018 in the Chamber office.  Board member Roy Chaney called the meeting to order.  Other board members present were:  Kirk Brown, Theda Sheets, and Debbie Leaming.  Marvin Johns was absent.  Glenna Blair, secretary, also attended.  The minutes were approved after a motion by Kirk, seconded by Debbie.  After reviewing the financial report, Debbie made a motion to accept it and Kirk seconded the motion. 

The secretary’s report was given by Glenna and approved on a motion by Kirk.  Debbie seconded it.
Under old business, the website was discussed and members agreed that we need to start including activities and events going on all over town–with our schools, library, churches, historical society, etc.  Glenna has been busy updating the commerce pages and church pages. The business of the month for March is “A Perfect Day”.  Glenna will set up a time to take pictures for the paper.
Ribbon cuttings was the first topic under new business.  There are several in town that we need to set up times with–R & L Photography, JP Plumbing, Stagecoach, and Weathers Mechanical.  There was much discussion on Chamber membership.  Debbie suggested that we have a short but clear mission statement.  It was suggested that we have a way for new members to sign up on the website for membership.  Our Facebook page needs to be updated often.  The board elected Debbie to serve as president after a motion by Roy and second by Theda.  The first weekend in May was decided on for the City-wide Garage Sale.
Kirk made a motion to adjourn and Roy seconded it.
Respectfully submitted,
Glenna Blair, Secretary

The meeting on Monday, February 5, 2018 was called to order by Board Member, Roy Chaney.  Other board members present were Marvin Johns and Kirk Brown.  Debbie Leaming and Theda Sheets, oncoming board members were also present.  The minutes and financial report were both approved on a motion by Kirk, seconded by Marvin.

The Secretary’s Report was read and discussed.
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Old Business–Discussion of Annual Banquet.  Overall comments were very positive.  Suggestion was made that if we do another silent auction, we need to be sure to include it on all announcements, so people will know and be more likely to bring money to bid.  Announce other Chambers and introduce them.  Also, recognize city, county and other elected officials.  We may want to review and come up with another award or two but not overkill it.

New Business–Elect new Board Members Debbie Leaming and Theda Sheets.  The motion was made by Kirk and seconded by Marvin.  Motion passed.

A new person is needed on the bank account.  It was discussed the best option is someone who is in town most of the time.  Theda volunteered to be added.  When Glenna has the opportunity, she is to take care of the required paperwork with the bank and let Theda know when she needs to go by and sign.

Website update–it was discussed about how valuable a tool this is and the need to keep it updated and current–including removing outdated information.  It was agreed to provide the webmaster needed updates and have him complete the work asap.  It was discussed that we would spend up to $150. but expected it to be less.  Motion by Kirk, seconded by Marvin, approved.

Discuss emailing minutes to members–in the discussion, there seemed to be a consensus that the best way to do this was to post them on the website for everyone.

Meeting was adjourned on a motion by Kirk, seconded by Theda.

Respectfully submitted,
Roy Chaney, Board Member