President’s Messages
01/03/2024
Greetings and HAPPY NEW YEAR!! I hope each of you were able to find some time to spend with friends and or family or with us at the clubhouse over the holidays.
I am so excited for the 2024 year and we are going to start the year out right on January 28th at 4:00 pm, with our Annual Membership Meeting. BTW: did you put that date in your phone? We will need at least 44 members to be in the meeting or virtually. Yes we will have a zoom option for those of you that can’t be there in person.
Now that being said if you are not able to be there in person you may not be able to receive your Raffle Prize. Yes, you have to be in person to claim your raffle prize.
In the upcoming weeks you will have the opportunity to purchase raffle tickets for a variety of GREAT prizes at our Annual Membership Meeting.
What are we raffling off you ask? Well here’s the list so far. We have a few more in the works.
| 1) Autographed UGA Swag | 2) A hand drawing of 24th street |
| 3) 2 UGA b-ball tickets to UGA vs SCAR | 4) 4 rounds of golf at Jennings Mill |
| 5) 1 Yoga gift certificate | 6) 3 UGA shirts, S, M, L, & XL, your choice |
| 7) 2 Live Maine Lobsters |
Tickets are 1 ticket for $5 for 3 tickets, $10 for 7 tickets or $20. See any Board Member for your tickets. You do NOT have to be a 24th street member to purchase a ticket. All proceeds will go to support the 24th street operations. All prizes will be given out during the Annual Membership meeting.
Board Meeting Highlights
The board met Wednesday 12/27/2024. We the usual content of Finance, Membership, Concerns, Facilities and Maintenance. The board reviewed the tremendous support from our Giving Tuesday campaign and the latest additions and losses to our membership. The latter headed up by Tom B and David K. with support from Cody G took on the initiative to re-engage a number of individuals who have allowed their membership to lapse over the last couple of years. The results are pending but great to see the team take this action.
The board approved the opening of an Athens Area Community Foundation account as a “Designated” fund along with specific distribution language for the fund. This allows for individuals within the community to make donations to the 24th street operations or “Home of our Own” campaigns with little to no risk to 24th Street. The Finance committee also opened a 7 month CD at 5.0% to put some of our funds at work. With the additions from Giving Tuesday the finance committee was approved to open a second CD for the same time period. Again these investments have little to NO risk to 24th Street funds.
I’m excited to inform you that the board approved the 2024 plan to be implemented by our incoming board in January. We will be sharing the details of that plan with the membership on January 28th at the annual meeting. I will not shy away from the fact that we have some lofty goals for 2024 as we continue to grow towards our future and those goals will only be achieved with your support!
Finally, I want to specifically call out Tyler V for the wonderful job he does for us as our secretary. He keeps agenda’s, minutes and zooms all running smoothly. He is indeed an integral member of the board. If you see Tyler thank him for his dedication to us.
Parting thoughts
I was fortunate to attend a couple of meetings this month where the topic was the 1st step in AA. I was overwhelmed with the stories that were shared highlighting the immense recovery resulting from an absolutely crushing state of mind and body by the sharers in the meeting. It was indeed inspiring.
May God bless you and keep you until we meet again.
In love and service,
Jimmy Pirkle
12/07/2023
Greetings my fellow trudgers. I hope each of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. I know many of you were at the clubhouse over the holiday and I hope you had the opportunity for some great fellowship!
I want to start this month with recognition of a few folks. First, do you enjoy meeting in our facility? Do you enjoy a clean facility, air conditioning, heat, working bathrooms, and appealing décor. Well you can thank one of these folks, our Board members Jeff Y. Greg L, Rick F. lead our facilities, and maintenance responsibilities. They frequently take care of our home out of their own pocket and regularly stop what they are doing in their personal lives to ensure 24th Street is ready to receive the next suffering individual. If you see them around, please reach out and thank them.
I also want to give special recognition to Dawn and Shauna. Dawn is our contracted cleaner for the facility and spends significant time keeping the building looking good. Shauna, recently repainted the walls in the big meeting room and keeps all those plants you see around alive and well. Their dedication to 24th street is inspiring. Again, if you see them around, please give them your thanks.
