Most Recent Minutes

July 20, 2026 — Annual Meeting

PRESENT: Alan Jones, Griffin Jones, Mark Obbie, David Pierce, Beth Thomas, Seth Thomas, Mary Ann Strasser, AJ Magnan, Deirdre Crofton, Brooke Finley, Tracey Howe.

CALL TO ORDER: Tracey called the meeting to order at 6:31pm

Guests in attendance: Nancy Lane, John Holtz, Lee Hall, Lyle Jenks, Dave Bloom, Lynn Bogart, Mark McCloskey, Diana McCloskey. Thank you all for attending. We need and appreciate your support.

MINUTES: Approved June minutes.

AJ motioned to approve, 2nd Dee. All agreed. Moved

BOARD MEMBER vote: Tracey recapped previous discussions to accept Mary Ann Strasser as a new, voting Board Member effective July 20, 2026.

Beth motioned to approve, 2nd Mark. All agreed. Moved

TREASURER REPORT: Dave summarized the June Treasurer Report and reviewed the highlights of our Church account and payments made to FLCC for 50% of the H&M2 video project. Dave advised the balance due to FLCC scheduled for November. Dave added as he works through the photos in the attic of Bristol Town Hall, he located a 106-yr old photo of John Ralston Williams. He discovered insulin use in Canada and was the first to administer insulin to a patient at Highland Hospital. All agreed this is fascinating work and we need to continue to recognize our citizens for their work. Dave also said he looks forward to his continued partnership with Beth as the Historian for the Town of Bristol and Town of South Bristol.

AJ motioned to approve, 2nd Mark. All agreed. Moved

SECRETARY REPORT: Secretary position is still open. The Board thanks Beth Thomas for recording our minutes for the past 3 months while we are searching for a secretary. Deirdre Crofton has expressed a willingness to assume the secretary’s duties. Further discussion will take place at our next meeting.

VICE PRESIDENT REPORT: Brooke Finley attended our annual meeting to formally resign her position as Vice President. We wish Brooke success and happiness as she embarks on a courageous career opportunity in NYC.

PRESIDENT REPORT: Tracey recapped how thankful we are to have voted in our new Board Member, Mary Ann Strasser. She welcomed all our guests and advised today’s annual meeting would be abbreviated for the sake of everyone’s time and to share a typical BHHS Board Meeting in hopes one of today’s guests will consider joining the group as a Board Member.

AJ motioned to approve, 2nd Griffin. All agreed. Moved

BLDGS & GRNDS: Seth shared an update of the stained-glass window restoration project. Seth echoed the dollar amounts highlighted in Dave’s Treasurer Report, what we have spent and have on hand to complete the project.

PUBLIC RELATIONS: Mark Obbie recapped stories in our most recent newsletter. Tracey interrupted and officially thanked Mark for his editorial skills in fine tuning the President’s Message. Everyone on the Board and our guests acknowledged the experience and skill Mark demonstrates to produce an informative and engaging newsletter on our behalf. Mark inquired if the October Dance will take place. He would like to advertise asap. He also suggested a program, Ancient People Long Before the Seneca. Programming is a heavy lift and everyone on the Board should be actively involved in securing future programs. This discussion was the natural lead into our next agenda item. Beth Thomas, our Program Director and Historian, made an announcement to our Board.

PROGARMS & HISTORIAN: These topics are combined as Beth Thomas announced she is stepping down as a voting Board Member of the BHHS. She will continue in her role as Historian for both the Town of Bristol and Town of South Bristol. Citing both personal and career motivation, Beth said she will always continue to offer her full support to our organization. Many, many, MANY kind words were shared and while we say goodbye to Beth (for now) in her official voting capacity, we know she will be a force behind the scenes to make the BHHS vibrant, community focused and enjoyable for all our members. Thank you, Beth, you have been the cornerstone of what we accomplished in recent years. We will you all the best. Beth stated she has hit roadblocks on both partner projects with the South Bristol Community Engagement Committee. She has been unable to secure a Bus Tour Company for the H&M Bus Tour. The band who had originally committed to the October Harvest Dance was unresponsive. Therefore, both events are tabled until possibly next year. John Holtz added to the discussion, offering to share the contact person for a program, Native Views of the Sullivan Expedition. We graciously accepted his offer to share this information and acknowledge it is a perfect fit for a presentation at The Grange. Dave Bloom, “The Gravestone Guy”, explained his volunteer activities. He not only restores gravestones but trains community members to do this work. Proper cleaning and care procedures are crucial to maintaining our cemeteries rich in history. Dave was responsible for saving a historic gravestone in the Parmalee Cemetery on County Road 33, South Bristol and the Tiffany Stone in our Bristol Cemetery. Dave’s 2026 is full, but we agreed to schedule work and programs in 2027. Thank you for offering your services, Dave.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

Moving: Griffin is waiting for a written quote from the moving company to complete the highly anticipated move to his property at Burning Springs, Bristol, NY. He shared his confidence with the moving company from experience and expects the project to proceed smoothly. The move is tentatively scheduled for Friday, August 7.

Morgan Chapter: Griffin and Alan provided an update on the work being done with the Morgan Chapter. The Morgan Chapter will be excavating a nineteenth century historic site in Bristol, the Codding Mill site, located on County Road 32. Mill features still exist today in Patriot Park, including the Mill dam and raceway. The site sits right off the road for easy access. The Morgan Chapter is inviting standing members of their organization and the BHHS to help clear vegetation from the foundation wall and mill race. Griffin emphasized, it is “heavy yard work”. Alan and Griffin will share dig details at our August meeting. Those interested are highly encouraged to officially join either organization so you can participate easily and avoid the hassle of trying to join the day of the dig. You can verify your membership by contacting Natasha Ernst at natasha.c.ernst@gmail.com (Morgan Chapter) or htttp://bristolhillshistorical.org/support.

FUNDRAISING: Desperately need a fundraising chair.

CLOSING: Mark Obbie recapped our Charter, citing we have 3 vacant board positions. Our elections are held at the annual meetings, however, due to the circumstances we would entertain mid term elections to fill the vacancies. Mark called on attendees for a board position nomination themselves or another? None offered. Tracey thanked the Board for another successful year. She invited everyone in attendance to share in our ice cream social immediately after adjournment.

Dave motioned to adjourn, 2nd Seth. All agreed. Moved

ADJOURNMENT: Meeting adjourned at 7:34pm

Next Meeting: Monday, August 17, 2026, 6:30pm at The Grange Hall