Since many photo sets are labeled as being at a “MNSTF meeting”, I should probably explain that a bit.

Mostly, it’s not a meeting.

This has been a constant since my first involvement in the mid 1970s, and it seemed to already have been well-established then.

The Floundering Fathers (founders of the club) carefully set things up so everything was run by the Board of Directors. The idea was that people wanted things to be taken care of but not to spend time sitting around debating them. Since, mostly, the board members are at a lot of the meetings, its easy enough to talk to them about things informally if needed. And they’re all elected each spring, if there’s a real problem.

So, MNSTF mostly (except during a pandemic) throws a party about twice a month (formerly every other week, more recently 1st and 3rd Saturdays; there was also a summer schedule in the really old days where meetings were every week and a half, alternating Wednesday evening and Saturday; back when many members were still in college and had the summer off).

But we’re always very careful to call them “meetings”.

There is usually a business meeting consisting entirely of announcements that lasts maybe 5 minutes, around 5pm or so. There have been a very few occasions when there were actual discussions of business at the business meeting, but they are planned and announced well in advance.

More broadly, most Minn-StF meetings are hosted by people in their homes, or occasionally in apartment complex party rooms. The yearly pool party is a Minn-StF meeting. The yearly Minn-StF picnic, in some city park, is a Minn-StF meeting. Recently, we have been arranging for a few meetings each year in other rental spaces, for variety, to create hosting slots for people who don’t have homes suitable for the parties or who don’t want to invite strangers into their homes, to provide more meetings in more accessible spaces, etc.

The board provides a modest stipend to the host (or a somewhat larger one for a pool party). We don’t get detailed accounts back from people (beyond accounting for the stipend), but I think it’s accurate to say that many hosts spend considerably more than the stipend provided, plus many people coming bring some supplies to contribute.

What MNSTF formally says on our web site about it is this.