1991 COUNCIL OF COUNCILS MEETING

Holiday Inn South Milwaukee, Wisconsin February 16, 1991

MINUTES OF OFFICERS MEETING

Jim McCleaf called the meeting to order at 9:20 A.M. and thanked the Wisconsin Van Council for hosting this year's meeting.

Minutes of the 1990 meeting were read and approved.

Wisconsin introduced their officers, Jim introduced the members of the Council of Councils Board, and each Council Rep. introduced himself during roll call. There were 25 Councils in attendance.

Jim gave a recap of the requirements t host a Council of Councils Meeting and then read the bids to host the 1992 Council of Councils Meeting. There were bids from the Hoosier Van Congress, the Northwest Van Council and the Southeast Virginia Van Council. The Northwest Van Council won the ballot and the 1992 meeting will be held in Seattle, Washington on February 15, 1992.

Joe Madonia introduced the 9 members of the Nationals Committee, including Charlotte Jackson, the first woman on the Committee, He noted that meetings of the Nats Committee are limited to the 9 members, not for secrecy, but to keep the number of people to a manageable size so that the business of the Nats Committee can be accomplished. Each vanner is free to ask any of the 9 members what's going on with the Nats. He also noted that bids to host an upcoming Nats are due to the Nationals Committee by 6:00 P.M. on the Friday evening before the Council of Councils meeting on Saturday. In response to a question from the floor Joe noted that there was only one bid to host the 1992 Nats.

The West Lake Erie Van Council was concerned about not having a rep. from their state on the 9-member board. It was noted that the reps have to cover more than one state, or there would be 50 members on the board and they could not get any business done.

In response to a question from the floor Charlotte noted that it isn't easy to always get the latest contract & guidelines to the clubs wishing to host the Nats. This is true because the board is continually evaluating the input they get from the reps at the Council of Councils Meeting and from the vanners at the Nats. The board noted that they will try to have the latest version of contract & guidelines available 45 days after the Council of Councils Meeting and 45 days after the Nationals. The latest version can be identified by a notation in the upper right-hand corner stating which Council of Councils or which Nats the documents were revised at.

Joe noted that the plans for the 1993 Nats were to have a $20 pre-reg and $30 gate fee. In response to a complaint that there was not one "black" song played at the Nats in Texas, Joe said that the board would consider adding a note to the guidelines suggesting that a broader range of entertainment be considered when selecting the band(s) for the Nats.

Howard noted that the Committee will try to have a Nats suggestion box. The final topic on the Nats portion of the meeting was a note that next year's Nats will be held from July 16 through July 19.

It was suggested that van judging be separated into different classes; one for "home grown" and one for "professional". Desperado noted that the Nats Committee will be working on a set of guidelines for classification of vans for the Nats. It was noted that it would be hard to regulate vans that were "trailered" in. One rep noted that it wasn't fair to be prejudiced against an individual who spent a lot of time and money on his van and wanted to "trailer" it in. Another rep noted that it wasn't fair to be prejudiced against someone who wasn't good with tools, etc. and had a professional build a van to that individual's design. The comment was then made, "Tow it, drive, whatever. You're a vanner. Have a good time."

One rep wanted to consider allowing pickups at the Nats if they were affiliated with a van club. VATT (Vans And Pickups Together) is such an organization. The large majority of the reps noted that the Nats was set up for Vans Only and should remain that way.

Mark (of ALIVE) felt that the 9-member Nats Committee should be voted on at the Council of Councils Meeting every 3 years so the reps could have a say on who is on the committee. Desperado noted that there is a way to change members on the Committee and Mark should talk to one of the 9 members.

On the topic of communication between different regions of the country it was noted that the best way to accomplish this was the exchange of newsletters between councils. It has to be a two-way street, however. If other councils are sending you their newsletter, you should reciprocate.

New York noted that using electric heaters at events may pull too much current and blow the breakers. They suggested that we use propane heaters instead. Joe Madonia said that this comes under the general category of being responsible to your fellow vanners, vendors, and the campground. It was noted that, as of now, a host club using a supplier of collectibles (pins, patches, etc.) who has not previously supplied for the Nats must submit a sample to prove the quality of the product.

Several items were discussed under the topic of flyers. First, it was suggested that you have someone else review your flyer before you send it out to be sure it is clear. Some flyers have a postage size map that it not readable. It was also noted that area codes should be with all phone numbers on flyers, along with a campground telephone number that can be reached 24 hours a day. Maryland noted that they are currently undergoing an area code change from 301 to 410 and 301.

Howard Furtak noted that he felt the clubs should get liability insurance to cover their events. He also felt that the clubs should have emergency medical assistance. Doc said we should "recycle" at events. It's a good idea, it's currently required at some events and may be required more in the future.

