Minutes of Friends of Nosara Annual Meeting
Sunday, January 8, 2012 at Marlin Bill’s Restauran
Board Chair, Bobbi Johnson, called the meeting to order at 10:05 a.m. at Marlin Bill’s restaurant. Board members present: Bobbi Johnson, Mike Olson, Peter Burke, Beverly Kitson, Sarah Antonson, Pam Lancaster, , Heidi Dawn, Donald Spears, , Elizabeth Maxwell and Alice Olson. Board members absent: Jane Marchant, Robin Lance and Kathy Santeiro.
Minutes of the 2011 Annual Meeting were approved as distributed.
Mike Olson presented the Treasurer’s Report, noting that, for the first time, Friends of Nosara received more than $100,000 for Nosara organizations in 2011. Gifts totaling $107,654 were received during 2011, and $114,448 was distributed during the year. He is prepared to make additional distributions as follows:
Biblioteca David Kitson$14,000Escuelita de Nosara 2,800SIBU Sanctuary, S.A. 2,350Refugio Animales de Nosara 1,150 Surfing Nosara Foundation 8,000
8,000Nosara Animal Welfare Assoc. 2,000Partner Organizations presented reports of their 2011 activities along with plans for the upcoming year. Brief summaries of those impressive reports follow:
Escuelita de Nosara’s report was presented by Saskia Ellemeet, the Program Director. The program served more than 200 children in January, 2011, at their Santa Marta School location. Activities included a beach clean-up day, horseback riding, a field trip to Garza, a hugely successful fashion show of things the children had created, and the creation of wall hangings which Saskia proudly displayed to the delight of all present.
Because Escuelita is returning to the Serapio Lopez School in Nosara this year after several years in Santa Marta, they anticipate even larger numbers of children then last year. Transporting children to Santa Marta in years past cost $2,000 each year, so the return to Serapio Lopez School is a welcome change. In addition to saving the transportation costs, Serapio Lopez is much larger, with six classrooms available, it has a kitchen for preparing and serving food, which was not the case with the Santa Marta School, and it is a well-contained area that will help to focus the activity. Saskia is anticipating the teaching assistance of many, many volunteers this year including six who are coming from Holland, four from San Jose and eight from Fairview, TX. Programs to be offered include filmmaking, cooking, science and theatre along with the usual sports, arts and crafts programs.
Biblioteca Kitson’s report was presented by Beverly Kitson. The focus of this year’s Library report was the involvement of volunteers at the Library. The Middlebury College program for teaching English to local adults and children is in its 16th year with 45 students currently registered. The four Middlebury students have the expert assistance of two teacher volunteers: Faith Burke helps with lesson planning and classroom effectiveness; and a new, experience ESL teacher volunteer has come to help with the design of course content. Elkhart, Indiana’s Rotary International Interact Program volunteers returned this year for a week of very useful work in June and will be coming again in 2012. They do whatever is needed: painting, computer work, small group work with children. And, they also make a generous cash gift to the Library each year, typically providing almost 10% of the operating budget. Volunteers, including a group from Mercersburg Academy in Pennsylvania, offered arts and crafts programs for children. And four local volunteers come regularly to do essential work at the Library that otherwise would require paid staff. This kind of volunteer service is especially valuable to the Library’s operation and is always welcome.
The Library continues to work with CINDEA, the Federal Program that prepares local adults to earn their high school equivalency diplomas. There are 150 students in that program now and it is in serious need of some volunteer assistance in math education. Any Spanish speaker who might help with some math workshops or classes would be most welcome.
The Program for Seniors continues (they have a traditional dance group now, and meet at least monthly for a variety of programs); small reading groups for children continue to be a great success and this year the groups combined students from Serapio Lopez and Del Mar Academy. The National Library System has been very helpful in sending books for the collection. The Library hosts celebrations of the International Day of the Book, International Women’s Day, and other international holidays as well as participating in local parades and celebrations – always involving large groups of students. The Library’s biggest current collection need is for books in Spanish for children and young adults.
