Operations Vice
President Report
Archivist Report
Audio-Visual
Committee (Slides) Report
Audio-Visual Committee
(Video) Report
Cave Files Committee Report
Headquarters
Facilities Committee Report
Internal
Organizations Committee Report
Information
Technology Committee Report
Office
Automation Division (IT Committee) Report
Market Analysis Committee
Report
NSS Library Committee Report
NSS Operations Manager Report
Photo Archives Committee
Report
Speleo-Museum Committee
Report
Scott Fee
2501 Gable Blvd
Birmingham, AL 35215
(205) 854-7487
scottfee@pipeline.com
The Department of the Operations Vice President consists of 11 committees, plus the NSS Operations Manager and the NSS headquarters in Huntsville, Alabama. In this report, I provide the name, address, phone number, and e-mail address of the chair of each committee or organization, followed by their report. The committee and sub-committee chairs have provided the information in this report, although I’ve made some spelling, formatting, and minor editorial adjustments. If necessary, my comments are provided in Italics following the committee’s report.
Plans:
There is to be a satellite library established at the
University of Puerto Rico. After the initial MOU was circulated
to the NSS Board, I sent a slightly modified draft copy to the
University of Puerto Rico (UPR) on February 8, 2001. I have had
limited correspondence with Prof. Ruiz. On May 2nd,
she indicated "I have been in and out of the office for
various reasons, but this afternoon I hope to sit down and revise
the MOU and get back to you on it. Thank you for your patience.
Isabel Ruiz." Since that email correspondence, I have
emailed Prof. Ruiz at least three times requesting to be advised
of the proposed MOU status. As of this writing, I have received
no communication whatsoever since May 2nd.
Progress:
IT Committee: The web site has been successfully transplanted. We
have begun the process of redesigning the NSS Web Site.
The AGI Booklet about Caves finally arrived in mid June. Early sales look promising.
We received our first payment resulting from the unique arrangement with the Carlsbad National Park Bookstore. We provided them 1,500 copies of the special Guads Issue of the Journal on consignment. Unfortunately, sales are fairly dismal at the present time (March =47, April =5, May =10). We received a check for $310.00.
I have required the Operations Manager, Stephanie, to issue written performance evaluations of our employees before any merit raise is implemented. As far as I am aware of, this has never been done. Our employees have not been enthusiastic about the process. In addition, we have instituted a range of merit raise opportunities evaluated on a scale of one to five. This range will afford us the opportunity to recognize the employees who consistently perform "above and beyond" their standard job descriptions.
In May, I visited the NSS Office and spent the entire day reviewing policies and interacting with the staff.
Problems:
I will continue to attempt to resolve the UPR
Satellite Library situation.
J. Reynolds Duncan, Jr.
153 Atria Drive
Toney, AL 35773-9515
(256) 852-4522
jrdandlld@aol.com
Plans:
Continue with the reorganizing and filing of the Archives
material to facilitate the location and retrieval of material.
Progress:
Responded to a few requests for information.
Problems:
None.
Colin Gatland
1151 Crestwood Hills Drive
Vandalia, OH 45377-2714
(937) 890-0339
cgatland@core.com
Progress:
Several projects are in the works or have been completed. The
support slides and PowerPoint presentation on CD-ROM was
completed and sent to Avis at the NSS Office. These are now
available for members to check out. I have given several talks
about the NSS and caving, using these support slides. Mike Hood
& I spoke at a regional MENSA conference, I have also spoken
at Rotary and Optimist Clubs.
The NSS 60th Anniversary slide show has just been completed. This is a 6-projector multi image slide show focusing on the last 60 years of the society. Images have been pulled from various master slide shows that are in the NSS AV library. This show couldn't have been completed without the help of NSS President Mike Hood and Don Conover (everyone knows Don). Many hours have been dedicated to the completion of this slide show. I would like to especially thank Don Conover for his knowledge in pointing out who's who in some of the really old slides. Mike Hood was an extra pair of eyes noticing things that I sometimes missed as well as pointing out what cavers were where in the slides.
I also received a CD ROM from Steven Boretos entitled "Sinnett Thorn Cave System." Steven had taken it upon himself to digitize the AV Library slide show of the same name and create a PowerPoint presentation of that slide show (the shape of things to come). I e-mailed him with my thanks and will be giving this CD to Avis for checkout by our members.
