• Held picnics and auctions to raise money for city improvements and other projects.
• Purchased furniture for City Hall
• Supplied bullet-proof vests for our police officers
• Adopted families in need during the holidays
• Involved community youth in out community
• Made awards to the "citizen of the year" and "youth of the year"
• Given financial support to many worthwhile projects as documented in our historic files
• Sponsored events like garden tours and picnics

Sign for City Park - a BIC Project Photo by Grant MacLaren

On June 4, 2009, Mary Scheble wrote:
Hello Everyone,
Just wanted to give you a heads up on the last market and future plans. We had a nice turnout with 10 vendors. Looks like we will have that many or more next market. Most said they were happy with their sales. There seemed to be almost as many people, but not as many purchasing as much. The people seemed to stagger in more. Last time there was a big rush when we first opened.
    When the crowds filled the parking lot (and we did arrange the vendor stalls differently) the customers were diverted to the lower lot. Several commented it was a difficult stroll up the hill.
    BIC made around $150.00 this time which was great! Bakery sales were good and we made $40.00 on the 50-50 tickets. The winner of the 50-50 was Douglas Zwetow from Arnold. Sharon Ippolito and Robin Mueller were eager ticket hawkers and enabled the pot to get up to $80.00.
    Now for a new plan. Since it doesnŐt look like we or the City have enough funds to make another road with a different exit point, we need to think convenience for our customers -- and safety. The public works director, Tony Whitby had a suggestion. Why donŐt we move the whole Market down to the lower parking lot by the park sign (which Jack Walters has so nicely painted)? Tony has 3 canopies each 12x12. Most of the vendors that are joining us have their own canopy and tables. We could put a long row of vendors along the gravel by the large rocks. The parking could be at either end or across from the vendors. Much more parking -- all level, and there is a separate entrance and exit. Tony would hook up some outlets to the electricity that is already there. All of the baked products would be under roof to comply with the health dept. People could drive or walk to the restroom.
    The whole thing would present itself much more distinctly and it would be more cost effective. Susan will be presenting this plan to the vendors to get their input. She will report at the next BIC meeting. Several details like the signage and such would have to be worked out, but this is a work in progress and will take a few more tries to get it going smoothly.
    Your participation and input is certainly welcome. We are a group working together to make a better community. You are an integral part of this effort.
Thanks,
Mary

