I found Going Forward, Sept. 04, very interesting and informative.
On pages 12-13, in the "AMC Minutes Capsule," it says:
"One has to ask: If the intent of the bequest is to disappear entirely from our institutional memory, should not the bequest be returned to Copper Black's estate as a matter of principle?"
American Mensa, Ltd. (AML) turned the funds over to the Mensa Education & Research Foundation and, therefore, has no further responsibility for them. The Foundation developed a policy and procedure for making the awards and has already done so. See the MERF section of the Mensa website for how to apply.
On page 18, second column, "AMC Agenda Alert," I read, "We have said many times that committees should not make motions. It obfuscates who is actually making the motion." No, it doesn't: it is the committee chairman. Declaring that the motion comes from the committee clearly implies that the chairman has sought the advice and consent of the committee members before submitting the motion. Is that bad?
I can't believe that the AMC is now spending its time pondering the merits of making people who serve food at Mensa gatherings take a food safety class. I can see it now: you can't bring cookies to a speaker event or even offer coffee unless you go through rigorous food safety training. Preposterous!
Has Mensa ever been sued over food handling? Has any member who brought food to an event ever been sued? How about the host/hostess of a Mensa event in his/her own home? Good grief!
As the hostess of one of Mensa's longest-running events where food is served (San Francisco Mensa's Start The Month Right), I can vouch for the safety of the food I prepare and serve. Since the event is a potluck, everybody knows that the food they bring must be safe to eat, and everybody knows to take reasonable precautions about what they eat. As hostess, I have on more than one occasion removed an item that I thought was unsafe — such as a carton of milk that had been in a van for at least 48 hours. But even with restaurant-quality precautions, there are always problems when you eat food you don't prepare, and people who exercise reasonable caution don't usually get sick.
You don't normally see food-handling issues with meetings of other groups where food is available. I find the whole idea of making Mensans take a 6-8 hour food handling course ridiculous.
— Elna Tymes
Former LocSec, SFRM;
former AG chair; etc.