1. Call to order by President Doug Needham at 1:00 pm
  2. Introduction of guests and new members since last meeting. Number present: 24 members, including one online via Zoom, and no guests. Welcome new member Brittany Koon!
  3. Grower Tips: Vice President John Spencer queried members on pets damagin orchids, and it appears that cats are the most culpable and prone to orchid destruction.
  4. Approval of meeting minutes: John Spencer motioned, and Mark Priest seconded, to approve the March 20, 2022 Minutes; unanimous approval.
  5. Old business:
    a. Doug reported that he had submitted OOS’s application for IRS 501(c)(3) status on March 31, 2022, using Form 1023-EZ and that, according to the IRS website, the application had not yet been assigned a specialist. [On Monday following the meeting, Doug received IRS determination Letter 947, stating that OOS is exempt from federal income tax under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 501(c)(3), and is further classified as a public charity under IRC Section 509(a)(2), effective March 31, 2022. See the “About OOS” section of the website for further details.]
  6. New business:
    a. Doug discussed the nomination of an elected trustee for the vacancy in the 2022–2023 term. The goal is to build board strength in non-profit governance and investment. May 22, 2022 is the deadline for submission of nominees and their brief biographies. Doug, then, will send an email to members June 5th with the slate of nominees and their brief biographies. Members will vote for the elected trustee at the June 19, 2022 meeting.
    b. No new business from the floor.
  7. Treasurer’s report: Carol Ash gave end-of-month March 31, 2022 Treasurer’s Report with total monies reported as $24,417.87. Visuals were presented of the finances. Motion for approval by John Spencer and second by Jana Butcher. Unanimous approval of report.
  8. Committee Chair Reports:
    a. Membership – Carol Ash: Carol reported 54 total active members, composed of 32 active Individual Memberships, 10 active Family/Household Memberships (20 persons), and 2 active Honorary Lifetime Memberships.
    OOS members Dr. John Salmeron, who passed away April 13, and Roy Hammond, who passed away April 16, were honored by presentations by Keith Warren and Bill Parker, respectively, on their histories and memorable personalities.

    b. Programming – John Spencer: John presented an overview of programming scheduled through the end of the year. Fun, interesting things are coming! See the OOS Calendar of Meetings & Events for details.

    c. Show & Sale – Jana Butcher, Bridget Andoe, and Marinel Kelley: Jana announced that they still need some help in some orchid show areas. For those who ordered Kiwi Bark, please, pay Jana personally for your bark by check or cash when you pick up your bark at Johnita’s. Register and bring plants on May 6 Noon–5 pm for judging on Saturday, May 7. Please, plan to help clean up on Saturday afternoon, as we have to be out of the building by 6 pm. Please help vendors to leave first.
    Jana reported that OOS will be offering a 10% discount on one year’s membership the weekend (May 7 & 8) of the show. It will be announced at the OOS Welcome Booth, and it is on the website.
    Jana reported on the requirements of the Kansas orchid show April 30–May 1 and the Tulsa orchid show May 21–22, 2022. Jana, Bill, Catherine, and Janice are setting up the OOS exhibit at the KOS Show, and they and Gerry Holland are coordinating OOS’s tabletop exhibit for the Tulsa Orchid Society’s Show.

    d. Conservation – Mike Friday: Mike reported that OOS member Zach Dufran had found a Crested Coralroot (Bletia spicata) last July on private property in central Oklahoma. Zach is protecting and monitoring the site.

    e. Website – Doug Needham: Doug reported that the website’s automated backup failed January 28th due to exceeding its 1GB data quota. He moved 700MB of videos to YouTube to reduce storage at HostGator and, thus, the backup size. All videos are now embedded in OOS Meeting Presentation Videos on our website. Public videos are, also, available on OOS’s YouTube Channel. Automated backups were restored March 29, 2022, and current usage is 327MB.
    Well-known garden writer and blogger Linda Vater posted a video tour of Doug & Jackie’s greenhouse orchid collection on her You tube channel.
  9. Affiliate Reports:
    a. Great Plains Judging Center – Carolyn McCabe, Lowell McCabe, or Howard Brown: GPJC judging will be April 30 at the KOS Show.
    b. AOS Representative – Carolyn McCabe: OOS member Jessica Nelson joined AOS this past month.
    c. SWROGA – Mike Friday or Bill Parker: SWROGA meeting will be held at the Kansas Show this weekend. .
    d. Orchid Digest Representative – Bill Parker: Bill asked us to see page 105 of Orchid Digest April, May, June 2022 (vol. 86-2), announcing the Diamond Award for Terry and Carol Ash. Congratulations, Terry & Carol!
    e. OKC Council of Garden Clubs – Carolyn McCabe: no report.
  10. Other reports:
    a. Dates to Remember: Doug noted the upcoming KOS, OOS, and TOS Shows, and reminded members that there will not be an OOS meeting in May. See OOS’s Calendar of Meetings & Events for details.
  11. Adjourn Business Meeting at 2:05 pm
  12. Refreshment Break
  13. Program /Presentation – Vice President John Spencer introduced Jana Butcher, who presented “Entering Your Orchid in a Show for Judging.” Areas discussed were pant selection, transporting plants, the WOW factor, ribbon judging vs AOS judging, grooming, labeling for public, draping, tags, etc.
  14. Show and Tell Table – Many beautiful blooming orchids were brought to today’s meeting. Thank you to those who showed their plants and described the plants’ culture. See OOS “Show Table” Photo/Video Blog for an overview.
  15. Auction and Raffle – Thank you to all who donated plants for today’s raffle and give-away plants.
  16. Adjourn – Doug Needham adjourned meeting at 3:50 pm.