On May 17, 2009, Mary Scheble wrote:
MEETING UPDATE
Sorry it took so long to provide you with this update, but we had a busy last few days. I'll tell you about the Farmers Market later.
    The meeting was well attended with a new face, Melissa Morgan. She is a welcome addition to BIC, lots of new ideas and enthusiasm. She even provided the City with a dump truck to get more gravel on the parking lot.
    Anne Walters reported for the treasurer that we have a current balance of $758.43. We have paid for the port-a-potty and the electrical fees.
    Susan Gibson gave the details on the progress of the Market. She has been the energy and mainstay of getting this project started. Thanks are not enough for all her hard work.
    Signs marking the entrances to the City and current activity were made by Grant MacLaren and posted by Grant and John Scheble prior to the Friday date. Since they were posted activity on the Farmers Market web site doubled...so they were obviously working well.
    I reported on the Concert in the Park for September 12. I was able to retain The Ozark Blue Grass Boys again. We are looking for another group to play for about and hour and a half before the main event at 6:00 p.m. Liz Downer is checking with Steve Hall of the Missouri Fiddlers and I will look into the Solid Rock Gospel Band. Anyone who knows of a group that may be available please let me know.
    I was unable to attend a seminar on grant writing at UMSL on Friday the 15th, but am still hoping to apply for stimulus money for the park through the City.
    Several suggestions were made for fund raisers such as a Business EXPO of local businesses or services in our community, a business BUZZ book of sorts with paid ads, a calendar for sale with pictures of our City. Later we could have a photo contest and then use the 12 best for a next calendar.
    Renee Reynolds said she could put it together if people provided her with some pictures they have taken of the various sites around Byrnes Mill.
    I'll be posting some of these thoughts in the Byrnes Mill newsletter to see what kind of response we get from the local businesses.
    We will be sending a sign up list for volunteers to help with the Markets on every other Friday, then the Concert in Sept. and the Fall Festival. Please try to put aside a few hours in your schedule. Many hands will make lighter work for all.
    Now let me tell you about our first market. It was such a huge success! We had about 6 vendors and well over 100 people attending. For a first market it was a terrific response. The vendors were well satisfied with their sales. The egg vendor sold out. One of the vendors sold all their produce and many of their other products. The nursery and green house sold a tremendous amount of plants and other products. Another vendor sold out all her baked goods immediately and vowed to bring much more the next time. The honey vendor was very satisfied with all her sales as was the vendor with the large tomato plant starts. Even the BIC table made about $74.00 in sales of plant starts, baked goods tee shirts, water and soda. We could have sold a lot more food. So with the vendor fees and our sales we more that covered our monthly expenses for the bathroom and can put money in the treasury.
    The main problem was the PARKING and the traffic flow. We have to address it. We will be talking with Tony at Public works Monday. It has been suggested we mark an area in the meadow for the cars. The upper part was fine this last Friday even after the rain earlier in the week. We also need to get another exit point so that cars coming and going aren't blocking each other.
    We are sure we can work this out. We only see this Market event growing as more produce becomes available with the season. There were people from many areas including Fenton and Cedar Hill and beyond. People chatted with acquaintances and browsed through the tables.
    Thanks to Jack Walters for working so hard to sweep out the pavilion and make it presentable to the public. Thanks to Anne Walters for donating the baked goods which all sold out. Thanks to Renee Reynolds for being cashier and to Sharon Ippolito for helping the vendors off load their goods and being available to help. Thanks to Terry Oberer for putting up and taking down our large sign on the side of the pavilion. Thanks to Phyllis MacLaren for helping so much and of course Grant for all his work on the signs and web page and things to numerous to mention. Thanks to John Scheble for helping Grant get those signs in the ground in such a timely manner. There are just too many people to thank for making this first and ground breaking event a success. Susan Gibson has gone above and beyond in her foresight and dedication. She is our Market Master and is suburb in every way. We as a community are lucky to have her with us and working for all of us.
    Sorry I got so wordy, but it has been a full end of the week and I wanted to share the news and my thoughts with all of you.
Sincerely,
Mary

On April 10, 2009, Mary Scheble wrote:
Hello Everyone and Happy Easter.
    Let me share the events of the April 8 BIC meeting. Lots of good ideas and updates. It was also great to see a new face there.
    Rebecca Powell stated that after consulting with an attorney acquaintance it was learned we had little if any chance to qualify for a 501-C-3. We are more of a civic organization not primarily involved in education, religion or drug abuse prevention.
    Any money spent to apply would most likely be wasted. With a limited treasury, the group decided to table the effort. Many thanks to Robin Mueller, Rebecca, and the others who helped in the drafting of the application. We may someday have use for it.
    As per our by-laws we elected officers for this next year: Mary Scheble, president, Susan Gibson, vice-president, Anne Walters, Secretary and Rebecca Powell, treasurer.
    Susan reported on the Farmer's Market. She has to prepare some rules and regulations for it and hold a meeting of the growers. Karen Hible and myself will help Susan with these last details and try to get things on track for a May 1st opening.
    The reaction from the growers has been very positive for the change in day from Saturday to Friday. The time is better from 3:00 to 7:30 in the evening. Saturdays were already busy with other Farmer's Markets.
    We also learned that the market manager (Susan) will take an extended course from the Jefferson County Health Dept.
    In addition 50% of the volunteers serving food at other BIC events will have to take a short 2 hour course from the Health Dept. We hope to arrange that course to be here in Byrne Mill. It will be posted via e-mail as soon as we finalize the details. Hopefully many of you will find the time to attend. This is useful for church functions or any food serving venue in which you participate.
    BIC will host a booth at the first market to sell soda and water. Anyone who has plants or perennials that have been thinned or divided from your yard or even gently used garden equipment is welcome to bring them to the table for sale with the profits going to our treasury.
    Grant MacLaren, John Scheble and Dane Andree are going to work on 4 signs that welcome people to our City and are also capable of posting an event like the market or concert.
    Jack Walters will check into painting the sign at the park's lower entrance if the wood is seasoned enough.
    We now have electricity at the pavilion. Qualified volunteers will install the lights, wiring and outlets to service it. HOORAY for electricity!
    I will meet with the City's park commission to get input regarding submitting a request for stimulus money towards park improvements.
    We also hope to obtain a port-a-potty at the pavilion for the entire summer. It is certainly necessary for the markets and the other events.
    After some discussion it was decided that we don't have enough time to do a garden tour this summer. People need some time to prepare their yards. We hope to let people know that we will have one in 2010. Elaine Andree has offered to give me some advice on this and we hope to get some volunteers to help put the plans together later this summer. Most of us felt we had enough on our plate with the current projects.
    This summer's projects include the Farmer's Market, the Concert in the Park and the Fall festival. Now we can focus on these with more energy and enthusiasm. Remember, anyone who has an interest in any of our projects please let me know.
    I appreciate the offers to help work at the events. It is a hugh relief to know we have more helping hands. We also welcome your ideas and suggestions in any of these endeavors.
    We will have a brief special meeting on April 29 at 7:00 p.m. at City Hall. The pupose is to get the last details on the Farmer's Market arranged. All are invited to attend.

