Annual Reports (May 3, 2009)

AACTMAD, a nonprofit foundation, is a participatory membership organization which enriches people's lives and sense of community through traditional music, dance, song, and related arts.

AACTMAD is a volunteer organization; its activities are planned and carried out by volunteer committees. These are brief summaries about the committees' activities as of May 3, 2009:

AA Swing Dance Association (Scott Rice & Holly Ackerman)
Continuing to hold a successful weekly dance, including intermediate and beginner lessons in Lindy Hop and East Coast. This year, we expanded our volunteer pool of DJs and teachers. We are initiating a DJ training program which includes mentoring from experienced Swing DJs and feedback from initial DJ sets. In the near future, we are planning to hold a DJ forum to have further discussion and information sharing amongst our DJs. For instruction, we have modified the intermediate lesson structure to be of a progressive nature throughout the month. This will enable us to help dancers truly learn intermediate material. We have begun to hold monthly double late nights over the second weekend of the month, which also support the Grand Traditions Swing dance. These late night dances help encourage out of town dancers to attend and are a great community building experience! On a side note, most of the committee was able to attend the Swing portion of the Dawn Dance this year, where we truly enjoyed ourselves!

Boar's Tooth Sword (Emily Thompson)
Boar's Tooth Sword was entirely inactive last year and is expected to be so again this year.

Community Partnering Activities (Ray Bantle)
We provide organizational services for outreach activities and events within school, home school, university, church, and other community settings (over 100 events over the past four years). We also answer inquiries and make referrals for activities outside of our geographic range. This season we have organized 9 events: the third continuing UM English department collaboration (involving over 100 undergrad students) and a series of 8 dances with a church/home school group (involving 150 - 200 or more people each session from age zero to adult). The professor we collaborate with at the UM will be honored this fall with an "Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching" award, which she generously says is a direct result of our work with her class.

You can learn more about our recent activities and service offerings by visiting our website. Our activities could not happen without the support of dedicated event organizers, musicians, callers, sound engineers, and experienced dancers who are passionate about reaching new audiences and providing them with high-quality dance experiences. We welcome your suggestions, referrals, and assistance.

Concerts (Joan Hellmann)
We held two concerts in the past year - Alan Jabbour and Ken Perlman in November and Bill O'Connor and friends (Paul Winder and Laura Massaro) in March. We had hoped to have Debbie Jackson and Steve Schneider this month, but Steve's schedule forced that concert to be postponed; look for it in fall. When Alan Jabbour and Ken Perlman were in town, they also played for a first Saturday dance. The two committees collaborated to present fiddle and banjo workshops. Suggestions for performers are always welcome. (Concert Committee members: Kathy Gravlin, Joan Hellmann. Richard Raymond generally does the sound.)

English Country Dance Leader Development (Ray Bantle)
We maintain a lending library of support materials including dance instructions and recorded music for use by our callers. We also maintain and publish lists of dances called for use by our callers in planning their programs. We have twelve active English dance callers in Ann Arbor and attempt to provide venues and opportunities to as many as possible. We support and encourage caller development by organizing workshops and direct one-on-one mentoring opportunities. This year we have been working with four new callers and have one teenager scheduled for summer workshops.

Events Calendar (Ray Bantle)
We publish both a printed version (now in our twenty-sixth year), distributed statewide, and a web version of the events calendar. This year we have transitioned smoothly from a bi-monthly to a quarterly version.

Facilities Committee (Nawal Motawi & Mark Hillegonds)
Since last year's annual meeting, the Facilities Committee has spent time on two projects. Several months of 2008 were spent simply waiting to see if the City of Ann Arbor would reach a decision on 415 W. Washington which might open up the possibility of the creation of a suitable dance space. Being located downtown was very alluring, but alas, even a year later, the city has not yet reached any decision about the development of that property. It will clearly be some years before anything at all is built.

