BQPA/PIONEERS

                  

       Barbershop Quartet Preservation Association

Meeting called to order at 10:00 AM

Acting President Jack Martin announced:

Jim Milner was to be chairman of the Western Festival for 2014.
Lee Taylor accepted the Board opening that was vacated by the resignation of Rex Touslee.

Minutes of the 2012 Phoenix meeting were read and approved.

Treasurer reported that the treasury had $ 6,129.00.

Jerry Carroll indicated that the Chicago Festival was in place and that the same hotel as in 2012 was the site of the festival for 2013 and that the same room rates and perks were in place.

Shel Rosenthal stressed that all attendees should be sure to register at the registration table. He also was asking that we will need volunteers to man the table in Chicago as well as a person to take over the responsibility of heading the registration process in future festivals.

Martin asked for volunteers to take over other officer positions as the current Board has been doing their jobs for quite a while.

Milner asked for help for future Phoenix festivals as Frank Fliszar has moved to California. He asked: Should we buy beer next year and should we pour it out ourselves?

Simons read a list of members who passed on in the past year and “the Old Songs” was sung in their honor.

Platoons were brought up and Pete Tyree asked how we were connected with them.

Jim Gallagher asked how many wanted shirts and he would order them, saving shipping cost for individual orders which were high in the past.

Montana Jack suggested that we get and sing older songs. Also, we need to attract younger people to our festivals.

Tom Neal told us that an art form dies if it is altered. There are 22,000 members in the BHS currently, down from a high of 38,000 in past years.

Tom also offered an agenda to pep up the BQPA and get an infusion of new young members. He offered a 10 step program.

Rex Reeve gave his opinion that it is money that drives the BHS.

Jack suggested that going back to singing Barbershop Polecat songs.
The meeting was adjourned at 11:35.