Sincerely and with gratitude,
Mary Scheble

On March 12, 2009, Mary Scheble wrote:
Hello Everyone.
Lots of good things happened at last night's meeting.
    Elaine Andree has given us some worthwhile suggestions for our garden tour taking place on June 20. Looks like we will need to get some sponsors to help defray the cost of the brochures and help with the funding. These business would then get some free tickets to give to their patrons and their name would be listed on the tour ticket. It doesn't need to be a lot of money maybe the cost of 5 tickets. We still have to determine the cost per ticket.
    We also have to get some gardeners to show off their talents. I know a lot depends on the type of spring we have, but it does give some of us an incentive to get our hands in the soil and get to work. If you admire someone's garden in your area maybe you could ask them if they would like to participate. I will also post this on the google page and see what kind of response I get.
    We will talk about this more at our next meeting.
    Susan Gibson has been a dynamo putting together the Farmer's Market. She is getting info from all over and meeting with people who know how to do it well. She is also putting together a growers list and getting commitments from them to participate.
    The primary problem is that Saturdays may not work because many of the growers are supplying other markets on that day. Wildwood and Pevely hold their markets on Saturday and Maplewood has Wednesday afternoon. We talked about Fridays from 3 to 7:30. That would get people on their way home from work and before weekend shopping. Susan will be checking with the growers and see how that day works for them. We will talk more about it at the next meeting.
    Grant MacLaren, Dane Andree, John Scheble and ? will be working on creating new Welcome to Byrnes Mill signs that our placed at the 5 entrances to our City. We hope the signs will be a little bigger and have a way to display a placard like Concert on Saturday, or Farmer's Market today or Vote---etc.
    There have been wonderful changes in the park. The public works department has had to trench for electricity to the pavilion and in the process has used the opportunity to widen and expand the parking lot. It will soon be graveled. Yes we will have electricity!! We appropriated funds last night to pay for half of the cost of installation which should be less than $500 for BIC.
    It was also proposed that BIC try to take advantage of the opportunity to make major improvements to the park by requesting stimulus money. There is a web site to go on to submit your request. Grant MacLaren has put together a preliminary proposal that we talked about last night that would include permanent latrines at the upper and lower end of the park; attaching to the water line to have clean water at the pavilion; a structure to house mill artifacts and money to help restore the mill site; an attractive addition to the pavilion that we could closet and lock supplies that are used for activities; hiking trails and walkways. We know it is a dream but we can't get anywhere if we don't at least try.
    Needless to say raising revenues is a must for our organization. We are not going to be able to do much without a bigger bank account. We still need to buy items to sell at our various events, possibly get insurance...this is just a must. We hope that the plans we have will generate more money than expense but a lot will depend on volunteers and sponsors for these events.
    If you have any ideas please share them with us. If you would like to be a part of any particular project let me know. Remember the internet is a great way to communicate and it doesn't require your attendance at any meeting...unless you want to come.
    We have had such a positive response from our residence about what we are doing I know it is good for the spirit of our entire area. Let's keep it going.
    Thanks to all,
    Mary Scheble

On March 1, 2009, Mary Scheble wrote:
I am sending you the minutes prepared by Anne Walters from the 2/11 meeting.
    See you on the 11th of March at 7 p.m. at City Hall.
Thanks,
Mary