We stopped waiting on 415 W. Washington in September 2008 and began working on the more realistic scenario of renovating and purchasing a share in 4531 Concourse. An architect was hired, and from September 2008 to January 2009 effort was focused on architectural design. In February 2009 the plans were sent to five builders who were invited to bid on the renovation. The bidding and builder selection process is moving into the third and final round this month and is expected to be complete by the June meeting. The plans were also sent to Pittsfield Township for building and zoning compliance approval. As you may have heard by now, our Conditional Use Permit was unanimously approved by the Pittsfield Township Planning Commission on April 16. According to protocol, the matter was tabled, and a formal motion is being drafted which will be officially approved at the next meeting, on May 7th. Now that our worst fear, that of governmental impediment, is over, we can confidently put all other planning into high gear. A number of people have come forward to help over the last six weeks to form a sizeable Facilities Committee with several work teams. Initial groundwork on many fronts was done while the architectural plans were in progress therefore the work teams have been able to 'hit the ground running'.

The next big goal of the Facilities Committee is to finish bringing the AACTMAD Board all the information required to approve the beginning of construction. The information required includes the architectural plans, legal agreements, a business plan, and a plan for how we will operate the building once it is built. More than a dozen people are involved in performing this large body of work. The Facilities Committee is currently divided up into three work teams: Agreements, Business Plan, and Building Design & Construction. There is one more team for which the chair is currently recruiting: the Ongoing Building Operations Team. This team's task will be to create and execute a physical maintenance plan, including regular cleaning and repairs. Additionally they will be in charge of managing the renting of the space. This includes marketing the space via phone, flyers and the web, securing renters, keeping a schedule, and otherwise generally managing the space in a businesslike fashion. At least five team members are desired for this critical and ongoing function. Unlike the other work teams, this group will continue to function long after the building is completed.

The Facilities Committees welcomes individuals who have both time to devote and the ability to work within teams and deadlines. A momentous and wonderful change will take place in our beloved dance community this year. We will get our own home. It is a great time to be involved in AACTMAD and the committee hopes many of you will join us in making this project happen.

Fifth Friday Fusion Dance (Drake Meadow & Dan Peisach)
The Fifth Friday Fusion dance series continues to offer an exciting blend of music and dance styles from all over the world. 'Twas Brillig and the Mazel Toves is always the main band, and there is always a guest band providing variety. We also feature a variety of callers experienced in the different dance styles we offer. We have also featured newly-written dances that represent a fusion of styles.

Finance (Ray Bantle & Kay Brown)
We have maintained the accounting system for the organization on behalf of the Treasurer. We provide annual Financial Statements as well as periodic Operating Statements for the board. We also file all required state and federal financial information including 1099 forms and tax returns. We publish financial reports and tax returns on our website. We also have assisted the board in its annual budgeting process, which utilizes the Annual Reports & Request for Resources (ARRR forms available in the AACTMAD office of our website - due by May 31 for next season's budget.) AACTMAD has benefited from the systematic efforts and dedication of Kay Brown, who has handled all of the ongoing banking and report gathering for AACTMAD's 20 active committees. Ray Bantle maintains an electronic vault of source and historical materials in use by the entire organization. He also provides organizational and finance/accounting assistance to committees on request, most recently to the start-up of our new Lindy Exchange committee.

First Saturday Dance (Richard Raymond)
The 1st Satuday Dance Committee continues to present monthly dances. The main dances are contras, with the occasional square, but, as opportunities appear, we have shorter sessions of, usually, English or international before the main event. The Committee strives to balance booking the finest established local performers, lesser-known Michigan talent, and regional and nationally-known performers.

Highlights from the past year include: using the August dance as a benefit for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, for which callers, dancers, and the Grange donated services or cash; and, in conjunction with the Concert Committee, having two nationally-known musicians, Ken Perlman and Alan Jabbour,in November. We have managed to continue having a small profit, due to donations and the Silent Auction, while keeping dances affordable and usually paying performers decently.

