Minutes: Hall of Fame Committee
September 19, 2012
The meeting took place by teleconference. It began at 9:00p.m. EDT and ended at 11:00
p.m. EDT. Present were Hob Brown, A.R. Ginn, Dave Williams, Dennis Joannides, Barbara Haupt, Sue Rose, and Ernie Hasse.
The meeting began on time. Everyone was previously sent a copy of the prior minutes and there were no corrections or additions. Sue Rose made a motion to accept the minutes as written, it was seconded by AR Ginn. The HFC voted unanimously to approve the minutes of the August 22, 2012 meeting.
State of the English Cocker Spaniel Field Trial Hall of Fame
Dennis reviewed our status re: ECSCA and the BDF and stated that the initial proposal made to the ECSCA was to create a standing Hall of Fame Committee which would then apply to the BDF to become a standing committee of that organization. Both groups accepted the HFC as new standing committees. This was further supported by a recent e-mail from Buzz Benson, who was chair of the FTC and present at time of presentation to the ECSCA.
Dennis went on to describe all of the actions of the HFC that led up to the current meeting and the selection of candidates to the ECSFTHOF. A computerize survey was placed on Field Cockers that was completed by 62 respondents in October, 2011. Additional input was solicited from the field and the FTC. A sub-committee headed by AR Ginn prepared a draft of the by-laws that was also provided to Sue Wilson in December 2011, as chair of the Advisory Panel (AP). Final by-laws were posted on Field Cockers in March 2012.
Sue Rose headed a history committee. She solicited the help of Kate Romanski and they compiled a time line of the history of the English Cocker Spaniel in field trials. Drafts of the history were provided to the HFC members and Sue Wilson for distribution to members of the AP. In addition, the AP was aware that Lisa Brown was doing additional research to further support the history.
Nominations of 4 dogs and 4 people were submitted by Sue Wilson to the HFC chair on September 6, 2012, together with a letter from the AP covering points they would like considered by the HFC. The letter and nominations were distributed to all of the HFC members and are the subject of discussion in today’s meeting.
There was substantial discussion about the points raised in the AP letter. Dave Williams had recently visited with Sue Wilson and provided further input. The consensus of the HFC is that they have received positive input with exception of a few people in the Cocker community. Furthermore, the feeling was that the HFC considered input from the field in drafting the by-laws. These bylaws had been posted for all to see and the committee felt sufficient time was given for comments. In addition, the HFC members, Kate Romanski and/or Lisa Brown were available if additional information was needed. The HFC welcomes constructive comments and is happy to answer questions and concerns of all members of the cocker community. However, it felt that delaying the HOF project was unwarranted.
Dave Williams reported on his discussions with Tony White and the preliminary proposal submitted by Tony for work to be done at the BDM. The HFC was provided with Tony’s estimate as well as photos of work that has begun by other breeds occupying the new wing. Tony estimated the cost to be in the range of $10,000-$12,000 for the project, but could not finalize his numbers until he received photos, copies of potential displays, and a time line. Dave Williams made a motion that we engage White Graphics to move forward with the project. Barbara Haupt seconded the motion and it was approved unanimously by the HFC. Dave will contact Tony White and provide him with items he requested.
Dennis explained that we had about $6,000.00 in funding that exceeded our buy-in and endowment at the BDF. He has received verbal approval from the BDF, for us to work with a single vendor such as Tony White. The BDF will payout the excess of the endowment for display work. We also have about $1,500.00 on deposit with the ECSCA for our use. Additional funding is needed and will be raised through the Wall of Champions and additional donations.
Nominations for the 2012 Hall of Fame
The HFC received a total of 8 nominations, four dogs and four people. One of the nominations involved a husband and wife that were named together. It was felt they be considered separately. Ernie also reminded the group about the importance of confidentiality.
Procedure for Selection, as stated in HOF by-laws was reviewed:
“After nominations are received for both dogs and individuals, the ECSFTHFC will meet to discuss and vote on each dog and person nominated. The members of the ECSFTHF Committee will take the entire list of dogs and people nominated and select three dogs and three people to be combined on the “short list”. The short list will then be discussed and voted on by ECSFTHFC Members. Each dog or person will be voted on individually in an open ballot. The two dogs and two individuals receiving the most votes, providing they received at least 4 (four), will be voted into the ECSFTHF. In the event that more than two dogs or people receiving 4 (four) or more votes are tied, there will be a runoff vote for dogs or persons tied in the first ballot. Each ECSFTHFC member will only be permitted to cast one vote in the runoff. The dog or person receiving the lowest number of votes will be dropped so that only a maximum of two dogs and two people will be elected each year, but there shall be no requirement to elect any minimum number of dogs or people. In the event that no dog or person receives four or more votes, then no dog or person shall be elected for that year.”
The HFC was provided with copies of the written nominations on the approved HFC form and copies of the AKC titles record where available. The Chairman summarized the information on the candidates. An open discussion followed about each of the dogs and individuals nominated. HFC members also offered additional information from independent research and experience. All dogs were considered to be qualified nominations and received votes in the preliminary round making those not elected, eligible for next year’s consideration. The HFC made its selection and it will be announced at the banquet during the 2012 NCC in Maine.
Evaluating the individuals proved to be more challenging in that all nominees have been deceased for some time and no HFC member had firsthand knowledge. Fortunately, as a result of the work being done by Lisa Brown, Hob Brown was able to elaborate on the history of the candidates. Substantial time was spent discussing the married couple and the feeling was the HFC did not want to establish a precedent of electing a couple as a single unit as this might provide a back door opportunity for electing future candidates who might not be worthy. In addition, AR Ginn pointed out that our by-laws specifically limit us to 2 people and 2 dogs in a given year and that if a couple is brought in together, they would need to be considered as 2 people for head count. All of the candidates were discussed. All received qualifying votes in the first round and they will be on the list for next year, if not selected. The fourth candidate who did not receive a qualifying vote may be re-nominated in the future. The candidates to be inducted will be announced at the 2012 NCC banquet.
The Chairman thanked the HFC for all of its efforts and commended them for the incredible amount of work accomplished over the past 14 months.
The next meeting is scheduled to take place at the 2012 NCC in Maine at a time and place to be announced.
There being no further business the meeting was adjourned at 11:00 pm eastern time.
Respectfully submitted,
Dennis N. Joannides, Chairman