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July 2018 Buick Bugle


Booreatta

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I just got my Bugle and the letter to the members regarding an audit. I totally agree that the BCA does need an audit as a matter of just good business practice. If there has been a P&L published for the past few years I have totally missed it. I knew that there was excess cash and it was in various accounts. It was for that reason that I suggested that the BCA fund a scholarship in 2014 when I served on the board of the BCA. For various reasons that never happened and I was told that the scholarship would be re visited at a future date. That future date has not happened yet so I just assume that the BCA doesn't think a scholarship is important due to 501 c3 Vs 501 c7 which I understand could have been managed if the BCA so desired. 

The letter states that the reason for a non audit and P&L to the members is because of the unexpected passing of Mr Joel Gauthier our accountant of many years in June of 2016. This is not fact.  Joel is with out a doubt missed very much by the club. however a correction needs to be made .

To correct the letter in the July 2018 Bugle, Mr Joel Gauthier passed away on July17 2015. That would make it a total of 3 years that the membership of the BCA was not informed about the financial condition of the club. If there is a P&L during the time between 2015 and 2018 it should be made available on the BCA web site just as quickly as possible. 

I wonder what the board has plans to use the 600,000.00 or 700,000.00 what ever the number is, and an audit would give the members the correct number. I do not think that there is anything funny going on with the club but there is no way the members would know for sure. I think that the lack of information has touched a nerve with some members

I would ask if there is a P&L or financial statement for the past 3 years be posted  it on the BCA web site with in the next few days and the club can then go back to fighting as to where to park which has consumed a lot of time the past few years. I also would ask the BOD or BCA office issue a correction on Mr Gauthier's date of passing as a respect to him. Lets try to get the facts right.

Please Please Please reconsider doing something for the youth of the club its the right thing to do.

Thanks Chuck Kerls

Edited by Booreatta
correction of spelling correct date (see edit history)
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A profit and loss statement (P&L) is a financial statement that summarizes the revenues, costs and expenses incurred during a specific period of time, usually a fiscal quarter or year.

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♦  The correct date of Mr. Joel Gauthier's death is posted in his obit as July 17, 2015 . . . not July 7th.

♦  That date would be after BCA's fiscal year 2015 ended on June 30, 2015. Note that the 2015 BCA Nationals were held in Springfield, MO earlier in the month, June 9-13. You would think that all the numbers should have been tallied-up by then or very close to it. 

 

Two additional items re: Insert Letter and Transparency 

♦   Why were two members of the Board not listed at the bottom of the insert letter: Larry DiBarry and Roberta Vasilow? Did they disagree with sending that insert letter out?

♦   The insert letter mentions an e-mail that Terry Wiegand sent out to the BOD and all the Chapter Directors. Who made the decision not to include it as part of the insert letter so members that don't tune in to the internet nor belong to a local Chapter could review it and form their own opinion? IMHO, paraphrasing doesn't cut it in this case. The use of the backside was wasted.

 

Anyone have the facts? Thanks.

 

Al Malachowski

BCA #8965

"500 Miles West of Flint"

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27 minutes ago, Ben Bruce aka First Born said:

Goodness gracious!  Do we have a "deep state" pulling the strings, as some accuse  governments of having?

 A person [ member ] does not know what to think!

 

  Ben

No "deep state", Ben.  Those that attended the general membership and board meetings noted that all was explained; there was even a projected presentation that even I could see and understand.  I am confident there was no malfeasance.

We need to wait for the transcript of those meetings (I would like to see the videos made available), before hyperventilating and getting all quiver-lipped.  Sheesh!

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The BCA can't print it's own money, as the government can, so "deficit spending" is not a good idea.

 

In another car group I'm in, we had some extra money and decided to solicit our member clubs for possible automotive technology students as recipients of our scholarship program.  We did two $1000.00 scholarships available each year.  We ended up having to "Find" recipients.  And we ONLY affected ONE person, not many.  Most were in local junior college auto tech programs.  We looked at more national schools, too, but after discussion decided they weren't the best option for us.  Other local "restoration" schools had a very short life, by observation.

 

About that time, a noted car hobby insurance operative had begun to back a vehicle restoration school that was attached to a large car museum.  We opted to annual contribute to THAT group as it would be more "bang for the bucks", it appeared to us.  I remember the prior discussion about scholarships in these forums.  I also remember that, at that time, the proposal needed more work.

 

Just some thoughts,

NTX5467

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John you are correct there was information about the 501 status of the BCA. Our club is 501c7 and we would need to be 501c3 then someone said that it would cost a lot of money and would take a year to get 501c3.. well I serve on the board of a charity that needed to be 501c3 so I had a lot of interest in the process. Well the cost was less than $500.00 and we had our 501c3 in 60 days. A far cry from the rumors that float when the less than experts attend meetings. 

Now about the scholarship yes there are lots of schools that come and go but as some of you know there is a school in MacPherson Kansas that is the ONLY 4 year degreed program in the United States. They have scholarships offered by many auto makers including GM, Mercedes Benz and several other makers. There have been several shows on Velocity that feature the college and the process of hiring grads from the school.. I still think that it would be a good investment for our club. Our club continues to lose members every year and yet we wont step out of the box. I can remember Mr Sam Walton saying SWIM UP STREAM DONT BE AFRAID TO TAKE RISKS AND CONTROL YOU EXPENSES BETTER THAN ANYONE ELSE. 