FUCAN offered 12 courses this year, reported Bobbi Johnson. They believe they need to strengthen their relationship with INA, the Federal agency that provides programming for adult technical and occupational education, so that is a priority for the coming year.
Bobbi also presented the report of the NCA Beach Protection Program. Legislation is making its way through the national legislature that could represent a big change for our beaches. The legislation under consideration would recognize the squatter communities on Pelada, the long-time Costa Rican vacation home community at the south end of Playa Guiones and the Garza beach community. It might also permit construction in Guiones Beach Club up to the 50 meter zone. This legislation is not focused on our area, as some legislative efforts have been in the recent past, but rather is national and would apply to many existing communities that have grown up within the 200 meter zone. Beverly Kitson and Bobbi participate in a planning group that is following this legislation, so we can be kept informed as it moves forward.
Nosara Wildlife’s report was presented by Brenda Bombard of Refugio Animales de Nosara and Vicki Coan of SIBU Sanctuary. The Refugio recently went through a major move – transferring all their animals to a new location and requiring the creation of several new habitats. The move was completed and new habitats are being put into place as resources become available.
ICE has now insulated 42 Kilometers of electric wires in our community, resulting in a huge decrease in the number of injuries and deaths of monkeys by electrocution. The transformers are still a problem and little by little these are being covered. The decrease in monkey deaths from 113 in 2009 to 24 in 2010 and 18 in 2011 was cause for celebration; but a recent spate of electrocutions shows there is still much to be done, as 13 animals lost their lives in a span of 10 days, adding to the 2011 total. All of these deaths were caused by transformers; so it is essential to stay on top of and continue progress on that front. They have now put into place 220 meters of rope to offer alternative passages for the monkeys in hopes of keeping them off the wires and away from the uncovered transformers.
A big problem is in the making up in the San Juan hills where a developer has strung uninsulated wires which the monkeys are now using for passage. There’s no power yet to these wires; but when it comes, the risk will be enormous, as the monkeys are learning to use these wires to get from place to place. Monkeys travel much more widely in dry season when fresh, young leaves are harder to find, so this exacerbates the problem.
SIBU Sanctuary is now offering educational tours at $50/person. All reports are that these tours are really well received and the income is critical to continuing the work at the Sanctuary.
Surfing Nosara Foundation’s report was presented by Sarah Antonson. This past year the foundation invested $16,500 in materials and supplies for infrastructure improvements in area schools. Their infrastructure projects require the volunteer assistance of members of the school community and they have had good luck in getting that involvement. They also put $500 into arts programming for the school. Their projects include:
Serapio Lopez School – continuing construction of a new lunchroom which is now being used, though there is some work yet to be done.
Santa Marta School – Dina Gundelfinger and her Fairview, TX school community raised more than $7,500 for books, uniforms, school supplies and equipment for the Santa Marta School where SNF also has helped to create a nutrition program and a garden.
SNF’s Arts in the Schools program will be changed somewhat this year in that instead of an auction, there will simply be an exhibition (tentatively scheduled for April 20) with work by students and local artists available for sale. Money from the sale, as has been true of the auction in past years, will be used to provide art materials and after school programs taught by area artists.
Ostional School – Thanks to the generosity of some local residents and the volunteer work of school parents, the Ostional School now has a newly tiled entryway and computer room and three new bathrooms at a total cash investment of $5,600. A Spanish speaking part time computer teacher is being sought for the Ostional School.
The Esperanza School recently succeeded in winning the promise of new computer technology, but the grant required significant new construction which will be completed soon. There also will be a new kindergarten classroom; and accessibility changes will be made to the school building in anticipation of the arrival of a handicapped student in the year ahead. La Banana recently hosted a fundraising concert by well known musician G. Love for which Costa Rica Craft Brewery donated beer to be sold. The foundation realized $4000 income from this event that will be used to complete the work needed at the Esperanza School.
