VNC Minutes – 12 December 2015

The VNC met in the CNM lunchroom.

Attendees: Dan Wieder, Becky Wieder, Mike Moser, Gail Geddis, Ken Glaze (and his wife, Karen), Pete Tancredi, Mary Chrysler, Joel Kalmonson, and Tavio del Rio

Gail called the meeting to order at 10:05 a.m. Attendees introduced themselves.

The minutes from the November 14, 2015 meeting were accepted.

Old Business:

Tavio reported:

• He is postponing his travel.
• He is awaiting guidance from management to make the 5-Year-Plan official.

Committee Reports:

Whipstaff (Gail, Mike): Gail reported that the group had a short meeting and discussed various park programs.Volgistics (Gail): All VIPs need to log FY 2015 hours into Volgistics. The hours make a difference in the types of grants we can get. Please sign in your hours.

Tidepool Committee (Bonnie; Dan, Becky, Pauline): Becky and Dan reported:

• Ranger Bonnie Phillips has returned from FLETC and has a new schedule of work days. She now works Sunday to Wednesday, so she is no longer at the park on Saturdays when we usually have our tidepool committee meetings. We will check into the possibility of meeting on a different day.
• Bonnie’s new call # at the park is 202.
• Becky, Dan and Pauline are continuing to help with the tidepool program for now.
• We will not be scheduling a tidepool conference in January. Instead we hope to have some continuing education programs as well as a ‘meet new marine biologist Johnny Jones’ event.

Website (Dan):

• The nature sections of the website should be updated by the end of the year.
• All NPS websites will have the Centennial look and feel by February 14, 2016.

E-Binder Reference Manual (Dan W., Dan Z., Beth, Becky, Setara): Dan W. reported:

•  The latest hardcopy version of the e-binder should be available in January 2016.
• The online version of the e-binder should also be available in January.

Military History (Ken Glaze):

• The Fort Rosecrans Goes to War event on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 5 and 6, went very well, although the number of visitors was down from last year.
• The group wants to start cleaning the whale-watching bunkers (not for public visits but just to get them cleaned up and perhaps have a special tour).
• The group is doing more outreach and will try to coordinate some things for Whale Watch Weekend in February.
• MH would like to expand to Battery Point Loma and do cleanup work there. Tavio said the NCCC can help with cleaning.
• Ken is still on the lookout for a 155mm gun.

Special Events: See latest postings in VIP Voice (https://vipvoice.wordpress.com). Some special events of note:

• Big Bay Balloon Parade on Dec. 30 at 10:00 a.m. CNM will have a balloon in the parade.
• Superintendent Tom Workman’s retirement party on Jan. 23. Stay tuned for details.
• Whale Watch Weekend on Feb. 20 and 21. There are several activities scheduled and many opportunities to volunteer.

Centennial: Tavio reported that the NPS will have a different focus each month during 2016.

Community Outreach (Bernie): No Report

Internships (Tavio, Keith): Tavio reported he hopes to have job descriptions ready by summer in order to advertise positions at the park. The VNC will be able to help create those job descriptions.

4Rs (Tavio): There will be a VIP Appreciation Dinner sometime in May–stay tuned.

VIP Voice/Blog (Dan Z): Gail read a written report from Dan Z.:

• There are currently about 80 VIP subscribers. That number is more than last year, but it should be much higher.
• Dan has taken the volunteer opportunities list off the site because he is not getting updated information from staff.
• Dan requests dates and times (as well as other pertinent information) regarding events–many events are listed as TBD, which does not help volunteers.

CNMC (Randal): No report.

CNMF (Mike):

• CNMF helped with the Fort Rosecrans Goes to War event, providing breakfast for participants. They also provided judges for the car show. And they got contact information from participants so they can send thank you notes.
• A reminder: CNMF will celebrate its 60th year in 2016 by having a 60-for-60 campaign, encouraging donors to give $60 in addition to their membership for the year.
• CNMF recently held its annual meeting on the Berkeley and had a great turnout. Membership in the Foundation is way up.
• There will be a fundraiser in April, 2016: Hops Over the Vine.

New Business/Announcements:

• Please contact Ranger Debbie for information/volunteer opportunities for the Big Bay Balloon Parade on Dec. 30.
• Save the Date: On January 23, 2016, there will be a retirement party for Superintendent Tom Workman.
• Mike Moser expressed the concern of VIPs about the messiness of the work spaces at Cabrillo.
• Joel Kalmonson recommended that there be sign-in sheets at all special events (for both volunteer recognition and accountability).
• The volunteer board for sign-in at the park has been removed from the hallway. Tavio reported that the park currently uses the radio checkout sheet to determine who is at the park. There should be a dedicated space for volunteers to check-in (see VNC recommendation below).
• The VNC recommends that it have a representative present at the next management meeting to discuss ideas/needs for a dedicated volunteer space at the park.

Review Open Action Items.

• The newly named Volunteer Orientation Guide, or VOG (formerly the Volunteer Training Manual) is almost complete. Bonnie is currently reviewing it and then it will go to Tavio for final approval. Hopefully it will be ready in January to coincide with the newest edition of the e-binder. We’d like to have several hardcopies available as well as an online version.
• Dan Wieder and Tavio have finished reconciling the VIP job descriptions.
• The park’s library books are being cataloged and moved to museum storage.
• All VIPs need to log FY 2015 hours in Volgistics.
• All volunteers should sign up for VIP Voice.

Next Meeting: January 9, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. in the CNM lunchroom

Adjournment: 11:10 a.m.

Respectfully Submitted,

Becky Wieder