Minutes, August 12, 2026

We met at Virginia's house.

Present: Ashley, Fred, Dianne B., Dianne P-Q., Gail, Victor, Virginia, John, Maris

John Called the meeting to order at 7:34pm.

The minutes from the last meeting were approved.

Dianne B. gave the Treasure's report.  It was approved.

Victor gave the Booker's report. 

Victor suggested using an AI app that would transcribe and summarize the discussion.  I have lightly edited that to remove executive session commentary.

Alas, Marguerite and Ed are retiring to Massachusetts; she sends greetings to all, expressing gratitude for the opportunity to be involved with this group over the years they have been in Columbia.  She will remain on the board mailing list for as long as she prefers.

The meeting concluded at 8:45 pm. 

Treasurer’s Report

• Current total cash and details: See separate sheet.

  • Venmo balance cleared out to bank (does not affect service level)

• Net loss of ~$500 since last meeting (over ~2 months)

• Seasonal average profit: $20.80 per dance

  • Best dance (profit-wise): First Thursday barn dance, +$215 profit

  • Worst dance (loss-wise): June dance, -$168

• Full-year net loss: $237.78

  • Balance sheet reconciles to zero; it will be submitted to CDSS

  • IRS filing is essentially a postcard (revenue well under $50K threshold)

• Treasurer’s report approved

Insurance Decision

• Previous insurer repriced dramatically after recalculating total annual attendance

• Two options considered: CDSS insurance or no insurance

• Case for coverage

  • Protects officers personally from liability suits

  • CDSS has lawyers in every state ready to respond

  • Even a near-certain-to-fail lawsuit requires expensive legal defense

• CDSS pricing: $625 flat for 1–20 event days per year

• Vote 1: Purchase CDSS insurance. Passed

• Vote 2: Purchase ASAP (not waiting for old policy to expire). Passed

  • Rationale: current insurer may contest coverage given the dispute over attendance figures

Booker’s Report

• September dance: Dianne P-Q calling, Blue Ridge Rounders playing

• Sound: Tyler unavailable in September, replaced by Jay Joseph

  • Tyler to verify Jay’s equipment; may need supplementing

  • Backup option: Victor owns a 16-channel soundboard and speakers

• October: Blue Ridge Rounders return; JJ Luxe calling

• November: LettucePrey (Joey and son JoJo)

• December: Gretchen calling with the Contracola Open Band (her request)

• All other details on the Booker’s log in Google

2027 Season Schedule

• Voted to switch from 4th Saturday to 2nd Saturday every month

  • Simpler to communicate; only conflict is Mother’s Day weekend

  • Previous 4th-Saturday logic (avoiding Charlotte/Charleston) no longer necessary

• Exceptions and date adjustments:

  • February: 2nd Saturday = Feb 13 (Valentine’s Day theme opportunity)

  • March: 2nd Saturday avoids Easter (4th) and Carolina Meltdown (3rd)

  • November and December: 2nd Saturday as before

• July: schedule the hall but treat as optional; plan a workshop-style dance if weather cooperates

• Motion to adopt 2nd Saturdays for 2027 passed

Band and Caller Bookings for 2027

• Open Band: wants at least 2 dates

• Sherlock’s Meow: wants at least 2 dates (played only once this season)

• The Outsiders: dates TBD, depends on fiddle player’s grad school schedule

• Tea and Whiskey: availability uncertain, will be asked

• Callers: Stephanie Marie, and others to be invited; Joel and Chris from Charleston to be re-contacted; Tom previously declined scheduling conflicts

• Bands/callers to claim preferred dates directly on the booker’s sheet

September Dance Logistics and Next Meeting

• Treasurer away; door coverage arranged

  • $312 cash on hand covers band ($300); caller ($75) and sound ($50) to be paid via Venmo

• Hall rental check for September already sent; October check to be mailed before departure

• First Thursday event (November 5th): pursuing repeat of last year’s paid city event ($600)

  • Treasurer to follow up with Rebecca after return

• Next board meeting: October 14th

• Dianne and Fred traveling, returning ~September 16th

Next Steps

• Purchase CDSS insurance for the current season ASAP

  Cover the group before the next dance; old insurer’s coverage is in dispute.

• Book Arsenal Hill for all 2nd Saturdays in 2027, including July

  Contact Sedora at the city parks; coordinate with Tyler on availability.

• Send bands and callers the 2027 date list and invite them to claim spots

  Open Band and Sherlock’s Meow get first dibs on at least 2 dates each.

• Give LettucePrey feedback before November dance

• Follow up with Rebecca about repeating the First Thursday city event in November

  Last year’s event paid $600; Rebecca said she’d raise it at their next meeting.

• Dianne to Mail October hall rental check before traveling

Minutes, June 10, 2026

 

The Board of ContraCola met on June 10, 2026. 

ORDER: John called the meeting to order at 7:39 PM.

MINUTES: The minutes of the May meeting were approved as presented.

TREASURER REPORT: Dianne Britton provided an overview of the organization’s finances. 