Del Mar Academy’s Scholarship Foundation’s report was presented by Heidi Dawn. The Foundation is currently funding six children at the school, with many other children from low income families enrolled at the school under private sponsorship. No new scholarships were offered this year, as the Foundation believes it is essential that they build a fund to address emergency needs. In tough economic times, privately sponsored children have lost their sponsorship and it has been a top priority for the Foundation to assure that these children can remain in the School. When the Foundation commits to funding a student, of course, their commitment extends for as long as the child is in the school. Thus, for each new scholarship student, the Foundation must be confident that it can raise the scholarship money year in and year out. With annual tuition now in excess of $7000/year, this is a big commitment.
Nosara Animal Welfare was represented by Sarah Foster and Diana Bell. They have been very happy to secure the involvement of Susanne Marin-Fallas, the veterinarian at Esperanza who conducts monthly spay/neuter clinics and is able to serve as many as sixty animals in a day at such a clinic, offering excellent and caring service. Clinics are to be offered in Nosara, Esperanza and Ostional. World Vets and the Costa Rican federal agency for animal welfare are both now providing medical supplies and medicines to Nosara Animal Welfare, and this has been a tremendous help as have donations of food for the animals Sarah cares for and/or holds for adoption. In 2011, Sarah provided rehabilitation and/or adoption for 114 animals. Sarah also has been offering/organizing educational programs for the schools to teach children about the importance of caring for animals.
The biggest needs Sarah identified are for a larger team of workers/volunteers to do the kind of work she can’t do herself, including fundraising. Phase One of the organizations’ building rehab (electrical/construction/painting etc.) has been priced at $20,000; with Phase Two (roof repair) requiring an additional $15,000.
New Business
The Security Association Alice reported the receipt of a request from the Security Association for partnership affiliation. Because the work of the Association is more far reaching than is covered in Friends of Nosara’s corporate purpose, Alice proposed and Donald Spears seconded a motion that we establish within Friends of Nosara’s books a special fund line for gifts that are dedicated to the support of the police in Nosara Central. The Association has been paying electricity and water bills for the Nosara Fuerza Publica building and hopes to be able to construct a new building soon. These purposes were deemed consistent with Friends of Nosara’s purposes and thus gifts to support these items and other directly benefiting Nosara pueble could be made through Friends of Nosara if we had such a fund. It would be analogous to the fund we used to maintain for gifts to the public schools and money would be released from it only for specified, acceptable uses. The motion passed unanimously.
The Volunteer Firefighters Association Bobbi Johnson presented a request for partnership affiliation from the Nosara Volunteer Fire Fighters. They have received a tank and pump to be used for fighting fires and they have been in regular training so that they can effectively respond to local fire emergencies. They have additional needs and have ambitions to expand their presence to several locations to enhance their response capabilities. They have not yet completed establishing their Association but Bobbi moved and Pam seconded the motion that, when the Volunteer Firefighters have completed the legal work to create their association, they be welcomed to Friends of Nosara partnership. The motion carried unanimously.
Nosara Recycling Association Jessica Sheffield made a presentation on behalf of the Nosara Recycling Association highlighting several current programs. “Nosara Without Styrofoam” seeks to assist every restaurant in replacing Styrofoam with recycled, bio-degradable supplies. Many already have made the transition, but the work continues.
The Association also hopes to effect the wide distribution and availability of biodegradable and transparent bags for recycling. These will soon be available in all our local grocery stores.
Students from New York Institute of Technology recently participated as teams in a design contest for a recycling center for Nosara. The three top teams will present their designs on Friday, January 13, at 6 p.m. at Rancho Tico. All are encouraged to attend; a final design will be selected by a vote of the people. Then a fundraising effort will be undertaken to build the center which is to be located near the dump. Bobbi Johnson noted that one of the items on the NCA’s Annual Meeting Agenda will be a proposal that the NCA contribute $20,000 to the construction costs for the Recycling Center.
