AGM: Agenda

IMPORTANT NOTE: For the safety of our members and to allow recuperation time from all the heavy snow shoveling we’ve all be subject to, we will be postponing our Annual General Meeting originally scheduled for tomorrow. The AGM will now take place on Sunday, Dec 7 at 1pm at the same location (18166 102 Ave, Levitt, Santa Fe Plaza). We will have non alcoholic beverages and will be ordering pizza as a late lunch for attendees.

Agenda:

  • Call to order
    • Minutes from Previous AGM
  • Old Business
    • Reports of Committees in General
  • New Business
    • Presentation of financial report
    • Committees
    • Conventions to attend in 2015
    • Charities to Support in 2015
    • Election of Board of Directors

We will be electing the 2015 Board of Directors at the AGM. Interested members self-nominated via email using their registered member email address between October 27 and November 16, 2014. The board must contain a minimum of 5 members for the Alberta Browncoats Society to continue. It may contain up to 7 members.

To be eligible to be elected to the Board as a Director a person must have served at least one year as a member in good standing.  This year’s nominees are all current serving members on our Board of Directors:

  • Andy Dempsey
  • Wendy McCormack
  • Jeri Noyes
  • Doug Reid
  • Drew Semper
  • Sheelagh Semper
  • Bev Williams

2015 Memberships will be available for purchase at the meeting.

2015 Board of Directors Nominees

The nominees for the 2015 Board of Directors election taking place during the Annual General Meeting (5pm on Saturday, November 29, 2014 at 18166 102 Ave (Santa Fe Plaza; Levitt), Edmonton, AB.) are as follows:

Andy Dempsey – Andy has been volunteering with the Alberta Browncoats Society since Can’t Stop the Serenity 2011 and joined our Board of Directors in 2014. Attendees might remember him best for his bright smile and spot-on impression of Vanna White during the live auction portion of the event. Most often, Andy’s involvement takes place behind-the-scenes, helping organize and obtain items for our annual charity auctions, packing items for charity events, organizing stock and ensuring financial accuracy post-events. Andy has been involved in charity convention booth process in Edmonton since 2013.

Doug Reid – Doug is a founding member of the Alberta Browncoats Society and has acted as the organization’s Vice Chair since 2010. In addition to his volunteer obligations as a member of the Board, Doug has helped organize and run the annual Can’t Stop the Serenity event in Edmonton from 2010-2013. He has helped organize and man the charity booth at the Pure Speculation Festival in 2011 & 2012 and has volunteered at our charity convention booths in Calgary and Edmonton since 2012.

Drew Semper – Drew is a founding member of the Alberta Browncoats Society. Our “Jack of all trades”, Drew does a bit of everything for the organization; most of it in a behind-the-scenes manner. Occasionally he does step into the spotlight; most notably when he MC’d the Can’t Stop the Serenity live auctions from 2010-2013. Drew makes pompoms for our “not afraid of anything” toques, gathers auction items, researches and purchases merchandize, organizes and volunteers at our convention charity booths (since 2011), and helps plan and execute Browncoat shindigs.

Jeri Noyes – Jeri has been volunteering with the Alberta Browncoats Society since 2010 and joined the Board in 2013. In addition to managing the merchandize table at the Can’t Stop the Serenity event since 2010, Jeri has volunteered at our charity convention booths in Calgary and Edmonton in 2012-2013 and been instrumental in the organization of the Browncoat shindigs held in Edmonton and Calgary in 2012 and 2013. The on-going joke is that Jeri has never seen Firefly or Serenity (we’ve discovered that’s not entirely accurate); her main motivation for working so tirelessly for us over the past 4 years is raising funds for charity. And she’d like it noted that she’s very, very good at raising funds.

Sheelagh Semper – Sheelagh is a founding member of the Alberta Browncoats Society and has acted as the organization’s Chair since 2010. Our “Jill of all trades”, Sheelagh plans and organizes the annual Serenity screening event, charity auctions, and all facets of the charity convention booths since 2010. In addition, she purchases booth merchandize, negotiates contracts, obtains auction items, pays bills, writes for the newsletter and website, answers emails, and knits the “not afraid of anything” toque at conventions (at knit-a-thons or just because we’re running low on stock) and as part of the Browncoat knitting group.

Wendy McCormack – Wendy joined the Board in 2013. In addition to her volunteer obligations as a member of the Board, Wendy is part of the Browncoat knitting group that supplies the ABS with “not afraid of anything” toques and has helped organize the annual Can’t Stop the Serenity event in Edmonton from 2010-2013. Wendy has been involved in the preparation and manning of our charity convention booths in Calgary and Edmonton since 2012.

Registered members who live within 100 kms of Edmonton must attend the Annual General Meeting in order to vote in the Board of Directors election.

Registered members who do not live within 100 kms of Edmonton, as indicated in our member database, may record their vote on any agenda item via email using their registered member email address between November 26 – 29, 2013. Eligible in-absentia voters should list which board members they choose vote for in the body of their message. Members may select up to six (6) nominees but are not required to do so.

