 The Newport Bay Club and Hotel was the site of this year's Gielow Family Foundation annual meeting.The first residents of Newport, which was founded in 1639, were settlers seeking religious freedom. The area was soon recognized as an ideal trade location and quickly developed into a major east coast seaport. Beautiful schooners and trade ships lined the harbor, crowded the wooden docks, and brought exotic treasures. Newport's era as a seaport diminished with the British occupation of 1776. British ships blockaded the harbor and residents were forced to use the timber wharves for firewood during the brutally cold winter. Today, Newport enjoys a reputation as an ideal vacation destination. The three-and-a-half mile Cliff Walk is a landmark attraction. Originally forged by local deer, then used by Narraganset Indians, it is now a National Historic Trail, and offers a spectacular view of the ocean and many of the lavish "summer homes," mansions really, built by the country's very rich a century ago. |
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Minutes of the Meeting Saturday, October 20, 2001 Newport, Rhode Island |
| Time Convened: | 8:59 p.m. |
| Members Present: |
Fred Gielow, President and Treasurer Bob Gielow, Recording Secretary Jim Gielow, Member at Large Tim Gielow, Member at Large |
| Minutes: | The minutes of the last meeting (10-22-00) were read and approved. |
| Treasurer's Report: | The Treasurer's report (Handout #1) was presented and approved. |
| Subject | Handout | Discussion |
| GFF 2000 Tax Return | -- | The tax preparer requested and obtained an extension in the deadline for filing the GFF 2000 return. All relevant tax information has been submitted and the return is expected to be completed and filed prior to the November deadline. |
| Year-2001 Donations | #2 | The list of proposed donation recipients was discussed and approved. |
| Old Business | - | - |
| Friend-of-Freedom Awards | -- | Comments from recipients and other feedback indicated the 2001 Friend-of-Freedom Awards were a great success. Discussions of possible recipients for 2002 Friend-of-Freedom Awards included: Hillsdale College, David Horowitz, Barbara Olson, and Chris Ruddy. Board members were encouraged to submit other suggestions for potential recipients. |
| FedEx Problem | -- | FedEx billed GFF twice for shipment of the Friend-of-Freedom Award to Reed Irvine in Washington, DC. After several letters to the company, including two to the president, the second charges were dropped. |
| Conservative Hall of Fame | -- | A request to become involved with the Conservative Hall of Fame was turned down by Fred Gielow. We choose to manage our own "awards" program so we can make our own award-recipient selections. |
| Other Old Business | -- | None. |
| New Business | - | - |
| Association of Small Foundations | -- | GFF membership in the Association of Small Foundations was rejected because the annual fees, $300, was considered too high for a foundation our size. |
| Eagle Statue | -- | A beautiful copper-toned eagle statue was presented to the president by board member Jim Gielow. This gesture was much appreciated. |
| Our Next (2002) Meeting | -- | The date, time, and location of our next meeting were discussed. It was agreed to hold the meeting in the spring rather than the fall. Washington, DC was mentioned as a possible location, the Crystal City Marriott as a possible hotel. The Pocono Mountains were also considered. |
| Other New Business | -- | None. |
| Expense Accounts | Expense account forms | Early submission of expense accounts was encouraged. |
| Questions, Comments | -- | None. |
| Meeting adjourned: | 10:02 p.m. |
| Respectfully Submitted by: | C. Robert Gielow, Secretary, October 20, 2001 |
The way back home.