Recap of Feb. 11, 2009 meeting:
Another productive BIC meeting! It was good to see those good people who work to make things better for our entire community.
    Rebecca reported that we have $1446.30 in our treasury as of last night. Work is proceeding on our 501-c-3 application. An ad hoc committee worked earlier this month to get the narrative started. When that is complete we should be able to finalize the application.
    Our by-laws called for the nomination of officers for the election at our April 8 meeting. Karen Hible, who wasn't able to make the meeting, asked that Susan Gibson be nominated for Vice-president. All other existing officers were nominated for another term. It would probably be a good idea to amend our by-laws to change the nomination period to 30 days prior to the election. Considering the size of our organization we won't need to run any lengthy campaigns.
    Speaking of amending the by-laws, Rebecca suggested we needed to change our fiscal year from to go from July to June, since that is how we have been operating. It was so moved and approved.
    We decide our main focus for this next year will be our farmer's markets. Susan has some fantastic ideas and contacts from local and area growers. There is a tremendous amount of support for this from the community. Growers are preparing for the spring season. We hope to begin on May 2, and have one on the first and third Saturday of each month ending with the fall festival Oct. 17. Hours will be from 8 till noon. We would like to have 2 volunteers at each market collecting the $10 fee and selling soda and water. We will talk more about this at our next meeting.
    We will also work on our garden tour on June 20 and include a plant sale at one of the farmer's markets.
    Beautifying the mill site and creating hiking trails in the park are also on the list.
    We will have our major fund raisers, the concert in the park on Sept. 12 and the fall festival. Now we are armed with a little experience and will develop the potential of these activities more fully.
    Rhea Milisitch from the Historical Society attended and offered to have that organization be a part of our first of the month farmer's markets. She would open the Hagemeister house and have various displays and items for sale. She was enthusiastic about the possibility our organizations working side by side.
    What a great agenda! Please join us at our March 11 meeting.

On Feb. 3, 2009, Mary Scheble wrote:
Hello everyone,

I hope you have had a terrific holiday and are looking forward to an exciting and challenging 2009.
    It is time to come together again and renew our commitment to all the wonderful things that BIC has established in the past year. We can look to this next year with positive experiences and an understanding of what we want to accomplish.
    Our first meeting is to take place on February 11 at 7:00 p.m. at City Hall. Lots of ideas are still in the works and now it's time to get organized.
    I'm looking forward to seeing many of you again.
    Thanks in advance,

Mary

On Sep 27, 2008, at 9:38 AM, Mary Scheble wrote:

WOW!! What a workshops session we had on Wednesday. Kudo's to Susan Gibson for putting together a terrific format for our Fall Festival. There is so much going on that we extended the time from 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday the 26th of October.
    Some of these details are still being confirmed but it looks as if the Festival is taking on an old fashion flavor.
    Rita Milisitch of the Historical Society is opening the Hagemeister House at the park for the event. we plan on having a cloth weaving and wool spinning demonstration taking place on the front porch. We also hope to have a basket weaver and some other pioneer type demonstrations, like fur pelts, and some items from the Tallow Hill Trading Post like candles and soaps.
    Events for the kids include games, pumpkin carving, a storyteller (hopefully per Liz Downer) and roasting s'mores.
    We hope to have face painting again because that was a huge success at the concert.
    We have commitments by some farmers for market goods like lettuce and herbs and we are still trying to get pumpkins and gourds.
    We are hoping to have someone from the DARE organization to fingerprint the kids. We are checking to see if they have that date available.
    There are a few crafters who want to bring goods like jewelry and miniature artwork and honey, jellies and jams. Even a mini flea market.
    Susan is feverishly working on getting these people fully committed and we will have a clearer update at the Oct. 8 regular meeting.
    We plan on selling our remaining concessions and offering apple cider, coffee, fresh fruit and donuts. Kettle Korn and candy apples will be for sale by vendors.
    We plan on charging $10.00 for rental space to the vendors and crafters.
    We have a commitment of a large generator which will supply electricity for lights and cooking.
    I was not able to find a photographer for taking pictures of kids, but have some leads I will look into for another event.
    Once we get things firmed up we will put in on the web page and in the Journal. I will see if we can get an article in the newspaper. I think the log cabin being open will be a huge draw for many people in the area.
    I hope to hear from you regarding volunteers and just helping in general. We will obtain the necessary permits and Jack Walters is redoing the signs for informing the residents.
    This will be our last project for this year and will definitely get us on track for our next spring and summer events.

