1. Call to order by Pres. Mike Monday at 1:05 pm

2. Introduction of guests and new members. Number present: 29 current members attended. No guests were in attendance.

3. Approval of meeting minutes: A motion to approve was made by John Spencer and seconded by Doug Needham seconded to approve September’s minutes. Approval was unanimous.

4. Treasurer’s Report: Carol Ash reported $35,844.98 total monies for the end-of-month September, 2024. The financial report is available on the OOS website

5. Committee Chair Reports:

  • Membership – No Chair: No Report.
  • Programming – John Spencer, Chair: President Mike Monday will share his greenhouse and home for the November greenhouse and potluck meal meeting. An email will be sent with the time and address for members to RSVP if attending.
  • Show & Sale – Jana Butcher, Bridget Andoe and Marinel Kelley, co-Chairs: Jana Butcher reminded all to the OOS 75th Anniversary Show is May 2-4, 2025 and volunteers are needed. The volunteer help list will be passed around soon for members to sign up to help on days prior to the show and during the show. John Spencer volunteered to help Doug Needham with website and internet advertising of the 2025 Show. The poster competition was concluded this month and the winner selected. Hannah Hartman submitted two designs of which design number two was selected by a majority vote. Thank you, Hannah, for the great designs and congratulations!
  • Investment – Jana Butcher, Chair: There is no report this month.
  • Conservation– Mike Monday, Chair: Mike Monday found seed pods of Spiranthes, the native Oklahoma orchid he mentioned during the September meeting. The Spiranthes seed pods can stay dormant for a couple of years before sprouting. He also gave members the news that a list of conservation speakers is being compiled for selecting speakers for 2025.
  • Website – Doug Needham, Chair: No new items to report. Doug Needham wished to remind members there is a great orchid inventory spreadsheet on the OOS website for all to use. The spreadsheet is found in the “Resources” folder on the site.

6. Affiliate Reports:

  • Great Plains Judging Center – Catherine Chance and Jana Butcher: Catherine Chance reported that fourteen orchids were judged in September, with nine plants receiving eleven awards. The October judging, held in conjunction with the Kansas Orchid Show, awarded five orchids AOS awards.
  • AOS Representative – Gerry Holland:   Gerry Holland alerted all to an article written by OOS member, Claire Garrett, foeatured in the supplement accompanying this month’s issue of the Orchid Magazine. The supplement’s topic is fragrant orchids and Claire’s article describes how to build a fragrant orchid collection. Members were encouraged to join AOS for the wonderful resources available such as supplements such as these.
  • SWROGA – Jana Butcher, Bill Parker and Catherine Chance: Jana Butcher reminded members of the Fall SWROGA meeting. The meeting will be held November 8th in Farmers Branch, Texas with a Zoom option available for those who cannot physically attend. The spring show will be the Galveston Bay OS SWROGA Show and Sale held May 10th – 11th. Members are invited to take a look at the updated SWROGA website for a list of more events.
  • Orchid Digest Representative – Bill Parker: No report this month.
  • Oklahoma City Council of Garden Clubs – Jana Butcher: The OKC Council of Garden Clubs meets the second Friday of every month at 9:00am from September through May. Jana Butcher reminded members that all are welcome to attend the Council meetings.

7. Old Business: No old business was brought forward this month.

8. New Business: The Nominations Committee proposed the following list of candidates for the 2025 slate of OOS officers. Voting for the 2025 slate of officers will be done during a short business meeting at the November pot-luck/greenhouse gathering. Thank you committee members for reaching out to members to fill the positions!

                  President – Mike Monday

                  Vice President – John Spencer

                  Secretary – Kim Kyker

                  Treasurer – Catherine Chance

                                    Treasurer Backups – Barbara Alexander and Angela Hartman

9. Other Announcements:

There are several volunteer opportunities available to OOS members this Fall. October 26 is Halloween on the Green, Christmas light setup November 16th and Christmas light removal in January of 2025.

Jana Butcher let all know of a Christmas Flower Show at Will Rogers Garden Center. The OKC Council of Garden Clubs will have a table at the show.

The OOS Christmas party will be held at the home of Johnita Turner on Dec 7th, beginning at noon.

10. Adjourn Business Meeting at 1:40 pm.

11. Refreshment Break – Thank you, Hospitality Hosts!

12. Program/Presentation – Doug Needham, who gave a wonderful presentation of his experience at the 20th Taiwan International Orchid Show and 23rd World Orchid Conference, continued guiding us through his travels with an eye popping talk of Singapore and its orchid shows. Thank you for delivering a beautiful overview of the events!

13. Show and Tell Table – Many beautiful blooming orchids were brought to today’s meeting. Thank you to those who showed their plants and described their culture.

14. Auction and Raffle – Jana Butcher auctioned one plant she donated and Doug Needham followed with the raffling of additional plants brought by OOS members. Thank you to all who donated plants for today’s auction and raffle!

15. Meeting Adjourned – Mike Friday adjourned the meeting at 3:00 pm.