In order to continue to exist as a registered not-for-profit society in Alberta, we do require a minimum of 5 board members.

Fall Charity Auction: Nov 17 – 26, 2014

We are thrilled to announce that we have partnered with the California Browncoats to hold our upcoming online charity auction via their eBay account. The auction will begin November 17 at 8am PST and continue for 10 days.

The proceeds of this auction will be split between Edmonton’s Youth Empowerment and Support Services (a shelter & support program for homeless teens), Kids Need to Read (a US-based children’s literacy charity), Equality Now (an international women’s advocacy organization), and the Edmonton Women’s Emergency Accommodation Centre.

Our goal is to raise $2,000 USD to be split between these wonderful organizations. Of course, we’d love to shatter that goal with your shiny help!

We welcome bids from all over the world.

We would like to extend a special thanks to our auction donors:
* John Barrowman
* Nathan Fillion
* Adam Baldwin
* Mark Sheppard
* Felicia Day
* Gina Torres
* Alan Tudyk
* Morena Baccarin
* Summer Glau
* Stephen Amell
* Joseph Gatt
* Katrina Law
* Kelly Hu
* Phil Lamarr
* Jamie Bamber
* Matthew Bryan
* Laura Sememiuk
* Clinton Ouderkirk
* Natalie Dempsey
* Semper Family
* California Browncoats

Their generosity and support has been amazing. Each donor has been identified on the individual auction listings.

Buyers located in Edmonton, AB and surrounding areas may arrange for local pickup of any items they win without charge.

2014 Annual General Meeting (AGM)

Please join us on at 5pm on Saturday, November 29, 2014 at 18166 102 Ave (Santa Fe Plaza; Levitt), Edmonton, AB. A meeting agenda will be emailed to all members and posted on this website in the coming weeks.

Among other agenda items, we will be selecting the 2015 Board of Directors at the AGM. Interested members may self-nominate via email using their registered member email address between October 27 and November 16, 2014. Please include a brief bio that we can post on the page for our members to review prior to the election.

Potential board members must:

  1. Be a 2014 general member in good standing.
  2. Consent to having their name and address appear in public Government of Alberta documents (Corporate Registry Database) and on our website.
  3. Attend 4-6 Board meetings during the calendar year, in addition to any scheduled general meetings or special meetings.
  4. Actively participate in a minimum of one committee or extra duty.
  5. Commit to and complete a minimum of 24 volunteer hours with ABS. Please note: This election is for general board members. Executive positions (Chair, Vice-Chair and Secretary/Treasurer) on the board are determined by the elected board members at a future board meeting.

All members, 18 years of age or older, in good standing as of November 16, 2014 will be eligible to put their name forward for a position on the board of directors. Members wishing to be elected to the Board of Directors must be present at the AGM.

A member is elected to the Board of Directors when they put their name forward for nomination and receive sufficient votes on the ballot from the general membership in an election vote held during the AGM . In the case of a tie, a secondary vote may be held until a minimum of 6 positions on the Board of Directors are filled.

Registered members who live in Edmonton and surrounding area must be present to vote at the AGM.

Registered members who do not live within 100 kms of Edmonton, as indicated in our member database, may record their vote on any agenda item via email using their registered member email address between November 23 – 29, 2014. Eligible in-absentia voters should indicate which agenda item they are voting on (use agenda item number), along with their choices, in the body of their message

We are currently working on a method for out of town members to dial into the meeting via internet based calling service. Details will be posted once testing is complete.

Special thanks to Leavitt Machinery General Partnership for use of their space for the AGM.

Good Works: Edmonton Expo Results

Thanks to all the wonderful people who supported our charity booth this weekend we raised 2012$ (CAD) for our charity partners. We will be donating 1007$ to the Edmonton Women’s Emergency Accommodation Centre (WEAC), 503$ to Youth Empowerment and Support Services (YESS), 301$ to Kids Need to Read (KNTR), & 201$ to Equality Now.

Highlights of the weekend:

  1. Thanks to the shiny Edmonton Expo organizing team, we held our first charity Serenity screening at a convention. The screening raised 572.35$ and many a door prize was handed off to attendees. We’re hoping to repeat the success at the next Calgary Expo and make the Edmonton screening an annual tradition *quickly searches for wood to knock*
  2. Much plotting relating to the expansion of the AB Browncoats charity booth to the Lethbridge Expo (we’re shooting for 2015) happened. There were giggles. And far too many games of “Cunning Hat Punch-buggy” while the plot thickened.
  3. Custom Geekspot magnets, exclusive to the Alberta Browncoats, made their debut at our charity booth. They looked AMAZING; Kaylee eating a strawberry drool-worthy!
  4. Happy Harbor Comics swooped in to save the day when our Square reader refused to read anything…
  5. We’re trying not to name drop but… a ruggedly handsome elder brother of a certain Cap’t stopped by to say hello.
  6. Ahem, now we’re name dropping. Famed cos-player and convention guest, Jessica Nigri, stopped by our booth to pick out her own cunning hat. We think it looks great on her!

Click on photos to enlarge.