Fourth Saturday Dance (Ed Vincent)
4th Sat continues to strive to be a beginner friendly dance that can hopefully entice new people to get hooked to contra. We have the beginner class as a regular feature. Otherwise, our mission is to continue to provide quality music and calling to our dance community. We have unfortunately not had a good response for workshops- music or calling when this was last attempted and so this has not been pursued at this time. It remains an option if there might be interest and we will poll around for this for next season. Our bright accomplishment in the past 2 years is to build on the success of the Holiday event in December. The event was started by Dave Sebolt. The Fourth Saturday picked up leadership of the event the following year. The event is free and has generated a good community response and enjoyment for all who have attended.

Fundraising (Debbie Jackson & Ray Bantle)
We ran a special Kroger gift card promotion in conjunction with membership enrollments during the first half of this season. The promotion doubled the participation level in this program. The Kroger card and Busch card programs raise about $1800 a year for AACTMAD activities. We assisted in obtaining funding to support some of our Community Partnering Activities. We have made recommendations to the board for their planning of the Capital Campaign.

Mailing Parties (Nina Scheider)
The mailing team prepares mailings to members and other dance groups six times a year. They schedule flexibly to coordinate with the dance calendar production. We make it a priority to have fun while we get the mailings out. Occasionally, envelope preparation receives an assist from a group during a break at a dance. The committee members are Tom and Nancy Taylor, Norah Karsch, Kay Brown, Dick Fortune, and others.

Membership (Robert Messer & Ray Bantle)
We continue to maintain the database and support materials used for enrollment, mailings, and contact information. We maintain an email list of members who supply their address; this is the primary way we communicate with the members on an ongoing basis. We have shared the contact info with both MDH and DDW 2008 to assist them in their registration efforts. As of April 30, we have 256 members, who have supported the organization generously by donating $4,161 over and above their annual dues to the General fund thus far this season.

Pittsfield Open Band (John Lesko & Betsy Foote)
The Pittsfield Open Band (POB) We provide an opportunity for beginning and intermediate musicians to jam and play for contra dances in a supportive setting. Many of our members have gone on to form their own bands or to join other contra dance bands. We played for three Cobblestone dances and one First Saturday dance, as well as Robin Warner's Memorial Day Dance in 2008. We attracted the usual mix of Southeast Michigan contra dancers, with a range of 40- 70 participants. Events were held at the Pittsfield Grange on the third Saturdays and first Saturday of the month a total of four times throughout the year. Audience reaction is very favorable and encouraging with sustained applause at break. Both of our event sponsors have booked us again in 2009.

We met and exceeded our goals realizing ~ $2000 net gain in our fund balance. We have taken out a $ 10,000 CD earning 3.9% interest payable in Oct. 2009 We plan to utilize semi professional band directors to lead our group for all gigs in 2009. Brad Battey directed our March 2009 3rd sat Cobblestone gig. We contracted with Bill O'Conner to lead and direct us for our 25 April 2009 POB special gig, 6 June 2009 gig with 1st Sat. AACTMAD committee and 3rd Sat 19 Sept 2009. Dawn Swartz will direct our 3rd Sat 21 Nov. 2009 Cobblestone gig. Our special 25 April 2009 POB gig was be the first time the POB sponsored its own gig. This entails renting the hall, providing the caller, director, refreshments , sound and musicians.

Publicity (Joan Hellmann)
(As Joan Hellmann notes each year, publicity is not really a committee - it is a job) Each month, Joan send a listing of AACTMAD and other events to the local media mostly by email, but also a few still by US Mail. Please email details to hellmann@umich.edu by the first of the previous month for events you'd like included.

