Guest Speakers

• Monique Borboen from Audobon of Florida spoke about conservation of coastal birds at Fort Matanzas National Monument and Huguenot Park.
• Bob Taylor from the Florida Open Beaches Foundation spoke on the results of driving restrictions at Huguenot Park.
• Each person spoke about their side of the issue for 15 minutes. We then had a question and answer session.
• The information was very good and the discussions prompted by the questions were lively.

Beach Clean Ups

• The beach clean up on 10/17 is being postponed to 10/24 due to the SR Workshop and the Art Auction.
• The beach clean up on 10/24 will be at 16th Avenue South at 9 AM.
• The November beach clean up will be on 11/21 at Surfside Park in Vilano Beach.

SOS/SR End of Summer Party – 9/12

• The annual Sisters of the Sea contest and joint FCSR party was a great success! Everyone had a wonderful time.
• Thanks to TacoLu for sponsoring the event by catering the food!
• Thanks to Groovie Dog, Simone, and B-Liminal for providing the entertainment for the event. The bands were AWESOME!
• Each organization lost $55 over all, but the main purpose of the event is not to raise money but to raise awareness and provide exposure for the two organizations.

Clean it up, Green it up – 9/19

• There were more than 60 people in attendance from various organizations.
• Surfrider focused on picking up trash along 1st Street since other organizations had already cleaned up the pier area of the beach.

Art Auction - 10/17

• Our Art auction will be held in Jax Beach on Saturday, 10/17/09 at the American Legion Post 129 at 11th Avenue South and 4th Street from 6 to 10 PM.
• The donations are coming in and they are great! You will not want to miss this event!
• Cabo’s Island Pizza has offered to provide a couple of pizzas to the event.
• Thank you to all the artists who have contributed to the event!

St. Augustine Meeting – 11/21

• The November meeting will be at Surfside Park in Vilano Beach on Saturday, November 21, 2009 at 10 AM.
• A beach clean up will be done in conjunction with the meeting.
• Tony Sasso, who is a state representative from Brevard County, will be speaking to the group on offshore drilling.

General Announcements

• Membership surveys were completed by 35 people which is a good number. Jax Beach was noted as the most popular place to have meetings. It was also noted that the group would like to do more fun activities like hikes, beach days, etc. If you haven’t filled out the survey, please do. The link is still active.
• The new T-shirts and tanks have arrived and they look great! The items are $15 each or two for $25. The items are on sale NOW!!!
• The Right Whale Festival is in December. If we would like to participate, we need to have volunteers for the event. Contact Ed Cronin if you are interested (ed.cronin@gmail.com).
• The Ancient City Film & Music Festival will be next November. They would like to contribute a portion of their proceeds to the First Coast Surfrider to be put towards local issues (to St. Augustine).

New Attendes

First Coast Surfrider welcomes these people to their first meeting:
• Roger & Janet Linville

Next Meeting

The next chapter meeting will be held at Surfside Park in Vilano Beach at 10 AM on Saturday, November 21, 2009.

Member Survey

Total members in attendance: 15
Guest speakers: None
Presiding Chairperson: Ed Cronin

Guest Speaker
• No guest speaker this month.
• Next month we will hear from Amanda Foley who wants to start a “Rise Against Plastics” campaign.

Beach Clean Ups
• There was a beach clean up on 8/22. Details will be noted at next month’s meeting.
• The September Beach Clean Up will be on 9/19 in conjunction with the City of Jacksonville’s Clean It Up, Green It Up campaign for the Ocean Conservancy Ocean Clean Up Day.

Guana Hike & Surf – 8/29
• Attended by Ed Cronin, Valerie Zevens, Donald Ster, Stephanie Rousso, Paul Gregg, and Anita.
• Thanks to Emily Montgomery for giving the tour. We will be giving her one of our new Surfrider shirts.
• We saw a gopher tortoise, pygmy rattler, and other wildlife.
• We will plan another hike for the organization.

SOS/SR End of Summer Party – 9/12
• The annual Sisters of the Sea contest and joint FCSR party will be held on 9/12 at the American Legion Post 129.
• Confirmed music by B-Liminal (the band we loved from this year’s Black Tie & Baggies Gala), Groove Dog, and Simone.
• TacoLu is donating the food for the first 100 people.
• $10 entry with dinner. $5 entry without dinner.
• Proceeds split between Surfrider and Sisters of the Sea.