Jessica noted the success of Sustainable Nosara’s Expo held in early December and said the Recycling Association will be working with Sustainable Nosara in hopes of making this an annual community education event.
Jessica also announced that Nosara has been chosen as a pilot program site for a new project of the Blue Flag Ecology Program of the Federal Government. The program, which Jessica designed and submitted to a National competition, encourages and rewards environmentally responsible behavior by individuals and families in their homes. It will include workshops on sustainable behaviors, enrollment of committed households in the program and the award of a beautiful mountable wooden plaque to homes that meet requirements of the program. It is to be a national program first piloted in an urban and a rural setting with Nosara to be the rural pilot location.
Liz moved and Peter seconded that Friends of Nosara welcome Nosara Recycling Association to Friends of Nosara partnership. The motion carried unanimously.
Nosara Resale
Bobbi introduced Thea Judge, the owner and operator of Nosara ReSale a consignment and resale shop located above Surfing Nosara in the Guiones commercial area. Opened in November, the shop has been a great success and Thea has committed 50% of its proceeds to Friends of Nosara. She was pleased to announce that the first month’s gift will be $870. The shop is open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. All are encouraged to spread the word and to consider what they might like to resell or contribute in the way of quality used household goods, appliance and/or clothing. Children’s and men’s clothing are especially in demand, Thea reported, and the shop has many regular clients who return every three or four days to see what’s newly available. Maintaining a strong inventory is the shop’s biggest challenge and Thea invites help meeting it. The shop’s donations to Friends of Nosara will be distributed to the partner organizations in turn, month by month.
Announcements
Bobbi announced that the NCA’s information meeting will be held Tuesday, January 10 and is open to all. The Annual General Assembly will be held on January 24. Only members have voting rights at the General Assembly.
The ASADA Annual Meeting and election will be held in February. The ASADA is seeking a new president and several new board members. Costa Rican law requires gender balance in such boards, so women, especially, are encouraged to consider offering their service.
The meeting adjourned at 12:15 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Alice Olson, Secretary
Minutes of Friends of Nosara Annual Meeting, 2012
Board Chair, Bobbi Johnson, called the meeting to order at 10:05 a.m. at Marlin Bill’s restaurant. Board members present: Bobbi Johnson, Mike Olson, Peter Burke, Beverly Kitson, Sarah Antonson, Pam Lancaster, , Heidi Dawn, Donald Spears, , Elizabeth Maxwell and Alice Olson. Board members absent: Jane Marchant, Robin Lance and Kathy Santeiro.
Minutes of the 2011 Annual Meeting were approved as distributed.
Mike Olson presented the Treasurer’s Report, noting that, for the first time, Friends of Nosara received more than $100,000 for Nosara organizations in 2011. Gifts totaling $107,654 were received during 2011, and $114,448 was distributed during the year. He is prepared to make additional distributions as follows:
Biblioteca David Kitson$14,000Escuelita de Nosara 2,800SIBU Sanctuary, S.A. 2,350Refugio Animales de Nosara 1,150 Surfing Nosara Foundation 8,000
8,000Nosara Animal Welfare Assoc. 2,000Partner Organizations presented reports of their 2011 activities along with plans for the upcoming year. Brief summaries of those impressive reports follow:
Escuelita de Nosara’s report was presented by Saskia Ellemeet, the Program Director. The program served more than 200 children in January, 2011, at their Santa Marta School location. Activities included a beach clean-up day, horseback riding, a field trip to Garza, a hugely successful fashion show of things the children had created, and the creation of wall hangings which Saskia proudly displayed to the delight of all present.
Because Escuelita is returning to the Serapio Lopez School in Nosara this year after several years in Santa Marta, they anticipate even larger numbers of children then last year. Transporting children to Santa Marta in years past cost $2,000 each year, so the return to Serapio Lopez School is a welcome change. In addition to saving the transportation costs, Serapio Lopez is much larger, with six classrooms available, it has a kitchen for preparing and serving food, which was not the case with the Santa Marta School, and it is a well-contained area that will help to focus the activity. Saskia is anticipating the teaching assistance of many, many volunteers this year including six who are coming from Holland, four from San Jose and eight from Fairview, TX. Programs to be offered include filmmaking, cooking, science and theatre along with the usual sports, arts and crafts programs.