I wont say anything else except I think the BCA is one great club with some of the best people I have ever met and I hope we can find some that works to build our membership for the future

 

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And one more comment we have the Buick Bugle and that by far is our best asset. Many clubs would love to have the talents of Pete and Cindy..I agree it is always informative and well done. It has changed a great deal in the past few years

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8 hours ago, 1953mack said:

♦  The correct date of Mr. Joel Gauthier's death is posted in his obit as July 17, 2015 . . . not July 7th.

♦  That date would be after BCA's fiscal year 2015 ended on June 30, 2015. Note that the 2015 BCA Nationals were held in Springfield, MO earlier in the month, June 9-13. You would think that all the numbers should have been tallied-up by then or very close to it. 

 

Two additional items re: Insert Letter and Transparency 

♦   Why were two members of the Board not listed at the bottom of the insert letter: Larry DiBarry and Roberta Vasilow? Did they disagree with sending that insert letter out?

♦   The insert letter mentions an e-mail that Terry Wiegand sent out to the BOD and all the Chapter Directors. Who made the decision not to include it as part of the insert letter so members that don't tune in to the internet nor belong to a local Chapter could review it and form their own opinion? IMHO, paraphrasing doesn't cut it in this case. The use of the backside was wasted.

 

Anyone have the facts? Thanks.

 

Al Malachowski

BCA #8965

"500 Miles West of Flint"

Al:

 I just returned from the Denver meet this evening. As Roberta confirmed her status. My answer to you is also YES. The intent of the financials disclosure and reporting in the Bugle I had supported with Terry Wiegand.

 Larry DiBarry

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I made such a motion at the BOD meeting to <hire an unaffiliated CPA, specializing in 501(c)7 non-profits, to perform an audit of BCA financials>

Note, that is not exact quote. You'll have to wait for the minutes for that.
 

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And I personally think that needs to be a top to bottom forensic audit covering a number of year's activity. That is the only way to reassure the membership that all is as it should be financially. With the limited information that I have been able to see, there are some questions that need to be answered. 

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24 minutes ago, jscheib said:

why don't we skip the concern about the financial condition of the BCA to another forum thread and use this only about the Bugle? Please.

 

John 

 

John,

Did you read the first post in this discussion? In spite of the thread's title, the discussion was started about the insert with the Bugle which was totally about the issue that you apparently do not wish to see discussed publicly. The apparent desire by the board to keep any financial information about the club hidden from the members for the past 4 or so years is what the entire issue is about. What is needed is some real communication about the finances, not more secrecy. The members are anxiously awaiting the minutes of the most recent meeting and a broad financial accounting. 

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Page 35 "Oats,  The Antifreeze Dilemma"

The "Extended Life" antifreeze has been out for several years and this is the first I have heard of this potential problem in older cars.

Sounds like another Russian plot to overthrow the US.........really how serious is this extended life antifreeze to our cars.

I read somewhere that many of the manufactures were switching to "One fits all" antifreeze to eliminate the confusion over "green" and "orange"

Now we have to worry about OATS

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The extended-life coolants are meant for "closed" cooling systems.  That means with coolant recovery jugs.

 

DexCool was designed to be in use 100K miles on a vehicle which originally came with it from the factory.  This was possible as the DexCool formulation put "a coating" on the innards of the cooling system that was an anti-corrosion coating.  Plus the lack of silicates in the mixture, extended life from the water pump seals, it was claimed.

 

BUT . . . another change in the cooling systems of DexCool equipped vehicles was a decrease/elimination of solder from the radiator and heater cores.  As many claim that motor oil never wears out, the additive package does, similar is true of anti-freeze coolant.  I found a BASF coolant brochure at a dealership back in the '80s.  It stated that ethylene glycol and the solder which held the radiator and heater cores together "did not play well together".  Ethylene glycol would degrade the solder until it failed, so the additive package in the coolant had to prevent this.  Over time, that chemistry degraded, which necessitated the time-based coolant change.  So, with the innards of the cooling system "coated", aluminum in the cores rather than brass, and the removal of solder, the coolant lasts longer as a result.

 

Another benefit of DexCool (in cars it originally came in) and its 100K projected longevity is a decrease in anti-freeze coolant going into the recycling operations.  OR getting changed outside of that network!  Hence, an environmental benefit.

 

GM TSBs noted that you could put normal coolant into a DexCool system, "in an emergency".  BUT at the earliest convenience, the system should be flushed and re-filled with the recommended DexCool coolant.  If it was left in the system, in its contaminated state, things could (by observation) get highly marginalized in various ways.  From what I remember, the contaminated coolant looked muddy.

 

From earlier discussions, there were THREE different formulations.  DexCool was one.  Ford used a Valvoline coolant product.  Chrysler had their own formulation for their vehicles.  EACH one had similar, but different, chemistry.  Different "OATs".