Brian Walker took the floor and noted that the reps at the last meeting said we had waited long enough for a national vanning magazine, so "VANNING NOW" was born on the way back from that meeting. He noted that the Council of Councils Board is on the staff of "VANNING NOW". We have had good response in that we currently have 415 subscriptions, but more are needed to keep the magazine afloat. He noted that the mention of the magazine in Jeff' Johnston's article, in "TRUCKIN", must have gotten us at least 50 subscriptions. When the circulation increases we'll be able to attract enough advertising to cover the bulk of the expenses and allow the magazine to grow into what all of us want. He also noted that the Council of Councils is incorporated and is in the process of trademarking the "VANNING NOW" logo.

The Council of Councils' Directory (Number 3) was passed out with a "?" next to the names of those clubs whose address was in question. Please send in your current club address before January 1, 1992 to be sure your address is correct in the next issue.

Jeff Johnston took the microphone. He noted that more vanning articles might come out of "TRUCKIN" if there were more positive letters sent to the editor when a vanning article does appear. Even a hundred letters can make a difference. He asked how many vanners actually wrote letters to "TRUCKIN" after the last van article. About 40 reps raised their hands, and Howard said Midwest Van Council had sent in several hundred. Jeff said the editors of "TRUCKIN" said they had gotten only 20 letters. He suggested that the letters may have been sent to the wrong division of the publication. He suggested that all letters be sent to the editorial address on La Palma. A rep from Wisconsin suggested that each vanner send a registered letter, with return receipt requested. That should get their attention. He noted that "TRUCKIN" plans to cover three van events this year. Jeff also described three new truck-related magazines ("SPORT TRUCK", "SUPER STREET TRUCK", and "SUPER CHEVY") and noted what kind of vehicle the editors were interested in featuring.

At that point the meeting was concluded.

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MINUTES OF AFTERNOON GENERAL MEETING

The afternoon meeting opened with Jim McCleaf welcoming everyone to Wisconsin.

It was announced that there were 25 councils present at this years meeting. Bids for hosting next years Councils of Councils Meeting were received from Hoosier Van Council, Southeast Virginia Van Council and Northwest Van Council. It was announced that Northwest Van Council was selected by vote of the councils in the morning meeting.

John Cunningham gave a short recap of the morning meeting.

The Council of Council Board was introduced. The meeting was then turned over to Dennis Klumb, Chairman of the Wisconsin Van Council.

Dennis thanked everyone for coming, then introduced the Wisconsin Van Council Board: Sharon Moore - Secretary, Ruthann Dahl - Treasurer, Denise Klumb - Newsletter Editor, and Charles Stickles - Public Relations. The pass along plaque was given to the Northwest Van Council by Dennis.

Each Council was introduced and presented with an appreciation plaque for attending the Council of Councils Meeting.

It was suggested that the Nationals provide different varieties of music - music that would appeal to the black segment of vanning also. A rep from New York felt good music is good music and didn't feel "black music" is what’s needed.

An update on the 1991 Nationals was given: 6 bands have been hired, the bands will be inside. Games will also be inside if needed. Buildings available, electric, water, flush toilets, showers and porta-johns available. It was noted that no skateboards or bicycles are allowed.

Jeff Johnston of "VAN SCAN" from "TRUCKIN" magazine advised the group that there are two new sport truck magazines now out. Jeff let everyone know what these magazines were interested for their articles. He also stressed writing to the editor of "TRUCKIN" magazine to get more van coverage. Pictures of events and a contact person can be submitted to Jeff at PO Box 1002, Elkhart, IN 46515, phone 219-295-7820 (days only).

Joe Madonia, Great Lakes Region Nationals Committee Representative gave a review of the Nationals Committee meeting:

Handbook or guide - Board would like to get a handbook or guide together to help anyone hosting the Nationals.

Show N Shine - discussion held on standardizing Show N Shine. They are not getting much input from vanners on this.

Quality Control - the board is trying to get a standardized guideline for shirts, pins, dash plaques, etc.

A suggestion was made to have the board publish the minutes of the Nationals Committee meeting to help vanners feel the board is not being secretive.

The board was asked of a decision was made on the 1992 Nationals. Joe said there was only one proposal. The site for this proposal had to be checked yet and would be yet that weekend, the proposal would then probably be accepted.

It was noted that Doc has information on Boogie Bash, Pre-Nationals and Nationals. He also has information on things to do and places to go in the area.

The meeting was adjourned at 3:50.

Minutes submitted by:

Officers meeting: John Cunningham, C of C Board.

General meeting: Sharon Moore, Wisconsin Van Council.

ROLL CALL - Councils Present At 1991 Council Of Councils Meeting

A. L. I. V. E.

British Columbia Van Association

Colorado Van Council

Corn Belt Van Council

Downstate Illinois Van Council

Florida Van Council

Greater New York Van Council

Heart Of America Van Council

Hoosier Van Congress

Minnesota Organization of Van Enthusiasts

Maryland Van Council

Midwest Vans Council

Missouri Van Council

New England Van Council

New Jersey Van Council

New York Van Council

Northeast Ohio Van Congress

Northern California Van Council

Northwest Van Council

Ontario Federation of Vanners

Southeast Virginia Van Council

Southern Van Council

Van Association Council of Michigan

West Lake Erie Van Council

Wisconsin Van Council