Biblioteca Kitson’s report was presented by Beverly Kitson. The focus of this year’s Library report was the involvement of volunteers at the Library. The Middlebury College program for teaching English to local adults and children is in its 16th year with 45 students currently registered. The four Middlebury students have the expert assistance of two teacher volunteers: Faith Burke helps with lesson planning and classroom effectiveness; and a new, experience ESL teacher volunteer has come to help with the design of course content. Elkhart, Indiana’s Rotary International Interact Program volunteers returned this year for a week of very useful work in June and will be coming again in 2012. They do whatever is needed: painting, computer work, small group work with children. And, they also make a generous cash gift to the Library each year, typically providing almost 10% of the operating budget. Volunteers, including a group from Mercersburg Academy in Pennsylvania, offered arts and crafts programs for children. And four local volunteers come regularly to do essential work at the Library that otherwise would require paid staff. This kind of volunteer service is especially valuable to the Library’s operation and is always welcome.
The Library continues to work with CINDEA, the Federal Program that prepares local adults to earn their high school equivalency diplomas. There are 150 students in that program now and it is in serious need of some volunteer assistance in math education. Any Spanish speaker who might help with some math workshops or classes would be most welcome.
The Program for Seniors continues (they have a traditional dance group now, and meet at least monthly for a variety of programs); small reading groups for children continue to be a great success and this year the groups combined students from Serapio Lopez and Del Mar Academy. The National Library System has been very helpful in sending books for the collection. The Library hosts celebrations of the International Day of the Book, International Women’s Day, and other international holidays as well as participating in local parades and celebrations – always involving large groups of students. The Library’s biggest current collection need is for books in Spanish for children and young adults.
FUCAN offered 12 courses this year, reported Bobbi Johnson. They believe they need to strengthen their relationship with INA, the Federal agency that provides programming for adult technical and occupational education, so that is a priority for the coming year.
Bobbi also presented the report of the NCA Beach Protection Program. Legislation is making its way through the national legislature that could represent a big change for our beaches. The legislation under consideration would recognize the squatter communities on Pelada, the long-time Costa Rican vacation home community at the south end of Playa Guiones and the Garza beach community. It might also permit construction in Guiones Beach Club up to the 50 meter zone. This legislation is not focused on our area, as some legislative efforts have been in the recent past, but rather is national and would apply to many existing communities that have grown up within the 200 meter zone. Beverly Kitson and Bobbi participate in a planning group that is following this legislation, so we can be kept informed as it moves forward.
Nosara Wildlife’s report was presented by Brenda Bombard of Refugio Animales de Nosara and Vicki Coan of SIBU Sanctuary. The Refugio recently went through a major move – transferring all their animals to a new location and requiring the creation of several new habitats. The move was completed and new habitats are being put into place as resources become available.
ICE has now insulated 42 Kilometers of electric wires in our community, resulting in a huge decrease in the number of injuries and deaths of monkeys by electrocution. The transformers are still a problem and little by little these are being covered. The decrease in monkey deaths from 113 in 2009 to 24 in 2010 and 18 in 2011 was cause for celebration; but a recent spate of electrocutions shows there is still much to be done, as 13 animals lost their lives in a span of 10 days, adding to the 2011 total. All of these deaths were caused by transformers; so it is essential to stay on top of and continue progress on that front. They have now put into place 220 meters of rope to offer alternative passages for the monkeys in hopes of keeping them off the wires and away from the uncovered transformers.
