ROCHESTER MINNESOTA SENIOR SOFTBALL

BOARD MEETING

Charlie's Eatery

December 18, 2024

Amended

The meeting was called to order at 12:30 pm by League Coordinator Jim Goodman.

ROLL CALL

Board Members: Jim Goodman, Gary Oldenburg, Deb Warnke, Chuck Brand, Ben Borgen, Mike Ewen, Ernie Hain, Melissa Doe, Randy Stocker and Bobette Pronk.

GUEST’S : Joe Kluck, Kenny Nelson and Linette Fitzpatrick

SECRETARY’S REPORT: The Secretary's report for the November 20, 2024 meeting was emailed in pdf format prior to the Board meeting for members to review. Motion made by Deb Warnke, seconded by Ben Borgen and approved to accept the Secretary's Report.

TREASURER’S REPORT: The Treasurer's report for the month ending November 30, 2024 was emailed in pdf format prior to the Board meeting for members to review. Ernie Hain reported the following amounts: checking account $7,531.99, non-designated funds $5,829.56 and designated funds $2,003.68. Motion made by Gary Oldenburg, seconded by Deb Warnke and approved to accept the Treasurer's Report. Ernie Hain made a motion and Chuck Brand seconded to pay for the December Board meeting meal out of the non-designated fund as a thank you for the board members and managers.

SAFETY & RULES REPORT:

No report.

SPECIAL ASSISTANT REPORT:

Ben Borgen reported that Bill Gosse is in charge of the January Dome Tournament. Still need someone to take over the Twins tickets and the D&R Tournament. Mike Ewen will check with someone on TV coverage for Go to Bat December 20 at the Dome.

PUBLIC RELATIONS REPORT:

Nothing to report.

WEBSITE/TECHNOLOGY REPORT:

No report.

ACTION ITEMS:

None

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

1. Rules and Procedures Conduct Policy – Linette Fitzpatrick spoke to the Board about the word “Executive” Board missing from our Conduct Policy. Jim will bring back to our January meeting a revised wording. Linette also spoke about not feeling safe/knowing who she can trust while playing Senior softball. Jim read the statement that will go out with the summer registration including the acknowledgement of reading the statement on the sexual conduct policy.

2. Dome ball is going well. Tournament is scheduled for January 9-10.

NEW BUSINESS:

1. Liability insurance for Board members was discussed. Ernie Hain and Jim

Goodman will check into this and bring back to our January meeting.

2. Ernie Hain presented the proposed budget for 2025 which is pretty much the same as it was for 2024. Board will vote on it at our January meeting.

3. The 2024 audit was completed and no issues were found.

4. 2025 sponsors were discussed. Pannekoeken and American Legion are very much interested in being league sponsors. This will be discussed at our January meeting.

5. Eagles Cancer Telethon – Jim will send out a email to the Board, since we did not have enough for a quorum, to donate $1500 to the Eagles Cancer Telethon from RMSS.

6. The following motion was done electronically. After the December RMSS Board meeting, there was an electronic motion made by Gary Oldenburg for RMSS to donate $1,500.00 from our Designated Fund to the Eagles Cancer Telethon in January. This motion was seconded by Deb Warnke. Discussion followed concerning the amount of donation, and after this discussion, Gary amended the amount of donation to $1,250.00. This amended motion was seconded by Jim Goodman. Votes were submitted electronically, and motion was approved to donate $1,250.00 to the Eagles Cancer Telethon on January 18th.

Linette Fitzpatrick presented the following to the RMSS Board.

I feel I need to address the Board for several reasons, and I would appreciate your attention, patience, and understanding.

According to your RMSS Bylaws, Article

2, the RMSS objective states, in part, that RMSS shall promote good sportsmanship, physical exercise, fellowship and fun in league play through its Board of Directors, Team Managers, and individual team members, with player safety as primary concern.

Oxford languages define safety as the condition being protected from or unlikely to cause danger, risk, or injury.

In case you haven’t figured it out yet, I want you to know that I no longer feel safe at RMSS. It is, in part, because of the following:

At the first emergency meeting where the Board was made aware of Dave Fallon’s inappropriate touching and ensuing unwanted comments directed solely at me, you were instructed NOT to go out to the parking lot and discuss the issues with anyone. I personally witnessed two Board members pull Dave Fallon aside and proceed to talk with him about it until that conversation was broken up by Jim Goodman. I later learned there was a third Board member heard talking to another RMSS player about it.