 

In any event, I believe the "extended life" comes from a good additive package AND the removal of solder from the cooling systems.  The additive package depletion in normal coolant would be time-based rather than mileage-based, I suspect.

 

In another forum, there was mention of using new-tech batteries in older vehicles.  It was noted that these new-tech batteries needed a different charging method than the prior-tech batteries (from the 1990s and prior).  The general solution, from that group of enthusiasts, was to "buy something like came in the vehicle when it was new".  You might use this orientation with anti-freeze coolant, too?

 

I'd recommend that you go into the website for the brand of coolant you might have access to and see what their TOTAL coolant product line was.  Read the product descriptions and see what would fit your particular use cycle/vehicle best.  Then proceed from there.  I don't know that it would "hurt" anything to use the modern coolants in a vintage vehicle, BUT the long-life attributes would not be operative as it was designed for a solder-less system rather than a cooling system with lead solder in it.

 

Just some thoughts,

NTX5467

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Willis........thanks for the input.

I read the article again ...... it and you point out that the "additives" may only last about two years .........so does the "bad" stuff in the extended life coolant stop working after two years?

If it does the damaging elements would stop working?

I seldom change my coolant.........start with a 50/50 solution using distilled water.........then each year ADD a can of antirust/water pump lube (which is getting harder to find)

I had a Reatta for 23 years without any cooling system problems.    

Think we should look at the article as a warning and no need to panic.  

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As a relatively new member of the BCA, I had read the minutes of the board meetings, the bylaws, the SOPs, and everything that I can read to try to learn as much as possible about the club. It is really difficult to find anything about the financial condition of the club and based on the posts on the forum,  phone calls that I have received from other members and emails I have received from other members, it is concerning. I decided to do a bit of searching to try to find out all that I can since it seems exceedingly difficult to get answers from the club's leadership. Everywhere I look, I just find more questions instead of answers. The latest question that I just discovered is...

 

If the Buick Club of America is a non-profit corporation registered in the state of California, Why did the state of California's Franchise Tax Board revoke the club's tax exempt status in January of 2017? You will find the organization listed on the revoked status list at this link:  https://www.ftb.ca.gov/businesses/Exempt-organizations/Revoked-Entity-List.shtml    

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8 hours ago, MCHinson said:

As a relatively new member of the BCA, I had read the minutes of the board meetings, the bylaws, the SOPs, and everything that I can read to try to learn as much as possible about the club. It is really difficult to find anything about the financial condition of the club and based on the posts on the forum,  phone calls that I have received from other members and emails I have received from other members, it is concerning. I decided to do a bit of searching to try to find out all that I can since it seems exceedingly difficult to get answers from the club's leadership. Everywhere I look, I just find more questions instead of answers. The latest question that I just discovered is...

 

If the Buick Club of America is a non-profit corporation registered in the state of California, Why did the state of California's Franchise Tax Board revoke the club's tax exempt status in January of 2017? You will find the organization listed on the revoked status list at this link:  https://www.ftb.ca.gov/businesses/Exempt-organizations/Revoked-Entity-List.shtml    

Matt: I looked at the link , that you sent and it appears that the entity that had it's exemption revoked was OH, not CA, where the BCA isles has it's charter . I am guessing that the entity that had its m=not profit revoked may have been the stock room part of the BCA, which as a retailer could be subject to tax in some form. AS you know, I am a new BOD member, but I am happy to do some digging for you and get an answer. Our Non profit status is as a social club. I am not sure why you have not had any response re: financial condition. 

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Here is the information on Buick organizations from the revoked list.  Columbus is just the city where the office is located if I understand the list.??

 

ENTITY_ID ENTITY_NAME CITY REVOCATION
STATUS_DT
0570835 BUICK CLUB OF AMERICA COLUMBUS             1/18/2017
9763695 LOS ANGELES CHAPTER BUICK CLUB OF AMERICA GRANADA HILLS        11/16/2013
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Yes, that is what I am asking about:

 

0570835 BUICK CLUB OF AMERICA COLUMBUS             1/18/2017

 

I assume the number is the State Tax ID for the Buick Club of America. Columbus I assume to be the city where that entity is located, and 1/18/2017 is when the state of California revoked the entity's Tax Exempt Status.

 

With the difficulty finding any information, I thought I should do a little bit of research. While I am not familiar with either California or Ohio laws, I have a number of years of experience as the treasurer of a tax exempt organization in NC. There are typically different state and federal forms that have to be filed that are public records and often available online. I thought that the publicly available documents might answer a few of my questions but so far that has not happened. 

 

 

       
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On 6/28/2018 at 10:50 PM, bhclark said:

I made such a motion at the BOD meeting to <hire an unaffiliated CPA, specializing in 501(c)7 non-profits, to perform an audit of BCA financials>

Note, that is not exact quote. You'll have to wait for the minutes for that.
 

Well now we have someplace for some of that money to go.  Having a tidy reserve is not a bad thing.  Let's not squander it.  The day will come when it will be needed.

 

Brian, please note this was not directed at you in any way.  I merely used your statement to accentuate my statement.

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