A big problem is in the making up in the San Juan hills where a developer has strung uninsulated wires which the monkeys are now using for passage. There’s no power yet to these wires; but when it comes, the risk will be enormous, as the monkeys are learning to use these wires to get from place to place. Monkeys travel much more widely in dry season when fresh, young leaves are harder to find, so this exacerbates the problem.
SIBU Sanctuary is now offering educational tours at $50/person. All reports are that these tours are really well received and the income is critical to continuing the work at the Sanctuary.
Surfing Nosara Foundation’s report was presented by Sarah Antonson. This past year the foundation invested $16,500 in materials and supplies for infrastructure improvements in area schools. Their infrastructure projects require the volunteer assistance of members of the school community and they have had good luck in getting that involvement. They also put $500 into arts programming for the school. Their projects include:
Serapio Lopez School – continuing construction of a new lunchroom which is now being used, though there is some work yet to be done.
Santa Marta School – Dina Gundelfinger and her Fairview, TX school community raised more than $7,500 for books, uniforms, school supplies and equipment for the Santa Marta School where SNF also has helped to create a nutrition program and a garden.
SNF’s Arts in the Schools program will be changed somewhat this year in that instead of an auction, there will simply be an exhibition (tentatively scheduled for April 20) with work by students and local artists available for sale. Money from the sale, as has been true of the auction in past years, will be used to provide art materials and after school programs taught by area artists.
Ostional School – Thanks to the generosity of some local residents and the volunteer work of school parents, the Ostional School now has a newly tiled entryway and computer room and three new bathrooms at a total cash investment of $5,600. A Spanish speaking part time computer teacher is being sought for the Ostional School.
The Esperanza School recently succeeded in winning the promise of new computer technology, but the grant required significant new construction which will be completed soon. There also will be a new kindergarten classroom; and accessibility changes will be made to the school building in anticipation of the arrival of a handicapped student in the year ahead. La Banana recently hosted a fundraising concert by well known musician G. Love for which Costa Rica Craft Brewery donated beer to be sold. The foundation realized $4000 income from this event that will be used to complete the work needed at the Esperanza School.
Del Mar Academy’s Scholarship Foundation’s report was presented by Heidi Dawn. The Foundation is currently funding six children at the school, with many other children from low income families enrolled at the school under private sponsorship. No new scholarships were offered this year, as the Foundation believes it is essential that they build a fund to address emergency needs. In tough economic times, privately sponsored children have lost their sponsorship and it has been a top priority for the Foundation to assure that these children can remain in the School. When the Foundation commits to funding a student, of course, their commitment extends for as long as the child is in the school. Thus, for each new scholarship student, the Foundation must be confident that it can raise the scholarship money year in and year out. With annual tuition now in excess of $7000/year, this is a big commitment.
Nosara Animal Welfare was represented by Sarah Foster and Diana Bell. They have been very happy to secure the involvement of Susanne Marin-Fallas, the veterinarian at Esperanza who conducts monthly spay/neuter clinics and is able to serve as many as sixty animals in a day at such a clinic, offering excellent and caring service. Clinics are to be offered in Nosara, Esperanza and Ostional. World Vets and the Costa Rican federal agency for animal welfare are both now providing medical supplies and medicines to Nosara Animal Welfare, and this has been a tremendous help as have donations of food for the animals Sarah cares for and/or holds for adoption. In 2011, Sarah provided rehabilitation and/or adoption for 114 animals. Sarah also has been offering/organizing educational programs for the schools to teach children about the importance of caring for animals.
The biggest needs Sarah identified are for a larger team of workers/volunteers to do the kind of work she can’t do herself, including fundraising. Phase One of the organizations’ building rehab (electrical/construction/painting etc.) has been priced at $20,000; with Phase Two (roof repair) requiring an additional $15,000.