Art Auction – 10/17
• Our Art auction will be held in Jax Beach on Saturday, 10/17/09.
• The American Legion Post 129 is reserved for us on 10/17. Valerie Zevens will be getting the deposit check from Donald Ster this week.
• The committee is working on getting donations. If you know of any artists who would like to donate, please get in touch with Paul Hayden (surferpaulcos@yahoo.com).

St. Augustine Meeting - TBD
• Hoping to have the November meeting in St. Augustine.
• We will send out the information as soon as it is available.

General Announcements
• Membership surveys will be going out this week to poll the membership on various issues of importance to them. It will be an anonymous on-line survey. Please complete the survey so we can improve our chapter!
• The new T-shirts and tanks have arrived and they look great! The items are $15 each or two for $25. The items are on sale NOW!!!
• We received 4 membership packets that are really nice. If you are going to re-up your membership now, you could get one!
• The Ancient City Film & Music Festival will be next fall. They would like to contribute a portion of their proceeds to the First Coast Surfrider to be put towards local issues (to St. Augustine).

New Attendees
First Coast Surfrider welcomes these people to their first meeting:
• Nicole Miller
• Morgan Southwell

Next meeting
The next chapter meeting will be held at this same venue on 10/13/09. Cabos is on 8th St S and 3rd Ave. in Jax Beach. The meeting will start at 7:00PM.

Minutes for the First Coast Surfrider Chapter Meeting that met at Cabo’’s on 8/11/2009 at 7:00 PM for the purpose of the monthly chapter meeting.

Total members in attendance: 20

Guest speakers: Beth Wetherford from the DEP

Presiding Chairperson: Ed Cronin

Guest Speakers

Beth Wetherford from the DEP gave a brief but informative presentation on surface water quality. She provided pamphlets and brochures for the attendees.

Beach Clean-ups

· The Beach Clean Up on 7/18/09 had 8 attendees. 80 lbs of trash was collected with the weirdest item being a chandelier. Thanks to: Steve Torvello, Donny Barley, Paul Hayden, Stephanie Reys, Julie Lawler, Ernie Douglas, Leslie Woodruff, and Erin Handy (with Lola and Carmen).

· The next Beach Clean Up will be on 8/22/09 at 9 AM at the Jax Beach Pier. Stephanie Rousso will lead this clean up due to other Exec Committee members being at the Surf Expo.

· The September Beach Clean Up will be on 9/19 in conjunction with the City of Jacksonville’s Clean It Up, Green It Up campaign for the Ocean Conservancy Ocean Clean Up Day.

SOS/SR End of Summer Party – 9/12

· The annual Sisters of the Sea contest and joint FCSR party will be held on 9/12 at the American Legion Post 129.

· Confirmed music by B-Liminal (the band we loved from this year’s Black Tie & Baggies Gala) and Simone.

· Ed Cronin will participate on the committee along with Jim Filmont and David Hunt.

· Committee meeting scheduled for Saturday, 8/15 at 3 PM at the American Legion Post 129.

Guana Hike & Surf – 8/29

· The Guana Hike & Surf event will be on Saturday, 8/29/09 at 9 AM.

· The cost will be $6 per person which covers admission to the outdoor recreation areas as well as the Education Center.

Stephanie Rousso will compile a list of those attending and will send out directions.

Art Auction – 10/17

· Our Art auction will be held in Jax Beach on Saturday, 10/17/09.

· Paul Hayden will lead the committee with help from Valerie Zevens and Evangeline Zamm.

· Valerie checked on the availability of the hall at the American Legion Post 129. It is available on 10/17.

· Thank you to Tim & Lori Cassidy for donating 2 pieces of art by their nephew, Ron Cassidy.

· The committee is compiling a list of artists to contact in regards to donations.

St. Augustine Meeting - TBD

· We hope to have a joint meeting in St Augustine later in the year to help stir interest in that area.

· Stephanie Rousso is leading the charge to organize this meeting.

· Suggestions have been made for: Café 11, a pavilion at the pier, a morning meeting at the beach followed by a beach day.

General Announcements

· Ed announced membership surveys will be going out soon to poll the membership on various issues of importance to them. It will be an anonymous on-line survey.

· The Surf Expo will be held on 8/20-22^nd in Orlando. Surfrider will have a booth.

· The new T-shirts and tanks have arrived and they look great! The items are $15 each or two for $25. The items are on sale NOW!!!

· The wind flags are in and are very nice.

· The regional conference was cancelled due to a problem at another chapter. Money that was budgeted for the conference will go to straightening out the problem.

