Page 4 - May 2020

GM Notes From Nate Pomeroy

Greetings to all of you. We cannot thank you enough for your continued support and faith in your Club.
Staff is busy planning for the day when we can open back up to our Members. We aren’t certain what that
day will look like, however we will make the open version as enjoyable as possible. This opportunity does
give all of Briarwood a chance to take stock of what we do and how we do it. I can say with certainty that
we will all learn some different lessons. Our goal is to come back stronger and more effective than ever
before.
At the April 23 Board Meeting, the Board approved the Nominating Chairman for the 2020-2021 Board of
Directors election. The Chair of the Committee will be Equity Member Ed Kraft. Mr. Kraft will be adding at least four
additional Equity Members to the Committee and for Board approval. Any Equity Members interested in running for a
Board position should contact Mr. Kraft.
Further to the April 23 Board Meeting, Board President Dan Beio reviewed several financing options in the event of any
operational loss this fiscal year. The Board authorized the use of our credit line (used every summer previous to the past
summer) to cover any shortfall this year due to the Covid-19. Last year was the first year we did not borrow from the credit
line as we used our cash on hand to fund the seasonal cash flow. As you may know, there are months when we make
significant income only to give it all back in the summer months.
We also discussed the importance of providing a warm welcome to our Trial Members. Dan encouraged the Board to remind
their friends to be gracious hosts. The Board approved the release of an additional 25 Trial Memberships under this
program. The Trial Membership fee of $350 per month for two months is an excellent value and is equal to our new Single
Equity dues rate. This two-month Trial has been offered for the last 24 months with excellent results in Membership
growth. The conversation was quite lively, however all were in support. Additionally, one thing we have come to realize with
the social distancing and quarantine rules is just how important socializing is to people in general. The human soul needs to
interact with others in order to be full and well-balanced. Socialization is like water to a plant in that we must have this to
grow and be our best self. The social aspect of our Club is vital to our Members. Let us make every effort to keep in
perspective what we have been going through this past month and a half. Be kind to each other, thoughtful of our fellow
Members, and always show the charitable side of our personality. Sometimes tempers can flare (especially while chasing the
little white ball around) so always remember “kindness breeds kindness”. Speaking of Member kindness, I am so proud of the
great number of you who have so generously combined to contribute $15,470 to the Employee Relief Fund for employees
who have either been laid- off or had their hours significantly reduced. We have some of the most giving and caring
Members in the industry. This is the wonderful culture of Briarwood!
We are waiting patiently for word from the Governor’s Office regarding the status of our pool. His proclamation holds the
key to our opening up our beautiful pool. It is sad to see a pool so ready for use but unable to use it. We hope for good news
soon but realize there may be capacity issues we will have to adjust to.
As most of you are aware, we recently had some repair work done to our well. We narrowly averted disaster and ended up
replacing casings, shaft sections, bowel and bearing work to go along with motor work done a few weeks prior. The cost of
this work was just under $55,000 and will be paid for out of our Capital Funds. As a result we had several good takeaways;
there is enough water capacity in all our lakes to cover a week plus of water reserves, and lastly, in the event of a major
outage, EPCOR water is available to pump into our irrigation ponds. It is more expensive than our own pumping of well
water but better than letting our turf die!
Finally, if you read something about a local Blood Drive being conducted, a request was made of Briarwood Country Club by
Vitalant (https://www.vitalant.org/About-Us/Purpose-Network.aspx). This request was approved by the Board for
Wednesday, June 3.

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