National League of American Pen Women–Denver Branch
Meeting Minutes
October 3, 2015
I. Ruthy Wexler called the meeting to order at 10:10 a.m.
II. Members in attendance were: Sophia Baldwin, Kelly Ann Compton, Ruthy Wexler, Florence Elliott, Jody Hinrichs Glittenberg, A. Marie Kriss, Sue Luxa, Juanita Pope, Virginia Small, Kay Taylor, Lorraine Walker Williams (Florida Branch).
III. Guests in attendance were: Connie Shoemaker, Mary Waits Joyner, Atlanta Sheridan
IV. Inspirational Reading: Juanita read a piece of creative non-fiction called “The Sloth.”
V. The August Minutes were approved as written.
VI. The August and September Treasurer Reports were approved. September’s closing balance was $2,602.75.
VII. Committee Reports:
A. The Blog Project: No report this month. We will hold a discussion about our blog in November.
B. Website: Virginia reported that the website is running smoothly.
C. Membership: Discussion was held about whether or not we should include bios in our branch directory as the Pikes Peak Branch does. We do post bios on our website. Lorraine shared that an example of a bio can be found at PenwomenofSWFL.org. Hers is a 150 word bio with a work sample.
D. Tapestry: Kriss reported that it seems that the Tapestry for Peace is simply too large for any single museum to accept. She also shared that there are only five “collecting children’s museums” in the United States. She will approach all five museums to see if any would be interested in the tapestry, or a part of it. Members voted approval to allow separate panels be given to interested parties. Jody suggested we make a calendar using pictures of the various tapestry panels. Ruthy suggested holding a contest and awarding pieces of the tapestry.
E. Outreach Project: Ruthy suggested the possibility of going into schools and having kids write about being invisible and their thoughts on guns. Jody knows a woman who might be willing to speak on Restorative Justice. Juanita suggested that perhaps we could have kids write on the theme of peace.
VIII. Old Business: We discussed our joint meeting held with the Pikes Peak Branch in September. Kriss stated that it was like “a bunch of kids playing in the mud” we had so much fun. We also talked about putting together a booklet to share the creative results of that meeting. We are considering making a joint directory that shares each members’ expertise.
IX. New Business:
A. Kelly Ann shared about a Master’s Review Contest. She will scan and e-mail the information for everyone.
B. The Castle Rock Writers Conference will be held next month.
C. We need a substitute hostess for the next few months as Jody is having surgery and will be unable to fulfill those duties.
X. Announcements:
A. Kelly Ann has been offered the post of Book Review Editor for Pen Woman Magazine.
B. Kriss and Lorraine shared information on the proposed bylaw changes for NLAPW.
XI. The meeting was adjourned at 11:03 am.
After the meeting, speaker Connie Shoemaker gave an interesting talk on her book The Good Daughter: Secrets, Life Stories and Healing. One bit of wisdom she shared was that people have a need to tell their stories and have a need to find their stories. She shared that there is a bookstore in Longmont that sells books by Colorado authors only.
Respectfully submitted,
Kelly Ann Compton, Secretary