New Business
The Security Association Alice reported the receipt of a request from the Security Association for partnership affiliation. Because the work of the Association is more far reaching than is covered in Friends of Nosara’s corporate purpose, Alice proposed and Donald Spears seconded a motion that we establish within Friends of Nosara’s books a special fund line for gifts that are dedicated to the support of the police in Nosara Central. The Association has been paying electricity and water bills for the Nosara Fuerza Publica building and hopes to be able to construct a new building soon. These purposes were deemed consistent with Friends of Nosara’s purposes and thus gifts to support these items and other directly benefiting Nosara pueble could be made through Friends of Nosara if we had such a fund. It would be analogous to the fund we used to maintain for gifts to the public schools and money would be released from it only for specified, acceptable uses. The motion passed unanimously.
The Volunteer Firefighters Association Bobbi Johnson presented a request for partnership affiliation from the Nosara Volunteer Fire Fighters. They have received a tank and pump to be used for fighting fires and they have been in regular training so that they can effectively respond to local fire emergencies. They have additional needs and have ambitions to expand their presence to several locations to enhance their response capabilities. They have not yet completed establishing their Association but Bobbi moved and Pam seconded the motion that, when the Volunteer Firefighters have completed the legal work to create their association, they be welcomed to Friends of Nosara partnership. The motion carried unanimously.
Nosara Recycling Association Jessica Sheffield made a presentation on behalf of the Nosara Recycling Association highlighting several current programs. “Nosara Without Styrofoam” seeks to assist every restaurant in replacing Styrofoam with recycled, bio-degradable supplies. Many already have made the transition, but the work continues.
The Association also hopes to effect the wide distribution and availability of biodegradable and transparent bags for recycling. These will soon be available in all our local grocery stores.
Students from New York Institute of Technology recently participated as teams in a design contest for a recycling center for Nosara. The three top teams will present their designs on Friday, January 13, at 6 p.m. at Rancho Tico. All are encouraged to attend; a final design will be selected by a vote of the people. Then a fundraising effort will be undertaken to build the center which is to be located near the dump. Bobbi Johnson noted that one of the items on the NCA’s Annual Meeting Agenda will be a proposal that the NCA contribute $20,000 to the construction costs for the Recycling Center.
Jessica noted the success of Sustainable Nosara’s Expo held in early December and said the Recycling Association will be working with Sustainable Nosara in hopes of making this an annual community education event.
Jessica also announced that Nosara has been chosen as a pilot program site for a new project of the Blue Flag Ecology Program of the Federal Government. The program, which Jessica designed and submitted to a National competition, encourages and rewards environmentally responsible behavior by individuals and families in their homes. It will include workshops on sustainable behaviors, enrollment of committed households in the program and the award of a beautiful mountable wooden plaque to homes that meet requirements of the program. It is to be a national program first piloted in an urban and a rural setting with Nosara to be the rural pilot location.
Liz moved and Peter seconded that Friends of Nosara welcome Nosara Recycling Association to Friends of Nosara partnership. The motion carried unanimously.
Nosara Resale
Bobbi introduced Thea Judge, the owner and operator of Nosara ReSale a consignment and resale shop located above Surfing Nosara in the Guiones commercial area. Opened in November, the shop has been a great success and Thea has committed 50% of its proceeds to Friends of Nosara. She was pleased to announce that the first month’s gift will be $870. The shop is open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. All are encouraged to spread the word and to consider what they might like to resell or contribute in the way of quality used household goods, appliance and/or clothing. Children’s and men’s clothing are especially in demand, Thea reported, and the shop has many regular clients who return every three or four days to see what’s newly available. Maintaining a strong inventory is the shop’s biggest challenge and Thea invites help meeting it. The shop’s donations to Friends of Nosara will be distributed to the partner organizations in turn, month by month.
Announcements
Bobbi announced that the NCA’s information meeting will be held Tuesday, January 10 and is open to all. The Annual General Assembly will be held on January 24. Only members have voting rights at the General Assembly.
The ASADA Annual Meeting and election will be held in February. The ASADA is seeking a new president and several new board members. Costa Rican law requires gender balance in such boards, so women, especially, are encouraged to consider offering their service.
The meeting adjourned at 12:15 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Alice Olson, Secretary