I have recently received the 2001 Slide Salon entries and will be assembling the "Best of 2001" slide show for the AV Library. I will also be having the master Photo CD of the best of slides, the dupe CD's I will make at no cost to the society.
I want to thank Gary Taylor from Cincinnati, Ohio for donating approx. 25 Kodak slide trays (80 and 140 ct). He called me up and asked if the AV Library could use them, I said "yes" and we met halfway between Dayton and Cincinnati, where I took them off of his hands. I will bring them to convention and give them to Avis.
I would like to once again recognize Avis for doing such a great job running the AV library in Huntsville. She is always on top of everything slide show related. Thanks Avis!
Plans:
I will make a digital video of the NSS 60th Anniversary slide
show. Then I will make some dupe copies and give them to Dave
Sockey for inclusion in the video library.
I will keep the 60th Anniversary show intact, I plan on showing it at the Carter Caves Crawlathon in Carter Caves State Park in January 2002.
Bill Carr, Chairman of the 2001 NSS Convention has requested a slide of the NSS 60th logo for use during convention. I will take care of that request and have the slide imaged for him.
Problems:
Currently there are no reportable problems that I know of in the
AV Committee/Slides.
David Socky
6572 Woodbrook Drive, SW
Roanoke, VA 24018-540
(703) 989-7693
sockydr@home.com
Plans:
Finish the stuff in the ‘Progress’
section
This should be self-explanatory.
National Park Service Educational for children: I am working with Cheryl Jones and Mike Adams (NPS out of Mammoth Cave) on a video that will be used as part of an NPS educational program for children. The video will be essentially a power point show narrated by a young student giving a report on National Park Caves and the results of web searches about National Park caves. I will convert the Power Point program to video, and overlay the narration, music, and add titles and credits. The schedule called for a completed video by the end of June 2001, but because of delays, the schedule may have to be pushed out until after the convention.
Progress:
Video about Floyd Collins: A video about
collecting memorabilia about Floyd Collins based on 16 mm
newsreel clips from the 1920s from Bill Halliday. The video
should be about 10 to 15 minutes and will be an NSS production to
be used in the AV Library and sold through the NSS bookstore.
During the NSS Convention I interviewed Bill Halliday, Gordon Smith, and John Benton for this video project. Gordon has not been able to get the photos to me, so after the convention (2001), I will write the script and then edit the video.
Purchase of a new Video/Computer Projector: Money was set aside for a new projector. Since then I discovered that the InFocus LP350 DLP video projector does NOT have ‘keystone’ correction for the video inputs. This is a must, so I will find another suitable projector and arrange for the purchase before the year 2002 convention.
Rental feedback cards: Borrowers of the AV video programs are encouraged to send in a 3x5 survey card which asks about the quality of the show, whether we should keep it in the library or not, suggestions for improvement, and so forth. So far, I have received 100’s of these cards. I need to compile all the comments, and suggestions. From this data, we should be able to see how the AV library is doing from the perspective of cavers, but more important, we can find ways to improve the AV Library and the administration of the Library. Started a database for compiling data, and have entered about 10 percent of the cards.
New AV Catalog: Nothing done
Problems:
Time
I never seem to have enough time to do all the things I would like to do.
Richard Blenz
8070 W. Eller Road
Bloomington, IN 47403
(812) 825-2345
rblenz@indiana.edu
Progress:
The NSS Files Committee (me) is running as usual. I started a
project to make an index of all the caves referenced to in the
NSS Cave Files. At the moment there are 25,100 caves that I can
refer to. Previously the cave list was just the folders in the
files. This accounted for about 16,000 entries. I have read every
book, Speleo-Digest, NSS News, Bulletins, and whatever else I
have and injected the reference into the files.
Plans:
I have a four-foot pile of newsletter remnants (stuff I can't use
in the Files) which I will deliver to Torode at Huntsville on the
way to Convention.
Problems:
Of that 25,000 there are about 1,000 caves without any location
data, that is, no county and sometimes no state! I have been
sending e-mails out to various persons to get the county data. It
is amazing what some people don't publish on a good cave map or
in an article. I have had great response from people like Bill
Torode for Alabama and Cato Holler for N. Carolina. Still have a
ways to go with e-mails.