Board Meeting Highlights
The board met last Wednesday and covered the usual standard content of Finance, Membership, Concerns, Facilities and Maintenance. The agenda included discussions around addressing some concerns, a tiered membership proposal, scheduling our security upgrades, lease planning the “Friends of 24th street” fund, and our 2024 plan was reviewed. The meeting for the second month in a row had a very full agenda and some great discussion.
I was asked after my last message, “who’s on the board, is it a secret?”. Certainly NOT. Here is a list of the current board members: Jimmy P, Amy A. Bobbi R. Tyler V. Greg L. Rick F. Jeff Y. David K. Randy P. Tom B. Chris C.. Please reach out to any of us if you have any questions or concerns. These folks are passionate about ensuring 24th street will always be open to receive those seeking recovery.
Latest News
Have you updated your calendar for our annual Membership Meeting? The meeting is scheduled for January 28that 4pm in the big room. We will be electing new board members AND we will be drawing for our raffle. Raffle, you say? Yes we will be having a raffle with some fantastic prizes. Including: Rounds of Golf at Jennings Mill, A lobster dinner, Yoga gift card, a local artist drawing of 24th street, and 2 tickets to a UGA basketball game. More prizes pending. Tickets will be available soon.
Giving Tuesday was a great success this year. A number of individuals have taken the opportunity to donate in support of our Giving Tuesday event. Special thanks to Bethany D., Greg L., and Russel B, for organizing and running our program. Their efforts were supported by Dick D. and Bob G. Don’t worry if you missed it, the link on the web page (by Cody) is still up and available. Donate TODAY!!!
Parting thoughts
Perhaps it’s just the season but with the Gratitude Dinner, Giving Tuesday and the dedication of your board members I find myself a bit overwhelmed with feelings of gratitude this holiday season. Meetings at the clubhouse are well attended and while we are not yet where we want to be financially I believe we are headed in the right direction. I hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday season. Check the calendar on the www.24thstreetathens.com website and spend some time with us this season!
May God bless you and keep you until we meet again.
In love and service,
Jimmy Pirkle
10/03/2023
Greetings and thanks to all of you that came out to celebrate our 5 year anniversary. We had over 40 folks at the celebration last month. Your support is humbling.
BREAKING NEWS!!! BREAKING NEWS!!! BREAKING NEWS!!!
Now that I have your attention I am asking that each of you put on your calendar, in your date book or whatever tool you use to remind yourself that we will be having our annual membership meeting on January 28that 4:00pm. We MUST have a minimum of 42 members in attendance to conduct business. We will be nominating and voting in new members at this meeting. This is your opportunity to have the power to direct our beloved clubhouse. Show up and be heard!!!
Town Hall Highlights
If you were not able to make it, all I can say is that it was one of the most spiritual and positive town halls we’ve had since I’ve been involved with 24th street. Jeff’s review of the history of how we were formed, Bill T’s vision and the dedication of the founding members was inspiring. Bobby and Tom both gave us good news in terms of our growth in finances and membership respectively. Amy gave a review of the IT committee, the Nominating Committee, and Activities past and future. BTW: Did you know that not only does Amy lead each of these, but she also fixes street lights, is the chair of the Executive Committee, writes policies and probably the most challenging keeps me in check. She is superwoman!!
Board Meeting Notes
Your board met the last Wednesday of September. We had a couple of guests as well as our usual quorum.
Major actions from this meeting were that we approved the opening of a Certificate of Deposit with a local bank to earn a little interest on our reserve funds. The board felt like this is a very risk free version of investment. Also, in the finance vein our donations and membership dues picked up a bit over the last month.
The board also approved creating the documentation that would allow us to move forward with opening accounts with Athens Community Foundation. While we have yet to formally open the account, as there is a fairly significant amount of footwork to complete to put us in the position to make an informed decision we are moving in that direction. More to follow in future communications.
