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Minutes of 2025 Directors Meetings

Potomac Chapter National Railway Historical Society, Inc.

November 4, 2025

Gordy called the meeting to order about 8:10 p.m.

Bill made minutes of previous meetings available.

Bill reported that he is preparing to assume responsibility for membership administration. He has received membership data from Jay. They will discuss the data later in the week. With Jay's guidance Bill will generate the renewal notices. Directors agreed that to set the renewal rate at $7.50 again this year because we haven't resumed publication of the newsletter. Directors discussed whether they would be willing to raise the dues to $25, if that would allow us to restart newsletter publication. Directors were supportive, but suggested polling the membership if that opportunity arose.

Directors discussed Jay's proposal to transfer the chapter's Treasury Direct account to TIAA. Some highlights.

• They supported the idea of leaving Treasury Direct.
• They agreed that it is important for two directors to have access to the account.
• Whatever investments we choose need to be liquid. The chapter needs to be able withdraw funds when needed quickly without incurring fees.
• Most directors felt that the chapter's financial position is sound and that we can stick with safe investments and avoid riskier investments like stocks.
• Many directors were unfamiliar with TIAA. Bill said he had reviewed their website and he thought they offered services similar to organizations like Charles Schwab or T. Rowe Price.
• The board will make a decision after receiving more input from Jay.

Directors discussed the upcoming election. Everyone except Chuck, who is in the middle of a two-year term, is up for re-election. Those participating in the meeting are willing to run for re-election. Bill will send an email blast to the membership asking whether anyone else is interested in serving on the board.

Doug reported that the national organization is working to get at-large members more involved. Rumors about the 2026 convention center on Ohio and the Age of Steam Roundhouse.

Directors discussed the new format of the upcoming holiday social:

• Scheduled for 12:30 p.m. December 13 at the Silver Spring B&O Railroad Station.
• Bill purchase some food, e.g. subs from Wegmans
• We ill invite attendees to bring other dishes.
• When we advertise the event, we will mention the parking garage available across Georgia Avenue.
• John will supply a screen and setup a projector. He will develop a program or videos to run in the background.
• Bill will send a postcard to membership.
• This event will replace the December membership meeting usually held on the third Tuesday.

Directors decided to reduce the number of in-person meetings in 2026. The membership meeting schedule will be:

• In-person (hybrid): March, May, July, September
• Holiday social (in-person): December
• Zoom only: every other month

Directors set the tentative board meeting schedule for 2026:

• February 12 (Thursday)
• May 14 (Thursday)
• August 11 (Tuesday)
• November 10 (Tuesday)

Directors discussed the small grants program. Bill said he would confirm whether we made a $750 donation for Harris Tower roof repairs earlier this year.

The meeting adjourned at 9:11 p.m.

August 12, 2025

Gordy called the meeting to order at 8:10 p.m.

Bill made minutes of previous meetings available.

Doug Scott reported on the recent national convention in Michigan. Attenadance was about 180. The national organization is in good financial shape. There has been no announcement on the 2026 convention yet.

Director discussed the September membership meeting. Randy Anderson is giving the program. He is planning to bring two screens and two projectors. The program will be digital. Bill won't be able to attend the meeting. Stephen and John want to discuss the program with Randy to determine whether we can offer a Zoom option. Bill will forward Randy's contact information to Stephen and John.

Board members agreed to schedule the holiday social for 12:30 p.m. Saturday December 13. We will follow the format of Clay's recent retirement party. The chapter will supply some food, e.g. subs from Wegmans, and invite attendees to bring other dishes. Parking at the station is a bit unpredictable. When we advertise the event, we should mention the parking garage available across Georgia Avenue. John can supply a screen and setup a projector. This holiday social will replace the December membership meeting usually held on the third Tuesday.

Jay reported that Treasury Direct has notified him that we must close our account. Two options are offered:

1. Treasury liquidates the securites and transfer the funds to our bank.
2. We find a new custodian for the securities and Treasury transfer the securites to the new custodian in kind.

Jay plans to visit our bank, Truist, to see whether they can accept our securities.

