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November 1987
Treasurer Wes Gilding
I have pleasure in presenting the Treasurer's report for the calendar year 1987. We began the year with a total of $2,000 in the bank and finished with a total of $6,000. I was told when I was appointed Treasurer that we are a non-profit organisation. So imagine my surprise when we made a cool $4,000 during the year. The profit - well I can't call it a profit because we are non-profit. So the non-profit for the year of $4,000 was made up largely of tape sales and Harmonia Fest income.
We purchase tapes for $2.62 each and sell them for $10.00. The mark up is to cover the initial outlay on recording and printing labels. Unfortunately during this year alone we have covered the outlay and made what can only be called a handsome non-profit.
The Harmonia Fest cost us $100 because we had to hire the hall, and pay for coffee, tea, sugar and stirrers. This cost hurt your treasurer. Later we found that we didn't need the stirrers, we already had plenty in the club. Anyway it cost $100. But unfortunately we took $1,700. Once again a cool non-profit of $1,600. I am beginning to think that I was chosen to be treasurer because I don't know the difference between profit and non-profit. You see when I was at school I gained 6 out of a 100 for Arithmetic and I said to the teacher is that good or bad? The teacher said it was bad, that's only 6%. I said what has it got to do with dollars and cents, I was only adding numbers. I thought 6 was good, twice what I got for geography. Talking of geography, where was I, oh yes the Treasurers report.
You know as well as I do that our members don't pay much attention to the Conductor. Well the same goes for listening to the President. He told them we are non-profit. And what did they do? Like good little Lutherans, they set out to save money instead of spending it. Even the President himself does it. Why don't people practice what they preach. He says one thing and does another. That probably why they made him the Lyin' (Lion) Governor.
He copies music on the school copier and saves heaps. That's money we could legitimately spend. And what about copying for nix on his Gestetner. Has the man ever heard of unemployment and of printers going bankrupt.
Now that's a sure way to go up the gurgler instead of down it which we are supposed to do.
Let me give you a few other examples. In fact much of my report points out the ineffectiveness of members in keeping to our non-profit charter. Look at Rod Eckerman. A pillar of the Church and he doesn't keep the rules either. We could have spent some money buying tickets for the Harmonia Fest and we could have employed someone to help take back the seating but no he had to push in and get members to do it free. Call him a Christian. We haven't even seen him loving his neighbour. And what about Bill Carter and Ann Schutz. Both pillars of the Church. Bill's even a lay reader. Ann would be to if she could read.
I must admit that some members believe we are a charitable organisation. When it was proposed that we go on tour and help charities on the way some members said they would go if it didn't cost them anything.
Also some members said they would go to the Harmonia Fest if it was free for them and their wives. Well there's two kinds of charity one is giving and one is receiving. They are the receiving type. And it takes both types or there would be no charity. But really, all of our members are giving. They are giving their time and everyone knows time is money. Even the retired members know that. The more time you've got the more money you spend. On the expenditure side your committee spent many hours debating the honorarium to the pianist. During the year we had twenty concerts and forty practices. The total hours involved including travel and practice at home was calculated at about 320 hours. It was considered that $1 per hour would be excessive as there is a pleasure and status factor to be considered. It is true the committee said that car cost is involved but then her husband has a garage and free labor is available. Your committee also observed that the pianist delivers customers cars for her husband and probably does this without charge and we are after all a charity organisation. So taking everything into consideration and wanting to be generous but realising that times are hard and the dollar is loosing value and the stock market is depressed we kept the honorarium to last years figure. Your committee thought that as the pianist is given three peppermints and a radiator and the Conductor doesn't even have a safe rostrum that we should double the payment to the conductor. The committee knows arithmetic, especially twice nothing..
Anyway your committee said that if we pay the conductor he might start singing and there are already enough solo voices drowning the choir.
Some members were given Life Membership. This incurred the cost of purchasing Life Membership Badges. Unfortunately the membership also entitles them to remission of the $2 annual membership fee. Your committee said we will have to be careful in future and consider factors such as this. There was discussion on individual cases. Take for example our new life member Walter Schubert Esq. Mr Schubert saves $2 on Membership Fee which his wife could well divert to the purchase of half a bag of sheep's wool which when spun at home and knitted in Club Concert time to the accompaniment of Click Go the Shears could return some $200.
Some payments have been paid to the Powells. They make numerous phone calls and spend many hours arranging programs so they were requested to submit an expenses account. This amounted to $27 for the 1986 year. We estimated they had spent much in excess of this and considered the fact that they entertained guest artists in their home. On the other hand they enjoyed many free suppers at concerts and these were calculated at a value of some $25. The Conductor's suppers were calculated at $35. Your President and Secretary also spent a lot of time and money on the Choir but there is always that nagging questions as with the Queensland Police, what kick back do they get up at the top. So with a clear conscience, we gave them what they asked for and no more.
We sent flowers to Keatha for her 70th and your committee has opened a special savings account to save for Helen's 70th.
Not all is expense of course. We purchased sew-on-badges at $1.95 and sold them for $2:00. Now 5 cents does not sound much profit but our membership is increasing and mark up is not as important as turnover.
Our fee for concerts stands at $75 but charitable bodies just make a donation for a concert. Some charitable bodies are less charitable than others for good reasons. A Baptist Home donated $15 for a concert but then the Baptist's excess water bill is naturally very high.
On the other hand the Uniting Church at Kadina donated $250. Knowing ex-Methodists as I do I think this was probably money they saved by not drinking any grog before they joined the Uniting Church. They have certainly made up for it since.
In conclusion I have to report that your Committee is working on another scheme to encourage members to pay their subscriptions.
A financial report could not be complete without a graph. Last year we announced that free records would be given to paid up members. This graph illustrates payment of subs before and after the announcement.
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