Following that meeting and during the next week, I heard players asking others what was going on at the meetings. I watched as players were “quietly” pulled away and whispered to about what information was known.

Your actions as Board members have placed a “Target” on my back. I am constantly looking over my shoulder, constantly careful when talking to people and where I stand in proximity to them. My trust of you and other RMSS players has been shattered. I constantly see eyes watching me, judging me, blaming ME, for what someone else did to me.

I AM NOT WRONG.

I’ve heard the comments made by some of you Board members that were said about me. They are, in fact, accusatory.

1. “She’s loud.”

2. “What does she expect, hanging out with a bunch of guys drinking beer in the parking lot?”

At the end of summer RMSS picnic, I got a front row seat to the re-enactment of my own sexual assault, being portrayed by a RMSS Manager, who was facing me, standing in front of his buddies, loudly laughing and fake apologizing for touching my breast, while wildly groping his own chest for emphasis.

Out of the many people drinking and having fun at this RMSS sanctioned event, one manager chose to do this, knowing that I could see and hear him. What he did is clearly retaliatory and is meant to intimidate me. For the record, “He was drinking”, will never be an acceptable defense for his actions or those of Dave Fallon, and to suggest so is extremely offensive to me.

I have had so many different emotions throughout the past six months: Embarrassment, Regret, Fear, Paranoia, Anger, Disappointment, and Anxiety.

I’m a wife, mother, daughter, and sister. I ask that you think about what your reactions would be if this happened to your family member and IF your reaction, response, and treatment of them as a victim would have been the same.

I want the entire Board, especially the managers, to understand and agree, that I will NEVER be placed on the same team as Dave Fallon or Bill Gosse.

I’d like to say thank you to those Board members that have worked diligently to educate, investigate, research, and write new policy. I especially want to thank Jim Goodman, who has spent countless hours calling people, meeting with people, taking statements, and working on not one, but two investigative reports involving one single player’s continued misconduct. I don’t disagree that the previous conduct policy was lacking, not just for the RMSS member making a report of misconduct, but also for the RMSS member accused of it. I believe that the changes this Board has made recently were necessary and appropriate.

Thank you for that.

But you still don’t have the player conduct policy correct, not from a legal standpoint. The policy, as written in the RMSS Rules and Procedures for player conduct, is NOT correct.

Documented in the June 21, 2023, RMSS Board meeting minutes, is discussion about revising the player conduct process. A motion was made, seconded, and approved. However, the change that was made to the Rules and Procedures is, in fact, incorrect, or at the very least, incomplete.

The player conduct policy was NOT correctly updated after this motion was passed by the 2023 Board members. One word, one VERY significant word, has been omitted, most likely as an honest mistake, but still a mistake. From a legal standpoint the policy needs to be corrected to reflect the exact motion that was voted on and passed. Here is the motion as documented in the June 21, 2023, RMSS Board meeting minutes:

There was discussion on revising the player conduct process. Dave Warnke suggested a 70% vote instead of a unanimous decision of the Executive Board members. Randy Kahl made a motion to have 70% vote of Executive Board members. Gary Oldenburg seconded; motion passed.

The fact that the word “Executive” has been omitted has changed the entire objective of that motion. Legally, this is the motion that was passed. Legally, this is what the Board needs to enact and abide by. There have been three separate incidents with three separate victims perpetrated by one single RMSS member in just over one year’s time.

I would request that the Executive Board correct the omission error in the player conduct policy. I would request that the Executive Board then enact and utilize that policy in order to properly review the investigation reports submitted by Jim Goodman in regard to the two separate incidents of 2024.

Thank you for your time.

Next board meeting is January 15.

Motion made by Deb Warnke and seconded by Ben Borgen to adjourn at 2:10 pm. Motion approved.

Respectfully submitted electronically

Bobette Pronk,

RMSS Secretary

Any comments or concerns regarding these minutes should be directed to the League Coordinator. You are also encouraged to attend the RMSS board meetings to voice your comments and concerns.

RMS Board Meeting Minutes