Directors discussed the effort to recruit a newsletter editor. Bill will continue to send postcard reminders to members in months when we hold in-person meetings. He will send email meeting reminders every month.

Directors briefly discussed some of the chapter's procedures to avoid single points of failure. Points of discussion:

• We should have documented procedutes for all of the items listed, included those where we have made progress.
• A shared drive in the cloud might be the best vehicle for making that information available to all directors.

The meeting adjourned at 9:14 p.m.

May 14, 2025

Gordy called the meeting to order about 8:05 p.m.

Directors briefly discussed some of the chapter's procedures to avoid single points of failure. Points of discussion:

• Hybrid meetings – Bill sent draft procedures to John and Stephen.
• Website maintenance – Bill sent a document with background information to Gordy, John and Stephen.
• Truist bank – Jay granted Bill full online access to the bank account. Gordy, Bill and Jay have the ability to write checks.

Bill made minutes of previous meetings available.

Directors approved Paul Lubell of Catonsville, MD as a new member.

Board members agreed that the April 19 retirement lunch for Clay Moritz was successful.

Directors agreed to schedule the holiday social 12:30 p.m. Saturday, December 13 at the Silver Spring B&O Station, rather than the usual Tuesday evening gathering.

John reminded directors that 2027 will be the 200th anniversary of the founding of the B&O Railroad. The chapter should look for opportunities to participate in the celebration.

Doug briefed directors on plans for the NRHS national convention in East Lansing, MI in July.

Doug reported that the Harrisburg Chapter has learned that they need to replace the roof on Harris Tower. They have begun raising funds.

Gordy proposed that the chapter donate $750 to the Harris Tower roof replacement, as part of the small grants program. Directors agreed with the idea. (As president, Gordy can make the decision. He doesn't need broad approval.)

John is still hopeful he can recruit his preferred candidate for newsletter editor. Bill will continue to send postcard reminders to members in months when we hold in-person meetings. He will send email meeting reminders every month.

Directors agreed not to respond to the survey from a Long Island group.

Board members reviewed the schedule for membership meetings. They agreed to hold the December holiday social on a Saturday afternoon. The Silver Spring B&O station is the location.

Directors agreed to shift the fall board meeting to November 4. The next meeting is August 12.

The meeting adjourned at 9:14 p.m.

February 11, 2025

Gordy called the meeting to order about 8:05 p.m.

Gordy suggested a review of the chapter's procedures to avoid single points of failure. Do we have backup plans for major chapter functions? Points of discussion:

• Hybrid meetings – Bill normally handles these, with assistance from John and Stephen. Bill will develop a checklist for their use, when Bill is unable to attend.
• Post office box – Clay Moritz checks the Kensington mailbox on a regular basis. Bill also has a key. There was some discussion of shifting to a box to Vienna.
• Website maintenance – Bill will share the Trainweb FTP ID and password with Stephen and John. He will also share the password for domain name registration.
• Membership records – Jay has created a folder on OneDrive and share it with Bill. They can both make updates to the spreadsheet. Bill suggested that we create a simplified version of the spreadsheet to share with other directors.
• Treasury Direct – Treasury might not allow two people to access an organization's account. The topic needs research. Jay might be able to share his ID and password as an alternative.
• Truist bank – Gordy and Jay have the ability to write checks. We should investigate whether a second person can have online access.
• Meeting room reservations – Bill makes meeting room reservations through Active Montgomery, the county's online system. He will document his procedures and share them with John.
• Shared cloud storage – Google Drive might be a good option for a directory that can be shared by all board members.

Bill made minutes of previous meetings available.

Jay reported that he has received about 38 renewals in response to the 65 reminders he sent out.

Directors approved Tom Sponsler of San Francisco as a member.

We haven't found a replacement for Clay as newsletter editor. John is still investigating options. Bill plans to send postcard reminders to members in months when we hold in-person meetings. He will send email meeting reminders every month.

Bill will investigate holding a chapter picnic this spring to celebrate Clay's retirement.

Board members reviewed the schedule for membership meetings. They agreed to hold the December holiday social on a Saturday afternoon. The Silver Spring B&O station is a good location.

The next board meeting is scheduled for May 13.

The meeting adjourned at 9:13 p.m.