Thanks to everyone for your hard work and support.

Mary

Thanks again to all. See you on Wednesday.

Mary

Mary

Hello Everyone,

Just want to let you know that things are on track for our concert on Sept. 6. We have lots to discuss and arrangements to make. Our ad appears in the latest Current edition. We plan on hearing from the food committee and logistics committee at our next meeting.
    Save the date of August 13. We will get to meet, hopefully, some of our newest volunteers and organize the concessions and parking groups. Also we will hear about the kids' games.
    Hope to see all of you then.
    Thanks again for all you are doing and going to do.

Mary

Hello everyone,
    BIC is growing with the people around us rallying to make this concert a successful first event.
    New names added to our list of volunteers are Liz Downer, Lynne Gibson, Sharon Ippolito. All are ready to lend a helping hand and Liz finding us some face painters for the kids at the concert. We should have a very good next meeting on the 13th of August.
    Looking forward to meeting all the new people and formalizing all the details.
    Thanks to all,
Mary

First let me thank all of you for another wonderfully productive meeting. You all have such good input and ideas. You are all so willing to contribute your time and labor that I think we will accomplish much.
    I have had some real positive developments since the newspaper article and newsletter have been seen. A woman from High Ridge named Pat MacMillan called to offer her assistance on our projects. She would love to be an active part of this larger community effort. I assured her we would welcome her participation and help.
    I received an offer to work the concession from Marian and Rick (not sure of the exact spelling of these names) representing the Olde Mill Estates Subdivision. They may not get to the meetings but definitely want to volunteer to do some work at the concert and whatever other projects that require worker bees.
    Another resident of Olde Mill called to offer assistance. Her name is Rene' Reynolds and she along with her fiance, Keith want to help with the concert and park trails and other projects. She is a manager at a Walmart Store in the St. Louis area and thinks we can get some assistance from them once we get our 501(c)3 letter. In the meantime she has generously agreed to contribute $300.00 for the food expenses at the concert. WOW! We hope to see her and Keith at the next meeting on August 13.
    The City leaders have said we will be able to get 2 Johnny on the Spots for the event from their source through the Public Works Dept. We hope to have a flat bed trailer from there also to use as a band stand for the group. We can put a skirting of some sort around the bottom to dress it up a a bit.
    So much good news. Robin Mueller is putting 2 adds in the Current in August and has some terrific ideas about games for the kids and even adults. This is going to be a fun event for everyone.
    Susan Gibson is working on getting her food handling certification from the health department and John Scheble will have his done before the concert. Susan is working on the concessions and will plan a meeting of her committee in early August.
    Thanks again to each of you for making this a positive event for everyone. We wanted to Build Community and that is exactly what is happening.