Jim Hall
623 Larry Place
Madison, AL 35758-1118
(256) 772-9829
jimehall@compuserve.com
Progress: I haven't made any progress on painting the Smith House.
Plans: After SERA is over I Plan to start on Painting the Smith house.
Problems: None
Evelyn Bradshaw, Co-Chariman
10826 Leavells Road
Fredericksburg, VA 22407-1261
(703) 898-9288
ebradshw@staffnet.com
Keith D Wheeland, Co-Chariman
2191 Mountain View Ave.
State College PA 16801-7214
(home) (814) 238-2057
(e-mail) kwheeland@home.com
Progress:
Evelyn Bradshaw and Keith Wheeland, Co-Chairmen, divided the
responsibility for getting the annual reports from grottos. The
response by grottos was about the same as last year, 197 out of
209 grottos submitted a report. The initial call for annual
reports went via listserv or regular mail for those without an
e-mail address. Those that did not respond were notified by
regular mail. Some were notified a second time by mail and others
many times via e-mail. The 80/20 rule was definitely in effect.
Eighty percent of our work was trying to get the 20 percent to
respond.
David Taylor handled Surveys, and Gary Bush ably kept the I/O addresses updated on the NSS web page and provided advice to the Co-Chairmen. The text for the I/O Section of the NSS Members Manual was submitted to the Editor, Maureen Handler, on April 18. We continue to send her changes as they arise.
We have made the transition to the new format for the I/O annual report to the NSS. We have a framework in place for the new division of duties for the Co-Chairmen of the Committee. One committee member was released because of overcommitment.
Co-Chairman, Wheeland, conducted an informal survey of grottos via the listserv. Of the 203 grottos polled, 61 responded. A preliminary summary was sent to grottos via the listserv. A complete summary of the findings will be available at Convention.
An I/O roundtable discussion session has been scheduled for Convention.
Plans: We are producing an I/O Manual which will include information which affects I/Os. In some cases it will be a duplicate of sections of NSS policies, but it will be located in one place for easy access by I/Os. Of course, there will be other information included as well. We will have this manual available online.
For the first time, we hope to have a way for I/Os to submit their annual report via the web. If everything works as planned, they would go to the web, enter a special ID and password and access their I/O record from a subset database located on a server. The grotto would make changes to the data. The subset database could then be downloaded from the server to the computer of the I/O Co-Chairman for inclusion into the official I/O database. The official I/O database is used to produce reports and labels. (We will be able to accommodate those I/Os that do not use a computer by sending them a paper form. Currently there are five grottos without an e-mail address.)
We are converting the I/O Computer software for the official I/O database from dBase under DOS to Access databases using Visual Basic under Windows.
For the upcoming reporting year, all grotto reports will be directed to the Co-Chairman, Wheeland. (For the past year, States A-M went to Bradshaw, and States N-Z went to Wheeland).
Continue to maintain the I/O Listserv which now contains 266 addresses. Prepare a job description and detailed list of duties (with schedule dates) for the Co-Chairmen of the I/O Committee.
Initiate a Newsletter Exchange - Address Change Service for I/Os. This would allow grottos that produce newsletters to notify the I/O Committee when there is a change of address of the recipient of exchange newsletters. The I/O Committee would notify all grottos of the change via the I/O Listserv.
Send a mailing to each I/O after the NSS Convention which will explain the I/O Committee plans for 2001-2002 and set a schedule for the collection of annual reports. It will also include other advice and news that may be helpful to the I/Os.
Problems:
Accountability: The NSS policy states that I/Os have a certain
obligation to the NSS to promote NSS purposes, however, there is
no procedure in place to insure that the I/Os fulfill that
obligation. It appears that as long as a grotto includes the
correct wording in their constitution, and submits a complete
annual report (as defined by Board), they can continue to be a
grotto regardless of their actions in regards to aims or
purposes. In other words, there is no procedure in place to
verify a grotto's compliance.
Congress of Grottos: Is the Congress of Grottos doing what the NSS expects of it? Is it time to use a referendum system to replace the Congress?
The I/O Committee is asked to provide a count of vote allocation for each grotto without any verifiable means of defending its allocations. Many grottos don't ask their members to state their primary grotto; the person filing the annual report makes a judgment based upon their knowledge of the individuals. And yet these vote allocations are used to decide recommendations provided to the Board. Even with perfect vote allocation, there is still the problem of attendance. Many grottos have never sent a representative to the Congress. Very few have a representative present each year. Additionally, the Congress elects a new chairman each year who oftimes doesn't benefit from any continuity in office.