· Thank you to Tony Ionnarone from Clean Ocean Surfboards for shaping and designing a surfboard for the Surfrider 25^th Anniversary. The board will be displayed at the Surfrider booth at the Surf Expo the weekend of 8/20.

· Erin Handy has stepped down from the Vice Chair position. Paul Hayden will be moving into that position. Recording Secretary will rotate around the Exec Committee starting with Valerie Zevens.

· The First Street Gallery in Neptune Beach will be hosting a fundraiser for the Beaches Sea Turtle Patrol. 3% of the proceeds of anything purchased with a sea turtle on it will be donated. This will go from 8/4 to 9/8.

New Attendees

First Coast Surfrider welcomes these people to their first meeting:

· Scott Johnson

· Jim Filmont

· Brooke George

· Adina Sage

· William Sage

· Leslie Woodruff

Next Meeting

The next chapter meeting will be held at this same venue on 9/8/09. Cabos is on 8^th St S and 3^rd Ave. in Jax Beach. The meeting will start at 7:00PM.

Total members in attendance: 20

Guest speakers: Matt Schrader, Billy Aley, Marty Durkin USA corps of eng.

Presiding Chairperson: Ed Cronin

Guest Speakers

Matt, Billy, and Marty gave the group a discussion entitled “Surfing and Federal Projects in Florida. The presentation was very interesting and a good discussion surrounded it. They explained how we can get involved and how the process works along with a history of projects in our area.

Upcoming Events

• Ed announced membership surveys will be going out soon to poll the membership on various issues of importance to them. It will be an anonymous on-line survey.

• The annual Sisters of the Sea contest and joint FCSR cookout will be held on 9/12.

• A beach cleanup will be held this coming Saturday, 7/18 at 16th Ave south at 9:00AM. Surfing will follow, weather and waves permitting.

• The Surf Expo will be held on 8/20-22nd in Orlando. Volunteers are needed to man the booth and discounted room rates will be available through 7/17 by contacting Ericka Davanzo.

• Our Art auction will be held at the regional Surfrider meeting In Jax Beach the weekend of October 17th. Ed advised the audience he would like to see someone step up and offer to assist Erin in putting on the art auction.

• We are looking to have a combined hike/surfing event at Guana Park on a Saturday in August. A date will be picked out soon and announced.

Other

• T-shirts have been ordered and will be printed next week. We already have been billed for them by the vendor.

• We hope to have a joint meeting in St Augustine later in the year to help stir interest in that area.

• Ed advised the group of the brainstorming ideas the EC had come up with during our last meeting. The ideas included, cookouts, surfing events and an event to hopefully be held at Shelby’s that would include music by Acme. More info will follow as more is know and decided upon.

• Ed noted the wind flags had been ordered.

• Stephanie gave the group and update of the recent ISD event. There was a good crowd, some fun surfing and over 300lbs of trash had been collected.

Next Meeting

Our next meeting will be held at this same venue on 8/11/09. Cabos is on 8th St S and 3rd Ave. in Jax Beach. The meeting will start at 7:00PM.

Hope to see you there!

Gave us a showing of the local movie “Inundation” then spoke briefly about it. Everyone enjoyed the movie which dealt with the post Clark Foam era and its effect on local shapers and surfers.

Upcoming Events

• The International Surf Day events scheduled for 6/20/09 were discussed and outlined by Event Chairperson Stephanie Rousso. She also discussed the after party scheduled for that evening to be hosted by MySurfari.

• Surfrider Regional Meeting: We discussed the regional meeting to be held this October in Jacksonville at the Hampton Inn. We will be holding our annual Art auction during the meeting scheduled for October 16-18.

• An update was given regarding the Sisters of the Sea/Surfrider BBQ to be held in September following the SOS surf contest.

• Evangeline noted that the White Trash Bash will still be held but no date has yet been solidified.

Recognition

Donny Barley showed the group the letter of recognition he had received from The City of Jacksonville to our chapter ” In appreciation for outstanding efforts to beautify Jacksonville.”

Other

• Paul Hayden noted our Surf Contest tentatively scheduled for 10/18 will have to be postponed because of a conflict with the Surfrider Regional Meeting.

• Ed mentioned we still need a volunteer coordinator. We may have a person but no commitment has been made yet.

• The new t-shirt designs were passed around by Val Zevens. The consensus was that the designs looked great. We will be moving forward with the purchase of them.

Next Meeting

Our next meeting will be held on 7/14/09 at Cabos on 8th St. S and 3rd Ave. in Jax Beach. The meeting will start at 7:00PM.