Mary Scheble

Minutes of BIC
Meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Mary Scheble. Several new people were present so there was a period of introductions.
    A discussion followed about the date of the meeting. It was determined that a different day would be more convenient for more of the members. We agreed to try making the 2nd Wednesday of each month as our meeting day. It would remain at 7:00p.m. at City Hall.
    A report was made by our treasurer Rebecca Powell regarding signatories on our old checking account. She stated that in order for her name to be established on BIC checking account we would have to vote to remove the previous names from the account. Those names are Jerry Klipsch, Helen Biedenstein and Grant McClaren (MacLaren). The BIC members voted to change the account number 1025325 to reflect the new officers, treasurer Rebecca Powell and vice-president Karen Hible to be the signatories on the Byrnes Mill Improvement Committee checking account. The new officiers of BIC were established at the meeting on May 8th, with Mary Scheble being named president, Karen Hible named vice-president, Rebecca Powell named as treasurer, and Anne Walters named secretary.
    The new park sign is only weeks away from being completed. Dane Andree is working on the routing and then it will be taken to Jack Walters for painting. We are gathering volunteers to install it on a weekend. Karen Hible suggested that Dana Kuhn would have an auger we could use to dig the pole holes. So things are coming together nicely with our first project.
    We discussed our progress with the Concert in the Park event to take place on Sept. 6, 2008. Rebecca reported on the problems with serving hot food or preparing food for sale at the event with the Jefferson County Health Department. A permit would be required and there were lots of conditions that must be met. We then discussed just offering concessions like chips and pre-wrapped snacks that don't require heating or refrigeration. We could also offer soda, juices or water in bottles. Mary Scheble agreed to head up the concessions issue by looking into prices of such things at Sam's or Cosco's, and seeing if any of our merchants could donate any items. She asked any member to contact beverage distributors or merchants to see if they were able to obtain donations. Jerry Klipsh has agreed to contact the McDonald supervisor for any assistance.
    We talked about logistics of parking and where the band should be positioned and the possibility of using a generator for an electrical source. John Scheble and Elaine Andree will work on those issues more. Karen Hible will be checking on Johnny on the Spots with hand washing facilities for the event.
    A suggestion was made that more advertising of the event be made by using radio, like on the Gene Robert's Show, and newspapers along with signs posted around the City. We will work on this. It was also suggested that a call be made for VOLUNTEERS to help with the project. We need workers for the concessions, to help direct parking and with selling 50/50 raffle tickets. We must point out that this is a fund raiser for BIC, so any and all donations are welcome. The donations will go back into our City with projects that will benefit everyone. Mary Scheble agreed to be the contact person for volunteers at 677-8633.
    Rebecca Powell reported on the progress of filing for 501(c)3 status. There are several stipulations that must be met to even apply including a $300.00 filing fee, creation of By-Laws and other requirements. Several members including Rebecca, Karen Hible, Robin Mueller and Mary Scheble agreed to work on trying to work on these details to see if we can be eligible.
    It was announced the Kevin Carberry from the Journal called about a meeting to do a story about BIC, what we do and what we are all about. Several people agreed to meet with him on Thursday June 19, at 3:00 p.m. (However he has since called and asked to change it to 4:00 p.m.) Those members are Dane Andree, Dana Kuhn, Susan Gibson, Robin Mueller and Mary Scheble. We will meet with him at the park pavilion which was a previous BIC accomplishment.
    A report was made regarding the meeting with Mr. Nicely from the Dept. of Conservation. He discussed a possible boat ramp and helping lay out hiking trails. The idea of a bridge across the ravine was considered too dangerous and expensive so a better plan was to make a walking trail along the road between the two sections of the park at the ravine. A pedestrian walkway could be made with a hand rail on the ravine side installed by BIC and a guard rail by the road (to be installed by the City.)
    We also asked City officials to look into insurance coverage for any BIC projects at the park.

The next meeting will be July 9, at 7:00 p.m. at City Hall.

We continue to accomplish so much in the short time we have been together. What a fantastic group of community-minded people!!
    At last night's meeting we prioritized some of the ideas that were presented at our first meeting.

Our project list includes:
    Replacing the sign in the park.
    Dane, Grant, John, Jack and hopefully Mary Mantoan, will be working on that as a group.
    Blue Grass Concert in the Park.
Since the date has been arranged for Sept. 6 and the Ozark Blue Grass Boys have agreed to play we need to put that together. Terry, John S. Elaine and Jerry will work out the logistics on electricity to the pavilion, restroom facilities, and parking for at least 50-100 cars. We will also ask the City Park Commission to get involved.
    As for as refreshments, Rebecca will call the health department to check on regulations for selling or providing food. Once we determine what we can do Mary S., Karen, Susan, Elaine and Anne will work out the details of what to provide in the way of concessions and beverages for sale. (Sorry folks, I didn't remember who agreed to do this so I just threw some names in the pot.)

501(c)3

    We agreed we need to proceed with tax-exempt status. Jerry was able to find an employee ID# and sales tax exempt form and a 501(c)4 form that was obtained in 1989 from the original BIC group. Rebecca is going to look into this with the IRS and Karen and Mary s. have agreed to help formalize this to make it official.
    Part of it requires establishing a mailing address, bylaws and a list of officers of the organization. We can obtain a P.O. Box and Rebecca has bylaws we can borrow from another charitable group. So we will present these at another meeting.
    Officers were sort of selected in an informal way, but this will work for documentation purposes:

• Mary S.- President
• Karen Hible - vice-president
• Rebecca Powell - treasurer
• Anne Walters - secretary

Walking trails in Park and Bridge across creek

    John S. has set up an appointment with the Dept. of Conservation to meet on June 3 walk the park and discuss what will work and how it will work and if there are any resources available. Anyone wishing to join in the meeting can contact John at 677-8633.