IT Team Chairman:
Joseph G. "Tray" Murphy
101 Sioux Court
Summerville, SC 29483-9264
843-832-6688 (home)
843-402-5660 (work)
jgmurphy@bigfoot.com
Progress:
The migration of the NSS Website, www.caves.org
is now complete as far as being off the AIS server. It has been
very successful, with only a few minor issues to deal with. Many
of these issues were in the "learning curve" category.
Special thanks to Joshua Abdulla for leading the team that made
the migration; it was a large task and it was handled well. It
was extremely smooth for this kind of project; especially when
it’s all volunteer and being run via email exclusively.
Thanks to contributions by many, many members, we have already
redesigned and launched a new home page, added content, and have
several enhancements in the works. Tom Rea is the account
manager; Gary Bush is handling the IO pages and several others.
Chad Lagos reworked the home page. Phil Winkler introduced a new
discussion board system, running UltimateBBS software.
Plans:
Among these reworked and new features is a redesigned Bookstore
site with a custom shopping cart script being written by Patrick
Merry. Chad is currently working on reactivating the search
engine. Charlie Thompson is getting a special postcard page ready
to launch. The What’s New page will have a new webmaster
soon, and a Fun Stuff page is planned. Many others have
contributed ideas and content to the site, too.
We have also tightened the billing for the paid sites that reside on our server (for example, the members and grottos that are under the caves.org domain name). I am working on an application for web space, and will make it available online soon.
The committee intends to continue to recruit members to provide content, keep the site up to date, and maintain it behind the scenes.
Problems:
I am still trying to compile a list of who is handling
what pages. Many were in members’ hands before I took over,
and I have no record of who edits what yet. This is being worked
on as we speak. As far as the site goes, it seems to be stable,
available, and fast. I have heard very few complaints that we
have not resolved. There have been a few that we were unable to
reproduce so we could troubleshoot them.
Office Automation Division
Phil Winkler
816 N. Washington Street
Wilmington, DE 19801-1510
(302) 571-1156
pwinkler@plmconsulting.com
Progress:
1. A form has been created in the membership database to
accommodate the new General Membership category. As of 6/6/01 we
have a grand total of 1 General Member. This class of membership
is NOT incorporated into our automated business rules at this
time due to the huge programming effort involved in doing so. See
Problems later in this report.
2. A new Bulletin Board System at www.caves.org, The Cavers Forum, was activated on March 21, 2001. To date we have over 335 members registered. Reception to the new system has been generally positive although several members wish we had kept the old system. For the record, the reasons for replacing the old system were many:
The more messages posted, the slower it became. Old messages had to be deleted to maintain performance. There was no search capability. While there was threading, there were no categories to separate different topics.
These shortcomings have been eliminated with the new system. Some users are recommending 'free' BBS's like yahoo.com. Nothing is free. Yahoo would own all content (all the messages) and they could discontinue service at any time, change it any way they want, etc., etc. Not a viable option for the NSS in my opinion.
Plans: Develop a formal (as opposed to being in my head) comprehensive strategic automation plan for the NSS Office which includes hardware and software replacement times. Replace the old PC in the bookstore currently used for remote access to the database systems with either a Win2000 or WinXP machine running Terminal Server. This would permit remote access (albeit with no remote printing) via TCP/IP (Internet) and eliminate long distance telephone charges.
Problems: The new General Membership category would require many hours of programming to incorporate into our system. Automating the receipt of dues and applying it to various accounts (2- and 3-year memberships, etc.) was one of the most difficult and time intensive development tasks due to the complexity of our membership structure. Entering, maintaining, and tracking of General Members, at this point, is largely a manual affair and will likely remain so unless we get a large number of General Members. The Board should research and assess the labor costs at the NSS Office involved in this membership category. I think an analysis would reveal that this act should be repealed as not being cost effective or of use to any significant group of prospective members.
Scott A. Parvin, Chairman
8019 Riverbend Rd
Morris Al 35116-1259
(home) (205) 647-1936
(office) (205) 631-4246
(cell) (205) 563-CAVE
(e-mail) sparvin@mindspring.com
Progress: No activity since last report.
Plans: To provide information as requested.