Second Friday English Country Dance (Fae Fuerst)
We're having a great season! In November and December we had 50 dancers, which is an all-time high for this series, and we had record attendance in March as well. Besides being exciting, this means we've been able to pay our musicians more, though still a lot less than a contra dance. The music has been fabulous every month! Childgrove plays about half the time (Debbie Jackson, Martha Stokely, and Anne Ogren) and we've had Earl Gaddis, Steve Schneider, Susie Lorand, and Brad Battey. Nora Smith from Philadelphia will play with Susie and Deb next weekend, May 8-9, when we join with the Scottish dancers to bring her in with Joanna Reiner. Joanna will lead advanced English Friday night and a Scottish-contra-English dance Saturday afternoon, and Nora, Deb, and Susie are also playing for the Scottish ball that night.

Our other side events this season have been an English dance for all and a choreography session in November with Gary Roodman, and a harmony sing with Tom and Anne Siess in March. These provide some fun outreach, interest, and variety, and often help pay travel expenses. We have a fun mix of theme dances with local callers, like the upcoming "Familiar Favorites" party Sunday June 7, September's "What We Learned On Our Summer Vacations," and February's "local choreography night." We also went local in January. So far this year Greg Meisner, Shirley Harden, Arlene Kindel, Ray Bantle, Dan Blim, Susie Lorand, Carl Fuerst, Tammy Corwin-Renner, Ruth Scodel, Mark Hillegonds, and Don Theyken have called. Regular out-of-town callers Richard Sauvain, Tom Siess, and Mary Jones came from New York and Canada in October, March, and April; Joanna Reiner will fly from Philadelphia. Gary Roodman doesn't travel much, so we were extra-thrilled that he could come from Massachusetts in November, and also very excited to have Kathy Anderson (from Ohio) leading advanced English in December, with a "contra-friendly" program.

We're greating great support from our sound techs David Kanistanaux and Don Theyken, and refreshment-bringers Ruth Scodel and Marty Wilson, with increasing participation from other helpers. We could still use a regular floor-sweeper. Many thanks to everyone who helps!

Sound Committee (Joan Hellmann, Richard Raymond, & Terry Richards)
The sound committee maintains a sound system for use at AACTMAD events and for rental to others in the community. It is housed in a closet at the Grange. The cost is $35/day or $50/weekend. We loan the system (with fee waived) occasionally, including for use when necessary at the Grange Family Dances.

Tuesday English Country Dancing (Shirley Harden, Arlene Kindel, Katherine Kendall, Kay Brown, Marge Cramton, and Ray Bantle)
The Tuesday English Dance series continues to flourish. We meet every Tuesday at the Chapel Hill Condominium Clubhouse, year round, with the exception of one week in August and one in December. Our attendance varies quite a bit, but our average attendance is about 30-35 dancers, an increase over past years. Summer dances tend to draw more families and young people, but the biggest crowd is generally seen at the Winter Solstice dance in December. We currently have a balance of $400.

We are planning an Anniversary event for the fall, to celebrate 25 years of the Tuesday English series. The event will include the originators of the series, Erna Lynn Bogue and Don Theyken, and plans are in the works to link up with the Advanced ECD series for a weekend of dance events. Erna Lynn has agreed to come to Michigan for this event, but schedules still have to be worked out.

Our goals are to promote a lively and energetic English Dance community by nurturing new and seasoned callers and musicians, and by drawing young people and other new dancers into our group. An English Dance library of books and CD's is maintained as a resource for callers and musicians. In an ongoing effort to improve our dance, a Food and Feedback potluck is scheduled before the June 2 dance, for the purpose of drawing input and suggestions from our attendees. Our hope is that this wonderful form of dance will continue to grow and enrich the lives of many in Ann Arbor and southeast Michigan.

Website (Ray Bantle)
I continue to expand, modify, and update our website. It contains our "public" face as well as the events calendar, news, and documents and forms in use by AACTMAD. I also respond to all of the inquiries that come in through the website and by phone. We moved the mail server earlier this year in order to strengthen the spam filtering.

Wow!

Thank you all for your creativity, commitment, and the fun you bring to the community!