Rim and Spokes - February 21st, 2024 (Feb. 28, 2024)

Meeting Schedule: (Note locations)

February 28th: No morning meeting, but there is the social at American Flatbread from 5-7 p.m.
Wed. March 6th—David Provost, Middlebury College Executive VP, Finance & Administration (Rosie’s)
Wed. March 13th—Retired Police Chief Tom Hanley (Rosie’s)
Wed. March 20th—Sadie Brightman, founder and executive director of Middlebury Community Music Center (MCCC)! (Rosie’s)

MEETING MINUTES February 21st, 2024

PRESIDING: John Barstow

Guest Speaker: Matt Cropp

Guests: Sem's Parents, Grace Hanley, and Evie Fuller

Sem’s Parents thanked the club for hosting Sem! They have been lucky to come visit and see where Sem lives in Middlebury but also to see NYC, Niagara Falls, Boston, and Burlington. They also announced that the Stroopwafles arrived and were distributed at the meeting. Reach out to Heather if you were not at the meeting or had an IOU.

Sem’s Dinner & Fundraiser: Wednesday March 27th, 2024 (Save the Date). There will be pre-sale tickets.

Announcement:

Paul - District Grant
- We are still working on a solid plan for the year. Thank you to Fran for attending the grant meeting so that we are able to apply for DG funds!
Spence - Dues (Membership)
- The cost of meals are the main driver for the higher dues and the membership committee is considering changes we could make. There will be a survey to help solicit feedback to bring back recommendations to the larger group. Please take time to complete the survey once it comes out!
Nancy: Nominating Committee (New officers will start on July 1st) (If you are interested in running, please contact Nancy!) The current slate includes:
- President: Paul Horn
- President Elect: REbecca Hanley
- Vice President: Liz Marino
- Secretary: Geoff COnrad
- Treasure: Heather Foster-Provencher
Heather - Finance
- There are open balances and Heather will be reaching out to folks who have dues remaining. If you believe you have dues and do not hear from Heather, please reach out at cvprophfp@gmail.com (Thank you Geoff for your help)

Fines:

Spence had an article in the Addy Indy
Liz was featured in the Addy Indy about changing jobs

Happy:

Spence was happy about seeing the sun because they ran out of solar credits (there has been limited sun since June 2023)
John B was happy to announce that his son and daughter in law are expecting in August
Nancy acknowledged the passing of Dr. William “Bill” Fifield who made a lot of contributions to the community
Rebecca was happy to have Grace with her at the meeting because of school vacation and is excited to bring Grace to Ireland in April
Ben was happy to have Sem’s family a the meeting and for sharing Sem
Liz M was happy to meet with Sem’s family and thanked Nancy for hosting a dinner
Heather was happy to meet Sem’s family and also thanked Nancy for hosting

Guest Speaker: Matt Cropp

Matt Cropp, Executive Director of the Vermont Employee Ownership Center. He has been with the VEOC since 2014 in various roles and later the Executive Director. VEOC has been serving Vermont since 2001 and modeled after the Ohio model in which many plants and manufactures were closing and trying to find ways to support employees. The model is intended for healthy businesses to continue even after changes from folks wanting to retire, old age, or dealing with family businesses - and keeping employees involved. Matt gave a few examples in Vermont including King Arthur Baking and PC Supplies.

He also talked about smaller companies who may have stock plans and employees directly own stock shares in the company. There is also the employee ownership trust model with a goal to support the company's mission and maintain independence. The tech company in Bellows Falls is an example of employees having stock and paying into the company ownership. This usually happens during a succession.

Matt discussed family businesses examples focusing on the future of the company/business, private firm, legacy in the community, etc. Some family businesses opt to move to an employee owned business so that the family who work there can be involved/invested and remove the family dynamics in the change. This usually occurs before the full retirement to make it an easier transition and employees are already engaged so family members who may not be involved cannot try to take over a business.

As for multi-partners like Harpoon Brewery - there were 2 founders with a 10 year age difference. The older founder was ready to retire and sold his shares to employees and slowly transitioned into an employee owned business. Gardener Supply was another example in which they wanted ownership commitment - “we do well, the company does well”. They provide a bonus for employees and provide a little ownership to all!

PT 360 has 12 founders and has grown to have new locations and is hiring a new CEO. This is causing changing dynamics, but ensuring that employees are invested in the organization.

Matt provided a few other examples and explained that there are many reasons to change to employee ownership. VEOC is there to help with financing options and build wealth before starting (10% down payment). They also provided assistance in weighing out the risks and talking about various ownership plans for employees (401 K), selling to family/dealing with family, and how to handle governance and a board. Some organizations who are employee owned have designated employee seats on their boards.

For more information, please visit https://veoc.org/

Thank you, Matt!

Cow Tag: John Barstow

MINUTES SUBMITTED BY SYLVIE MORRISON