Carole J. Greene, President
As our luncheon season winds down, so does the business at our regular board meetings. When someone brings up an issue, we tend to say, “That can wait for a fuller discussion at our planning retreat.” We made that comment numerous times at our April 9 board meeting. Hope I can remember all of the issues we postponed when I plan the agenda for our May 16 long-range strategy session.
Knowing that our retreat was coming up sooner than usual, we researched and discussed several potential 2015-16 luncheon meeting places—if we should decide to leave the Hilton Naples. Then we met with the events coordinators at the Hilton Naples to discuss our needs and concerns for our next contract. We have decided to stay with the Hilton Naples. Because we typically attract at least 50 to our luncheons and, in high season, closer to 70, we need the larger room. The Hilton’s conference and convention business has grown, too. Their conference bookings usually run Thursday through Saturday, so they couldn’t accommodate us on our traditional fourth Thursday. For the 2015-16 season, NPC luncheons will occur on the third Monday.
I know that adjustment will require many of us to reschedule long-standing Monday events, but all things considered, this was the best option. It may turn out that more people can attend on Mondays and more potential program presenters will have clear calendars on that day. We hope it will be a win-win for us all.
When you receive your 2015 members’ yearbook, you’ll note the change to Mondays. However, we originally opted for the fourth Monday, as reflected in the yearbook. Then the Hilton found two dates that wouldn’t work. Again, we put our heads together and opted for consistency, settling on the third Monday.
We’ll probably overwhelm you with reminders, so beat us to it, bring up your calendars and schedule NPC on the third Monday for October through May. Oh, not December, though, because we’ve found that more can come if we hold it earlier in this extremely busy month. Therefore, our annual meeting and holiday party is set for Dec. 7.
We have invited a few new members to attend our planning retreat to listen and learn. We felt if they could see how we operate, they might be willing to step into a leadership position when openings occur. We do elect some of our officers and governors each year. The current leaders feel it is wise to groom others to take our places.
That’s it. All other business we’ve put off until our May 16 retreat. If you know of something we should attend to for the betterment of the club, let me know so I can place it on the agenda.