Open:  The meeting was opened at 7:07 p.m. by President Duane Clark.

April Minutes:  Don Lapworth made a motion, seconded by Judy Jewell, to approve the April minutes as presented.  The motion passed.

Treasurer’s Report:  Treasurer, Mark Lijek, reported that he is trying to simplify the Treasurer’s Report.  Below are the reported balances.

Significant events include a $350 donation from the Lomonosov Committee’s cookbook fund to the Vela Luka and Kisakata student exchanges.  The Kisakata Committee created two $175 scholarships from the donation.  $6,990.00 was disbursed to the Kisakata exchange student’s families as partial reimbursement for their airfares, already paid by each family.  The Kisakata exchange students raised $1,132.50 in April.  The Vela Luka exchange fund increased by $4,308.40 in April, primarily due to the very successful fundraiser dinner held April 24^th.

Vice President’s Report:  John Lovric had nothing to report at this time.

Assistant to the President’s Report:  A pair of glasses was left at the Greek Islands restaurant tonight.  If anyone is missing a pair of glasses, please contact Don Lapworth.

Sidney Chair Report:

Town Crier: Judy will be going to Holland, Michigan to compete in a Town Crier competition during the tulip festival. Judy’s sister, Joyce Jewell, is going to act as Judy’s escort.

Sidney: David has been asked to cook for a town crier competition in Sidney.

Canada Day, July 1: The Sidney association usually arranges homestays, so David needs to know who plans to go to Sidney for Canada Day, and who plans to participate in the parade. A sign-up sheet was passed around. The parking for the ferry begins soon; it’s around $10 per day. If Judy is around, she could ferry travelers from her house to the ferry. (Is there anyone else, who lives near the ferry who could help?)

July 4 Homestays: Homestays are needed for visitors coming from Sidney for July 4th. Elaine volunteered to help with the float.

Vela Luka Chair Report: Student Exchange: The five Croatian students, two boys and three girls, will arrive June 22 and return home on July 9. A sign-up sheet to do things with the Croatian students was passed around. Kumpanija: About thirty-three people will be coming to Anacortes. The mayor of Vela Luka is accompanying the group, and hopefully the director. The airfare is less than was expected. Nikki read a letter, translated by one of the students, from the Kumpanija Director. In the letter, he said that this trip would encourage and continue cultural experiences, and establish economic connections. The students have applied for their visas in Zagreb, but have not yet received them. Representative Larsen has been helping by contacting the embassy.

Shipwreck Days: Maria and Willy will have a table at Shipwreck Days, Saturday, July 15. They would especially like gifts and souvenirs from foreign travels. Donations can be brought to Maria’s bookstore, Earthbound Books, on Friday, July 14. They will also be selling cookbooks. Andy suggested putting miniature flags on the tables. Don suggested a sign for the table. Duane mentioned that there is a flag display at City Hall. There will be a signup sheet next month. Membership: Most of our members have renewed their memberships, and there are also quite a few new members. There are 84 members. Don asked for a new membership list. Duane said the list would be ready by the next meeting, June 1. ASCA Website: Golf Tournament: There is a special page for our golf tournament. The information in our packets is also on our website and is printable.

ASCA Website: Golf Tournament: There is a special page for our golf tournament. The information in our packets is also on our website and is printable.

Fundraising Report: Vela Luka:

1. Spring Zabava: The event was a great success; everyone had a good time, and we raised a lot of money. Nikki thanked David for all of his help. David, as usual, did an awesome job. US Representative Rick Larsen attended due mainly to his staffer Kristen LeMieux, from Anacortes and a former Vela Luka dancer and a friend of Nikki. Commissioner and Mrs. Munks, City Councilman Brian Geer, and Economic Development Association of Skagit County Director Don Wick were also at the event. At the dinner each student spoke about what the trip means to item. The band, which drove down from Vancouver, BC, played Croatian music, and was a big hit. A photo of the students with Representatives Larsen appeared in the Anacortes America. The event raised $2,099; $1,000 was from the silent auction and about $300 was from the raffle. Nikki showed a power point of the evening. Mark received an email from the US Ambassador to Croatia asking about the fundraiser, so the news went beyond our community.

2. Mothers’ Day Tea: A Tea co-hosted by Cap Sante Court Retirement Community will be held on Saturday, May 13 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Croatian and English teas will be served along with tea sandwiches, made by the students and their families, and desserts made by Cap Sante’s cook Carmen. Caitlyn Doust will be playing the harp. Guests are encouraged to wear hats as there will be prizes in several categories. Duane encouraged the members to support this event as it is the last Vela Luka student exchange fundraiser before the Vela Luka students arrive.

3. Croatian Cooking Class: A Croatian cooking class by Chef John Sarich will be held at the Depot Arts Center on Saturday, June 3rd from 2 p.m. John Sarich is the host of the KONG TV Best of Taste cooking show and is the head chef for the Chateau St. Michelle. This will be a cooking demonstration with food and wine tasting. The cost is this type of class is usually $100, but due to Chef Sarich’s donation of his time, it is being offered for $45. One of the students, Stephen Hudak, sold tickets to the class. If you did not reserve a place at the meeting, you can reserve a place by sending a check made out to ASCA to Nikki Lovric, 4811 Cypress Drive, Anacortes, WA 98221 by June 2. The four students receive a portion of the money from ticket sale, but most of the proceeds from this event will be used for the Kumpanija visit in the fall.

4. Kiwanis Thank You: Duane, Stephen, Briana and Luv Bikker, and Nikki went to the Kiwanis 6:30 a.m. meeting on Wednesday to thank them for their $800 donation and talked about what the groups is going to be doing.

Golf Tournament: Saturday, June 24 The golf tournament committee has been busy working on this year’s upcoming tournament. Duane showed a power point, and went over the brochure. Anacortes Family Medicine has sponsored one of the hole-in-ones this year for $350, and the committee is contacting many other businesses and individuals. Please give brochures to anyone you know who golfs. We have printed 1,000 brochures; 450 will be inserted in the Chamber of Commerce newsletter. The goals for the 2006 tournament are to have 128 golfers (There were 100 last year.), to have lots and lots of hole sponsors and corporate sponsors and lots and lots of fun, and to make a profit of $10,000. Duane asked members to continue to support the golf tournament with their sponsorships, finding sponsors and golfers, and by golfing. This is our major fundraiser each year, and this year with the Kumpanija group coming in the fall, we need to raise a lot of money. We are currently financially sound, but most of our current finances are earmarked for travel or upcoming events.

Calendar: As members may have noticed, there are two fundraisers on May 13. There was a discussion about how to keep track of events and fundraisers to avoid conflicts. Anne asked if a calendar could be added to the monthly agenda. Duane would like the information in one location that members could easily find, perhaps our website. We could also be sure to have the calendar available at each meeting. Our email notices to members have become a good conduit for community information, but we do need to distinguish between ASCA and non- ASCA events.