Problems: None.
Richard Downey
380 N. 600 East
Orem, UT 84097-4843
(801) 224-6678
cavediva@uswest.net
Progress: We are just waiting for the final details to be resolved on the Satellite Library in Puerto Rico. Have been in contact with several Academic Entities feeling them out on the feasibility of an NSS Library as a part of their research collections. There has been some interest but am waiting to see how it plays with the higher powers.
Plans: We will wait a bit on pushing other Libraries until we get the UPR thing settled. I feel this will be a good learning tool to help us in the future. I have been in contact with Mike Hood and others in preparation for Convention and the discussions about the National Library/Museum et al.
Problems: No real problems at present other than being stuck in the "wait and ye shall see" mode.
Stephanie Cothron
National Speleological Society, Inc.
2813 Cave Avenue
Huntsville, AL 35810
(256) 852-1300
manager@caves.org
Progress: Through the hard work of Scott Fee, Tray Murphy, and Patrick Merry, our website gurus, we have moved our current server from AIS to Xeran. Currently, we’ve had zero down time and no complaints from our vendors. We had a small problem retrieving secure book order transactions, but Mark Ruocco called Xeran and was helped immediately!
The office has new carpet! It looks great and professional. It feels good when visitors come into the office and compliment how nice the carpet looks. I think it has boosted the moral of the office. The day before installation, Bill Torode and Mark Ruocco were a big help in moving the office workstations and file cabinets off to the side due to the carpet installation instructions. Bill volunteered to open the office on Saturday so the carpet could be installed. When Avis and I returned to work on Monday, the workstations and filing cabinets had been moved back to their original positions. What a nice treat on a Monday to come into an office with new carpet and all we had to do was plug up our computers, printers, and connect our computers to the network and we’re up and running again! Also, we received our new copier which is working wonderfully. It feels like Christmas around here!
In April, it was "Spring Cleaning" at the NSS Office. We destroyed old sales orders, accounting files and cleaned out filing cabinets. We made space in filing cabinets so we could file prior month’s book orders that were previously sitting on the floor in banker boxes. It feels so good to be organized and to know where everything is.
On 6/19/01, I completed printing the 25, 35, and 50-year pin letters. Bill inserted the letters and pins into an envelope and completed the 200 mailings the same day. All members who have reached their milestones will receive their pins in time to show them off at 2001 Convention.
David McClurg created a flyer promoting a special membership renewal price for Cave Minerals of the World (Save $10). Bill began inserting these flyers in the April renewal notices. We sold 3 in May and as of 6/20/01, 5 in June.
On 6/14/01, we finally received our "Living with Karst" AGI Booklets. David McClurg created a special Cave Sciences and Caving Techniques Flyer that promotes the IMAX Film "Journey Into Amazing Caves." Bill completed the mailings of the flyer and free AGI Booklets to the IMAX Theaters and Commercial Caverns. Prior to this mailing, Bill mailed the flyer without the AGI Booklet to science museums, universities, libraries, and wholesalers. Within 6 days, we’ve sold 209 booklets (including back orders).
The NSS Office has worked really hard in sending out brochures and NSS material to Cheryl Jones / the Smithsonian in Washington, DC, and handling several grotto requests in preparation of the IMAX premiere.
On 5/17/01, the Huntsville Grotto had a special showing of the IMAX film "Journey Into Amazing Caves" before it premiered to the public. The theater was booked! What an awesome film! Hazel and Nancy are my caving heroes.
Back in March, Jack Hughes, Associate Director of the Southern Regional Radon Training Center, conducted Radon Classes at the NSS Office. We were invaded by at least 10 people on their first day of class. By Day 2, at least 20 people were running in and out of the office. Avis was so kind to everyone. She even opened the office at 5:00 A.M., so that one of the local stations, 48 News, could interview Sabrina from the County Extension Office.
Through Scott Fee, I met Yolanda Harrell from Universal Merchant Services. She’s offering us 1.69% Discount Rate on credit card services vs. 2.90% we’re currently paying to SouthTrust. I’ve submitted a random sample comparison analysis of three months for Scott, Paul, and Dave’s review. From this analysis, we can save big $$$ (Our random analysis indicated a range of $160 to $450 per month. There is a one-time fee of $200.).