In summary, we are holding steady. 

The report was accepted as presented and approved by the Board.

BOOKER REPORT: Victor indicated we are fully booked for the rest of 2026.  

The Booker Report was approved as presented.

VOTING FOR BOARD MEMBERS: The Board approved the slate of officers for 2026-2027, as presented. All officers are retaining their current responsibilities.

President: John Wetzel

Vice-President/Booker: Victor Gascon

Treasurer: Dianne Britton

Secretary: Fred Druseikis

Member-At-Large: Gail, Maris, Dianne P-Q, Ashley

Marguerite noted that this would be her last meeting as a Board member due to her relocation plans. The Board thank her for all her years of service.

LAST DANCE REVIEW: The May dance went well and there was nothing worthy of recording. Dancers had a great time and we achieved our goal of providing a quality event for the community.

POSSIBLE JULY DANCE: The Board discussed at length the possibilities for a July dance. It was decided to try to have a dance on July 11 if the hall was available. The Board decided to have a potluck that night, and the Board noted that the City will need to have more tables for us at all dances, especially for those with a potluck planned.

NEW BOARD MEMBER: Ashley was voted in as a new member after a brief introduction.

NEXT MEETING: The Board will reconvene on August 12th (7 PM social time meting starts at 7:30).

Minutes April 22, 2026

We gathered at 7pm at Virginia's home to enjoy some sweet things.

Present: Dianne B, Maris, Gail, Victor, Virginia, Marguerite, John, Fred

Absent: Dianne P-Q., Kenny

John called the meeting to order at 7:34pm.

The minutes of the last meeting were approved.

Dianne B. gave the Treasurer's Report.  After all transactions the net change was a decrease of $4 since the last report.  There was a bit of discussion regarding the "exit strategy" for should our net cash assets fall below the $1500 floor discussed some time ago, possible 2019.  It appears that we are not in danger yet.  It was observered that a significant amount of income is due to donations.  Certain fixed expenses, such as CDSS fees and insurance will be comming due after June.  The treasurers report was approved.

Victor gave the Booker's Report.  The following lineup has been defined for the remainder of the year.

April - Recorded Music / Victor calling

May - Outsiders / Gretchen Caldwell

June - Lettuce Prey / Dianne P-Q.

July - undecided maybe recorded music with Victor

August - Blueridge Rounders / Dianne P-Q.

September - Outsiders / ?

October - Blueridge Rounders / JJ Luxe

November - Lettuce Prey / Dianne P-Q.

December - ContraCola Open Band / Victor

It seems like every meeting we worry the issue of finding a larger space than Arsenal Hill.  This meeting was no different.

Several board members (Fred, Dianne B, John) visited the Elite Ballroom on Bush River Road. It has lots of space and a fair amount of parking.  It is easily excessible from the Bush River Road exit on I-20. It has an excellent sprung dance floor.  It has an ambiance similar to the old Emerald Ballroom.  Their calendar does not presently exclude the dates we have.  We are uncertain as to how long they have been in operation.  Costwise it would be substantially more expensive than Arsenal Hill.  The proprietor has requirements for dealing with food and drinks, and clean up, which affects the rental.  When we off-handedly mentioned that live music was a feature the proprietor expressed concerns about floor, heavy equiment, drum kits, etc.  That can probably be worked out once they get an idea of what we need. Per hour rental is quite a bit highter than with the city.  A minimum rental is required.  The discussion concluded that we should consider this a backup when we outgrow Arsenal Hill.

In May the board elects Officers for the next fiscal year.  All existing officers agreed to continue in their current roles for the next year.  The slate of officers for 2026-2027 fiscal year (July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027) to be elected at the next meeting:

President: John Wetzel

Vice President & Booker: Victor Gascon

Secretary: Fred Druseikis

Treasurer: Dianne Britton

Additionally, the following slate of At Large board members was nominated and will be elected at the next meeting, subject to their continued agreement to participate.

Gail Sullivan, Maris Burton, Virginia Winn, Marguerite Frongillo, Dianne Palmer-Quay, Kenny Greer

The issue of "Membership" in the ContraCola dance community was discussed.  As the Treasurer has observed, we are solvent because of the steady donations from those who care to see contra dancing continuing in the Columbia area.  Without those contributions our financial situation would be more precarious.  It was noted that City Parks deparment already requires that events be voluntary donations at their venues.  But there is still a lingering idea that the dance "charges admission" although our signage clearly states that donations are voluntary.  The basic idea was to promote a donation model of funding of the dance series, possibly with membership signifying an ongoing (periodic) donation to support the dance series.  The mechanics of doing this has been simplified by some of the software packages (Venmo, GiveButter) we are using already.  Members would receive benefits and there was much discussion about that idea and its inherent inconsistencies.  There was a concern that "members" contribution would be disallowed as tax deductable because they were given admission.  Additional thought would be given to these ideas and concerns with further discussion planned for the next meeting.

Next Meeting: June 10, 2026

The meeting adjourned at 9:06pm

/s/ Fred Druseikis