The board also voted David K. onto the board of directors to fulfill the remaining term of Ray L. who unfortunately had to step away from her duties a bit earlier than planned. Ray has been a key contributor to the 24th street board and it’s members. We are all better off because of her efforts. We love you Ray!!
Parting thoughts
While I have been sharing more and more of the business side of the clubhouse of late and I hope that has been well received. I simply can’t send these messages without mentioning the overwhelming gratitude I have for you to allow me to serve you.
As Jeff shared with us the love and passion of Bill T and our founding members, the dedication of your current board members and your involvement I am confident that a loving spirit is delivering healing to those that attend meetings at 24th street.
May God bless you and keep you until we meet again.
In love and service,
Jimmy Pirkle
09/15/2023
Greetings all! Well Football is back and fall must be right around the corner. For you sports I hope you find some time to catch a game at the clubhouse in the lounge! Bring a friend and recruit them as a new member if you can! Tom B would love to hear from you.
I have some exciting news to share with you this month.
5 year Celebration this Sunday September 24rd at 2 pm
Where have the last 5 years gone?? From Bill Tumlin’s vision, through Covid to the incredible use of the clubhouse by hundreds each week today. I am overwhelmed with the blessings that have been provided each individual that walks through our doors. We will be celebrating 5 years this Sunday at 2pm. We will have a brief Town Hall followed by hot dogs and hamburgers. This event is open to all.
Upcoming business
Our nominating committee is in full swing. What is the nominating committee you ask? Well it’s the process for how we recruit and secure new board members. The process is actually outlined in our bylaws if you’d like to see the details. The short version is Amy A is leading the nominating committee along with several other board members recruiting and vetting potential board members. The recommendations of the nominating committee will be presented at our annual membership meeting. The committee has recruited some excellent candidates. If approved these new members will be taking the place of board members who are rotating out of their role at the end of the year. Our departing board members will be missed and their dedication to our recovery community and to each of you has been exemplary!
Annual Membership Meeting
Speaking of the end of the year, this is your way too early reminder that we will have our Annual Membership Meeting on Sunday January 28th at 4:00pm . More details to follow but I am asking that you put this event on your calendar TODAY. This is the meeting where you have the power! Your votes, your feedback, your concerns and suggestions are all required and welcome. This meeting is how the corporation conducts its official business with regards to the board as well as other important matters. Similar to when you own a share of stock you have a vote in corporate business the Membership Meeting in January is where you have a vote. Most importantly we must have a quorum to conduct any business. Our current membership numbers would indicate that we will need no less than 35 members present at the Annual Membership Meeting. Please don’t assume someone else will show up. WE WANT YOU! So said Uncle Sam.
Board Meeting Notes
Your board met the last Wednesday of August. Based on comments from several members we seemed to be rather efficient with the items reviewed and approved.
While our financials are stable from a membership and group rent perspective, donations have been weaker of late. This is not totally unexpected as the summer months tend to trend lower. With that in mind the board approved going forward with a “Giving Tuesday” event. Giving Tuesday will be November 28th this year. We have asked Bethany D, and Dick D. to partner to pull off this important event. More details to follow soon!
Also, we continue to pursue evaluation of investing in both traditional CD’s as well as developing a relationship with the Athens Area Community Foundation. Both initiatives are designed to solidify our financial position as well as build reserves in hopes of having a place of our own. We reviewed some updates to the building security and will be implementing a number of new motion sensors and cameras to help keep us all safe. The board approved two new policies, an IS Password policy and a Financial Authority policy. We also approved the use of the facility for a new recovery group. More on this once the days and times are finalized. We continue to grow!
Parting thoughts
There always seems to be more to share with you but I’m sensitive to overloading you with reading material. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact myself or any of our wonderful board members.
Finally, as I walk with your board members through the myriad of issues, growth and opportunities I am frequently overwhelmed with the responsibility you have entrusted to myself and the board. I regularly make an effort to always remind myself of Dr. Bobs last conversation with Bill W., “Remember Bill lets not louse this thing us. Let’s keep it simple”.
May God bless you and keep you until we meet again.
In love and service,
Jimmy Pirkle
08/23/2023
Good morning,