On 4/27/01, I went on my 2nd caving trip to Talucah Gap Cave with Patti Miller and some of her students, Avis and Paul Meyers. I was so proud of myself when Avis gave me a compliment of being a "natural caver."
On 6/14/01, The Member’s Manual Data was Win Zipped and emailed to Maureen.
Bill has been mowing the NSS Office and Smith House grass. Tim Francis, the lawn maintenance contractor, hasn’t shown up since January. I had three local lawn services submit bids. I decided to hire Jerry / All Seasons. He submitted the lowest bid ($150/month – what we were paying Francis). He promised me he would do a great job and would not leave us hanging.
Mark and Avis have been given a written employee evaluations (a first) this year. Bill’s performance review has been submitted to the OVP.
Last, but certainly not least, Dave Irving and I worked hard on closing the Fiscal Year 01. Dave was in Huntsville 5/14 through 5/23 and we even worked on Saturday and Sunday. We got the operating side closed, but still need to close the restricted fund side. Camille even assisted us for a couple of days and helped us with LedgerMaster questions and quirks. What a relief to have my first fiscal year closed.
Plans: The NSS Bookstore will be at SERA the weekend of June 21st.
Prepare for NSS 2001 Convention.
I have plenty of information on DSL lines. I have plans to call around for the best service and price. I hope to have the line installed by this summer.
NSS Trak training with Phil Winkler in Delaware in late summer.
I’m planning to take an HTML class in late summer.
Problems: No major problems to report at this time.
Karen Kastning
PO Box 148
Radford, VA 24141-0048
(703) 639-4666
karen@skyhopper.net
Plans: Long-term plans: These are the same as previously reported. My ultimate goal is to have a detailed database for research purposes. This will take many years to accomplish, but I plan to be involved for many years to come. No significant progress has been made in the past few months toward this goal.
Short-terms plans and activity: To solicit contributions of photos from both current and former photographers (during the NSS convention) in order to continue to build the collection.
The reorganization project is still a primary focus. I'll need to purchase additional archival storage materials after other expenses have been met from this year's budget. As previously reported, the next batch of storage materials (protective sleeves and boxes) will primarily be for 8x10 and 11x14 prints and 2x2 slides.
Progress: The two Skeets Miller films have been repaired, cleaned, and duplicated by a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, processing plant that specializes in handling motion-picture films. The condition of the original two films was somewhat poor, in that they had been damaged by exposure to humidity, some frames were warped (stretched or shrunk), sprockets were torn, and some fading had occurred. None of this damage occurred while it was in the possession of the NSS, it had occurred sometime in the past - possibly from lots of use and poor storage conditions. In addition to the repairs done to these original films, we have received a Master (60ml BetaSP) version and two VHS dupes of each film. This will allow access to the films in the future, while keeping the originals safely stored in the archives.
The two films are as follows:
A. Philco Collins Story: Authentic (originally shown on NBC on May 27, 1951) - 56 minutes in length; according to a film archivist at the Library of Congress, copyright to the Philco Theater films is owned by National Broadcasting Company (NBC).
B. Collins Story Not Authentic - Robert Montgomery Presents (originally shown on NBC on January 21, 1957) - 56 minutes in length; presumably this film is also copyrighted by NBC.
Please note that the NSS does NOT have a copyright on these films and has no authority to sell copies of them!!!!! We plan to provide viewing opportunities for these tapes at the 2001 and 2002 conventions. The Photo Archives Committee will endeavor to see that anyone interested in these films will have an opportunity to see them.
Problems: The biggest problem does not really involve my committee. Before the Skeets Miller films were delivered to me, several copies were made. They were offered for sale by various NSS vendors at last year's convention (I reported this to Mike Hood, who brought it to the attention of the Board, but no action was taken. To be fair, the copyright was assumed to no longer be in effect - but it is.)
The Photo Archives funds were cut back during the past two years (although extra money was appropriated for the Collins films), so no money was available for exhibit preparation or slide duping, etc. Hopefully, this problem will not be long term.
Craig Hindman
7600 Pindell School Road
Fulton, MD 20759
(410) 792-0742
ctider@us.ibm.com
Progress: There has not been much progress on putting the collection on-line, this will be a long-term goal. One collection has been made since the last report.
Plans: There will be a display at the 2001 Convention for all attendees to view. There has been a request for the parch display to make an appearance. This will be accommodated.
Problems: None to report.