If you look at the newly redesigned Hermitage website, this is what it says about the location of its board meetings:

Board meetings are normally held at the Ward 6 City Council offices near Speedway and Country Club on the fourth Wednesday of every month, beginning promptly at 6:00 PM. Meetings are normally scheduled for, but not limited to, 2 hours.

Apparently, things have not been, and are not expected to be, "normal" for quite some time, because a call to the Ward 6 City Council Offices reveals that the Hermitage Board meetings are not on their schedule any more, and have not been for some time. They are certainly not on the schedule to meet there tonight. And since the entire website was redone just this month, the board cannot claim that this is a recent change that hasn't been posted yet.

While hiding board meetings may make things more comfortable for board members who are uncomfortable with openness, it does not do much for public trust in a non-profit organization that makes its living by soliciting funds from the public.

The Hermitage Board has its monthly meeting this evening, 6 PM at the Ward 6 Council offices. Last week, they rejected a formal request made through an attorney for an opportunity for the attorney and myself to address the board at this meeting; they rejected a request for an informal meeting between the attorney and a board member; and they rejected an request for mediation, to be facilitated by a national animal rescue group not involved in the current situation, who has agreed to help. The board made it crystal clear that they wished to have no communication in any way, shape or form with those unhappy with the current situation.

The Hermitage has an odd organizational structure. The old board appoints the new board. There are no memberships or shareholders. There is no general vote on the leadership. The volunteers, sponsors, donors and staff have no vote or say in what goes on. So far, those who disagree have been speaking out, writing letters and making phone calls. They were then fired, banned, forced to resign, received imperious letters or were ignored. Now it is time to vote with our feet and our dollars. At 6 PM this evening, I recommend people start changing their wills, canceling their sponsorships and directing their donations elsewhere.

Hermitage Board meetings are open to the public, and according to the website:

Board meetings are normally held at the Ward 6 City Council offices near Speedway and Country Club on the fourth Wednesday of every month, beginning promptly at 6:00 PM. Meetings are normally scheduled for, but not limited to, 2 hours.

The exact address is 3202 East 1st Street, enter from Country Club.

If you wish to speak at a board meeting, you must send a written request in advance to be added to the agenda. The board has to approve your request, and according to the by-laws, is not required to accept your request. They do legally have the right to not permit anyone other than themselves to speak. Generally, at this spring's board meetings, when they have seen they did not like at the meetings, there has been only a brief discussion of "fluff" items, and they have then gone into executive session.

I am a pacifist, and do not advocate physical force, ever. I advocate, and have seen used very effectively, the power of public pressure. Only one person is needed to attend the meeting, document their going into executive session, and wait until after they're done to determine when the meeting ended, and if they went back into general session. (A common tactic used by boards uneasy with public scrutiny is to declare an executive session, wait several hours until everyone leaves, and then come back, declare an open session, call for questions from the public, which has gone home, and then have open, public votes. That way they can claim they are open to all, and that no one had any objections to what they did. So at least one observer has to stay until they adjourn). I'm not certain right now whether to encourage folks to attend en masse and sit in silence, and be the big white elephant sitting in the room, or to suggest that folks spend that time at home writing letters. For now, my suggestion is to simply keep next Wednesday evening open.

The Hermitage No-Kill Cat Shelter's board meeting at the Ward 6 offices this evening was a fiasco. The May meeting is when the board has its annual elections; there were already at least 6 vacancies, and this was scheduled to be the last meeting for two of the general representatives, their terms being finished. Several applicants who had been both volunteers and donors had been turned down, at least one without even the courtesy of an interview. New members are selected by old board members, and volunteers, donors and sponsors have no say in the process.

Julie Vance, the third Shelter Manager since August, resigned last week, and staff were told she was not being replaced. The Cat Care Manager position (currently held by Paula Smith, head vet tech for many, many years) was advertised on Craig's List on May 13. So tonight there were a number of angry volunteers, staff and others who went to the meeting, which is open to the public, and asked to address the board about Julie's departure, and find out what is going on with Paula's position. Tom Tulowitski, the board president, did not attend the board meeting, but there was a full quorum, and the vice-president ran the meeting. There have been problems in the past getting permission to address the board. (I am familiar with one case several months ago when a volunteer asked a board member how to get on the agenda. The board member said they did not know the process, and promised to get back in touch with the volunteer with the information, but never did). Those wishing to address the board must request in advance, and the board rules are written so that they are not required to grant the request. The board refused to speak to the public attendees, and the public attendees refused to leave the room. The board then left and apparently conducted its meeting in the parking lot.

While the board members were technically within their rights, cutting off communication was the wrong thing to do. When you are a nonprofit, and the people who are upset are the ones who do the actual work and write the checks that keep your organization going, you better listen very closely; otherwise you may find yourself sifting litterboxes with one hand and writing personal checks with the other. This is the second major public confrontation in less than a year, and the shelter cannot afford to lose any more public good will, especially in this economic climate.