Held on February 4 at Las Cascadas Restaurant near the Wilson Botanical Garden from noon to about 2:30pm, the Annual Meeting of the San Vito Bird Club for 2012 was attended by 30 members—an all-time high turnout!

Alison Olivieri & Harry Hull applauding something... (Photo: Olivieri)

Business transacted during the formal part of the meeting included approval of a revised version of the Bylaws and election of a new slate of Executive Committee members for the year as follows: Alison Olivieri, President; Kate Desvenain, Vice President; Lydia Vogt, Secretary, and Fred Schroeder, Treasurer.

Alison Olivieri then made a Special Presentation to the retiring Vice President, Julie Girard, who has served tirelessly and enthusiastically since the Club was founded in 2006—a gift of a tile-framed mirror wrapped in custom-printed paper handmade by member Gail Hull.

Julie Girard receiving gift from Alison Olivieri. (Photo: Olivieri)

At the conclusion of the formal business portion of the meeting, attendees were treated to two slide-shows: a presentation by the new Vice President, Kate Desvenain, about her trip to a Bird Banding Workshop in a remote region of Peru called Madre de Dios in November 2011; and a preview of this website by Communications Committee chairman, Harry Hull.

Lunch at the meeting was delicious, thanks to the entire Las Cascadas crew led by George Alcott; and we were all delighted to welcome the youngest “junior member” of the San Vito Bird Club, Mikaela Esquivel Chinchilla, daughter of Heysen Esquivel and Nancy Chinchilla Rosales!

Heysen, Nancy and young Mikaela Esquivel. (Photo: Olivieri)