Farmers Market
    Robin Mueller and Sue Gibson presented the idea of starting a farmer's market at the park one weekend a month starting in July. BIC can rent booth space or tail gate space for a minimal price to local farmers or craftsmen to present their goods for sale. We will provide advertising and make porta potties available. We thought we would try it and see how it works. Sue is going to contact some local farmers. Anyone who knows of an interested party who sells honey, crafts or any other market product please let us know. This is a great way to bring community together and benefit the whole area.
    It was also suggested in the fall to have the Farmer's Market with an autumn flare. This would include a pumpkin carving contest for children, hay bales with sales of decorative corn and produce. We also talked about a presentation by local artists who are published, maybe some book signing.. It could be a full weekend of autumn goods and festivity. Sue Gibson will work on this with help from Mary S. and Robin. (And anyone who wants to join in.)
    That's our project list. We moved some other ideas to a sort of "work on later list" called PARKING LOT. Some of those items are:

• A weekend garden tour for the first part of June depending on weather, and a tail gate plant sale at the pavilion.
• We also will continue to work securing playground equipment from corporate donations. We need to have our paperwork in order before we can get those type of donations.
• We also want to consider handicap access to the park and pavilion.

As I said it is a productive group of people with lots of ideas and enthusiasm. All of the above has been accomplished in 2 meetings of less than 2 hours each.
    BIC will meet the second Thursday of each month at 7:00 p.m. The group is very fluid so if you can make it once in a while that is great. Your involvement can be a single project. You will have made a contribution to you local community and met some fantastic neighbors.

Thanks again to all of you.
Mary

First let me thank all of you who attended our first meeting on April 17th. Your input was impressive and invaluable. It is hard to imagine how far we can go and grow from this first get together. I knew we had a spirited group of people living here who would like to make this City a dynamic place to live. I was not disappointed. Since that meeting I have heard from others who want to participate and am sure they will.
    Lets review where we are in the planning stages.
    We scheduled a follow-up meeting on May 8th at 7p.m. at City Hall.
    Becky Powell has agreed to become our treasurer.
    I received a $500.00 cash donation to help us cover the initial cost of our first project.
    That first project will be the Byrnes Mill Blue Grass Festival at the park featuring the Ozark Blue Grass Boys. BIC will provide food and refreshment for a price, free cake & ice cream to honor our 22nd birthday. I have contacted the band leader, Mike Heller, and discussed our fund raising project. He said September and October are very busy months, but as luck would have it September 6 is available. He said his rate would be $300.00. He also said we can count on at least 50 people that follow the group on a regular basis. We may count on at least 100 or so more people and have ourselves a real festival. The details of this will be ironed out at our next meeting. I have spoken to City Official and remain hopeful we will have electricity at the pavilion by then along with some gravel for parking areas.
    We talked about a Byrnes Mill garden tour in the first week of June of next year.
    We also talked about a tail gate or pavilion sale of plant starts and exchanges next spring. I have already started saving plastic containers to grow some seeds in next winter.
    We also talked about forming a 501(c)(3) to make tax deductible contributions of cash and material available from corporate donors. This could possibly allow us to obtain playground equipment for the park among other things. Looks like establishing this involves paper work and time. I got the process downloaded and will bring it to the next meeting. I also will be calling the number of the IRS that was given and chat with them about what we need to do. I am hopeful one of you who is comfortable filling out forms will be able to help in this endeavor as it will be well worthwhile.
    Other topics discussed were the construction of a bridge connecting the lower park with the upper park and walking trails around the park. Once we establish a cash fund these project may be as feasible as building the pavilion was. We know we have enough talented workers to do some of the labor.
    Finally, the City will be putting out another newsletter in June. We hope to have a BIC insert to discuss our projects, and encourage people to join us with time or treasure to RE-create the community that enabled us to come as far as we have.
    Thanks to all of you and look forward to seeing you again on May 8th.

-=Mary=-